-Barcelona Part Deux: Sand and Sunburn-

Sandcastle Sagrada Familia I passed on the beach

I sunburned my feet.  But I thoroughly enjoyed my last (I was to discover afterward) day of sunshine concentrate.  An early morning and I set off to get a closer look at the Sagrada Familia after bidding farewell to the snoring fat guy in the other bunk in my hostel room.    By bidding farewell, I of course mean slamming the door loud enough to wake him as abruptly as his horrid snores had woken me up all night. 

Now for a prettier thought - banish the image of the overweight, boozed-out teenage boy passing out at 3 in the morning in his too-small t shirt and only pair of pants on a cheap hostel bunk bed.  You can't always choose your roommates.

In the grassy park across the street from the Sagrada Familia, I sipped a latte, enjoying the magnificent view of the church and pitying the tourists willing to stand in line so long to get inside.  I'm sure the interior is as breath-taking as the exterior, but since the entire place is still under construction (and not projected to finish until 2026), there's a hefty entrance fee which funds construction. I contented myself with the outside of the structure, with both the new and old sides (the newer side's towers are pictured here, the older towers are a darker colour).  Gaudi's architecture has all been so unique, and I love walking around this building.

The afternoon, however, found me at the beach, as probably the only fully clothed person.  Really and truly, I was wearing jeans and a long-sleeved shirt for fear of sizzling like a slice of pink bacon on the Barcelona coast.  This didn't seem like a concern for the topless sunbathers, but I was taking no risks!

Looking more like a tourist than I even have before, I rolled up my pants, put on my backpack (I had no where safe to leave it!) , and walked in the ocean before a long trip back to Paris.  And that is how I sunburned my feet.