More Family Visits Barcelona!

A couple of months ago my uncle sent me an email that he and my aunt would be in Barcelona for a couple of days around Halloween. There plan was to board a cruise ship that would float all the way back to the United States. Whatever! I was just happy to have some family visit me in Spain!

A lovely sunny Halloween day checking out the Sagrada Familia with my aunt and uncle:

They arrived on Wednesday afternoon and hung out until Diana and I could meet them later for dinner. Of course we took them to our favorite local restaurant, El Glop, which is where we held our wedding reception. I'm not sure if it was the Cava sangria, but they both gave it their thumbs up.

The next morning we met up at the Sagrada Familia where Diana was kind enough to wait in the 45-minute line while the three of us walked around the outside and had a chance to catch up. We got back to Diana just as she was about ten people from the ticket booth. My uncle looked at me and asked if they can just jump in line like that. Of course you can! They ducked under around the ropes and, about two minutes later, were inside the church.

They both really enjoyed and were impressed by the church. We talked about Gaudi and Barcelona architecture while we walked over the the nearby La Paradeta, which is another of our favorite restaurants. Again, they seemed to be impressed but, hey, it's easy to do only the best things when you have just 40 hours together!

After lunch, they came back to our (new) apartment. We opened a bottle of Cava and talked for a couple of hours. It was nice to have family visit our home. (Note to other family...and friends...when are you coming?) When it was time for us to say our goodbyes, I asked them to take a photo with me in front of the Canaletas fountain down the street. The tradition says that you'll come back to Barcelona if you drink from this fountain. Here's hoping for a swift return!

 A couple of interesting notes. First, my aunt and uncle paid about $550 U.S. per person for an all-inclusive cruise that went all the way back to the U.S. That seems downright cheap. I'm not really that into the idea of taking a cruise but, hey, I'm a little more interested when I heard that. Who knows, maybe one day...

The other interesting thing was when my uncle called me the next morning to say goodbye. He wanted Diana and I to know how much they enjoyed visiting with us and how impressed they were with Barcelona. My uncle even said at some point in the conversation that his expectation of the city was something like Cleveland, Ohio, based on brief visits to other parts of Spain but that the reality was something culturally more like New York City but way cleaner. It was definitely a huge compliment. And, guess what! He and my aunt were already talking about coming back for an extended visit. Woohoo! I knew there was something about that fountain!

Thanks for stopping by and Diana and I can't wait to see you guys again soon!