As the summer was drawing to an end and the Autumn evenings began creeping in, I jumped on a plane and flew off to Barcelona. My boyfriend and I booked the flights back in July so I had been counting down the days where I could say goodbye to work for a week and relax in the sun. I much prefer visiting cities when I go on holiday as I'm not much of a beach person - I don't tan very well and I get bored lying on a beach trying and failing to do so! Saying that, the Barcelonetta beach was beautiful and I very much enjoyed strolling up and down it during the day and in the evenings. I just love wandering around cities - getting lost is a bonus as you see things you weren't expecting! If you are thinking of or hoping to ever visit Barcelona, I would highly recommend it and I hope that this post will give you a little push towards your decision!
Every morning we would get up fairly early and head down to a pastry shop which we found on the first day to enjoy a coffee, a croissant and a smile - from both the extremely friendly man who worked there and from my coffee as he made a face out of frothy milk for me each time I visited. It's the little things like these which made this holiday such a happy one. All the pastries and cookies were home made and they were all delicious and lovely to look at. On the walls were customers' names and where they were visiting from which I thought was such a lovely and welcoming idea.
So whilst we're on the topic, let's talk food. I guess the easiest thing to ask would be what didn't I eat? But let's not dwell on how much ice cream I consumed because it has to be done when on holiday. Instead let's look at the overview. So as I said, pastries were a part of our daily routine but for lunch and dinner we wanted to find things that were more of a different treat. We had salads, wraps, burgers, tapas and paella but our favourite was a restaurant called 'Makamaka'. This restaurant was right by the beach and had a very laid back, beachy theme. We came here for a couple of lunches which consisted of salads and lovely houmous as well as a couple of dinners. Our favourite meal from here was a delicious burger with garlic fries which were just something else! I am a huge lover of garlic and these were flavoured to perfection.
But the Piece de resistance? Waffles. Our favourite place to go was 'The Chocolat-Box' and oh was it filled with wonders. I was introduced to a flavour of ice cream called 'Creme Catalana' which was essentially creme brulee in ice cream form. It was amazing. Add to that a fresh, warm waffles and melted nutella (or condensed milk in my boyfriend's case) and you have something that is to be marvelled at. I am quite the foodie and I have had some lovely meals but this dessert is way up there in the best things I have ever eaten. I wish I had tried the Creme Catalana milkshake!
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Due to staying in an apartment which provided us with the whole city on our doorstep, it wouldn't take much of a wander before we stumbled upon something which was extremely beautiful, different, or simply amazing to look at. The photos below capture some of the most beautiful sights that I saw.
I would describe Barcelona to be an extremely chilled out city, which friendly people and lots of interesting and unique things to see and do. When comparing it to London, it is clear that whilst people in Barcelona keep to themselves when out and about, they are simultaneously more than happy to chat, help and enable you to get the most out of your stay. I tend to get caught up in the whirlwind-like routine that many of us do in England and so experiencing the relaxed atmosphere of Barcelona was extremely refreshing and I have arrived home feeling a lot more relaxed both in myself and my outlook on day to day things - hopefully this will last!
Have any of you visited Barcelona? I would love to hear about your experiences and if you feel the same as I do about the city!
Hope you're having a lovely evening!
Hayley xx