Catalonian Chicano

Last night on the train over to Barcelona I met an elderly couple that thought I was chicano because I spoke Spanish but didn't look European I guess. It was funny, I've been taken for everything but European now :P

The train ride over revealed some mountainous villages in Southern France that looked like they might be interesting for some exploring some day. After the shocks of Nice I didn't expect anything to be too frightening in Barcelona, though I've been warned twice about the gypsies, pick-pockets, and terrorists in Spain.

I took an hour nap as soon as I checked into the hostel today to recharge. After that I headed out to the Las Ramblas area, the main tourist attraction in Barcelona. My impression of Barcelona so far is that it is ultra-modernist with Gaudi buildings all over, a flare for Gothic and neo-Gothic architecture, and museums dedicated to contemporary/modernist art and Picasso. I was tempted to go inside the main one to explore, but for some reason I felt it would be completely lost to me. So instead I went for some quiche and a cold drink in an out of the way shaded plaza.

Spain is just as warm as Italy, so I've been taken everything slow minus 100 so that sweat on top of filth can be taken to a minimum. (I just learned what those arched walkways in Bern are called formally, arcades.) I got lost in the old Gothic neighborhood and walked around til I found the Arc d' Triomf (I think that's how it's spelled). Some of the streets are as shady as others have said, but in general it still has that feel of European safety, but who knows what the night will bring.

I thought I might comment on some of the people I have been eavesdropping on throughout. For some reason I hear many an air-headed comment from fellow Americans, myself included :P As far as others go, I don't understand them so I wouldn't know what to say about their conversations. Actually, on the train into Barcelona from Portbou today, I sat with some Spaniards. Kinda youngish, maybe 22-24 or so. One of them was adamant about his friend holding his pack in his lap so that he could stretch out his legs. It got kinda heated in a friendly way until he finally switched seats with me. Strange boy.

At many points of my trip I've had to test my language abilities in languages in which I have no ability at all. Sometimes I get the snootiest remarks mimicking my attempts and I'm just wondering what they hell would happen if I did that to someone trying to speak English :P They're in the minority though.

I've noticed that most chairs in the hostels have holes where one's bum is situated, well, more specifically the anus. I was musing that maybe it's for the better release of gaseous stomachs so that the fart would not ferment as one sat in one spot. But I know that it's for water to go through easily and not collect.

I had high expectations for Barcelona to be an awesome wandering city, but so far I'm not as rapt by its small alleys and such. I did wander through an open air market with meat and vegetables and stuff, but it was not that interesting. On Las Ramblas there were some performers that I found in Nice 10 years back, they must have moved here while the construction continues on Nice's tramways. I think all of Europe is in rennovation right now, the last few cities I've visited have been so uprooted that some of the prettiness is missing. Preparations for France's Olympics?

Though today was interesting in wandering, I hope tomorrow turns up some more interestings places. Cafes and shady plazas are my favorite so far. Luckily I can take a day train to Madrid so that I don't have to do a train rush tomorrow night. A good nights rest tomorrow night, so tonight it's off to see what there is to see.