On the way there:
left: a gigantic chair in Barcelona. Compare this to:
right: a similar one (but with a broken leg) I came across in Geneva. Wonder what they signify..
Other monuments and buildings (the one on the right looks like something from the matrix)
left: Port Vell and the Rambla de Mar, a wooden footbridge across the Port, that leads to Maremàgnum, a shopping complex with a rather unique exterior of mirrored surfaces.
left: the Maremàgnum
right: Letch and I were found the word 'Caixa' that we see at almost every turn very amusing as it looks so much like a chinese word but I think it means 'bank' in Catalan.
Next, we proceeded to the beaches! How we missed the warmth of the sun's rays on our faces, being able to wear just a single layer and actually feeling hot!
left: basking in the sun
right: someone really had to go! (haha)
The beaches (Barceloneta and San Sebastia) were nothing to shout about but there were quite a few nude sunbathers and an adorable little boy!
Here's a video of this old man and his unique brand of warming-up exercise. No offence meant, just thought it was quite amusing.
On our way to lunch, we stopped to check out the Basílica di Santa Maria de la Mar - the only perfectly finished Catalan gothic church, different from the European gothic churches in that horizontal lines and bare surfaces dominate its architectural style.
Lunch was horrifying - in more ways than one =D. Jem suggested that we tried the Arroz Negro, paella (pah-eh-ya) with squid ink which we gamely agreed to since it seemed rather exotic. We also ordered a tapas (the term for appetizers - the Spanish love their tapas), squid in salsa sauce.
left: Pulpitos en Salsa
right: Arroz Negro
stunned by the black mass that was before us - they could've put roaches inside and we wouldn't have been able to tell. Whoa, that dish was the saltiest thing I'd ever tasted! Think they must've drowned the rice in squid ink.
The aftermath:
the cast of The Ring 4.
Barcelona's most famous street, La Ramblas, was our next destination. It's renowned for being THE street where all the action takes place! As that was exactly how it was. From extraordinary street performances, to stalls selling different breeds of lizards, to wagering in the middle of the street (a crowd of about 20 people surrounded the dealer who was playing the classical game of shifting 3 overturned bowls around to guess which one contained a small ball), walking down Las Ramblas was an incredibly novel experience. In no matter which direction we looked, we saw something different which always managed to capture our attention.
These street performers aren't the run-of-the-mill sort. In fact, they're quite creative in their engagement of the audience and most of the time you see a crowd gathering to watch and the money keeps rolling in!
The shopperholic in Jem couldn't resist the temptation of the many boutiques in the vicinity so he and Letch went off shopping while Andi and I continued on to Casa Batlló, one of Gaudi's surrealistic architectural wonders. Built in 1877, it is known to the locals as Casa dels Ossos (House of Bones), due to the its skeletal-like design, especially apparent in its queer balconies. The entry fee was an exorbitant 16 € so we just looked through the windows like a poor kid outside a candy shop =D
left: Casa Batlló from across the street
right: some building which caught my eye
We met Letch and Jem who were gleefully brandishing a box of Dunkin Donuts (haha!) at 4pm and got ready for a date with Ronaldinho and Co. at the Camp Nou (new field in Catalan), which incidentally is the largest stadium in Europe. Was brimming with anticipation for what would be my first big football match (Tiger Cup not counted la =p). To get there, we had to take the metro to Maria Cristina.
left: one of Barcelona's many metro stations. The metro system is very extensive, consisting of 9 lines and numerous interchanges.
right: the widest trains I've seen so far. All of them have this strange smell of perfume, which unfortunately, smells quite horrid.
We saw quite a few Barça fans on the metro so we just followed them towards the stadium which was about a 10 minute walk away. En route, we noticed a small crowd of camera-at-the-ready Barça fans gathering at the entrance of a hotel. As we approached, a bus donning the maroon and blue colours of FC Barcelona came into sight. And then it dawned on us. Immediately, our Singaporean instincts overtook and we joined the herd. =D
Found myself a pretty good spot in front of the bus and waited for about 10 minutes when pandemonium erupted! The fans were cheering and shouting as the players boarded the team coach. Being the football fan that I am, I was absolutely elated to be able to be in the thick of it all and to see a couple of world class players up close! What drama! The adrenalin rush I experienced lasted long after! Am crossing my fingers that I'll be able to see Maldini and Co. like that in Milan too!
Ronaldinho
Zambrotta and Henry
As we neared the Camp Nou, the pre-match excitement was thick in the air.
left: with two fervent Barca supporters!
right: a pre-match interview of a supporter. Damn, we'd have liked to be on Barca TV too!
In FC Botiga: the official merchandise store
We'd bought our tickets (Barça vs. Almeria) online a few weeks back. We paid 26€ each for the 2nd lousiest seats which weren't too bad at all! The view was good and the stadium was absolutely majestic!
The Barça anthem which has a really catchy, sing-a-long tune!
We took delight in joining in the jeering of the referee when decisions went against Barça and cursing at missed goal-scoring opportunities. Barça was at parts outplayed by this relatively unknown club but managed to win the game 2-0 thanks to a penalty scored by Messi and a tap-in by Henry.
The match was an experience I'll never forget! I'll pay good money to watch football over a concert any day!
1 comment:
OMG ur dream to watch a football match!! and did i hear u shouting RONALDHINO?!?! i burst out laughing when i heard that!! u saw them so close up!! ahhahahah and the cast of the ring 4 was horrifying la.
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