Rediscovering Barcelona . . .

I'm happy to say that after my post last Sunday, I've already started to rediscover Barcelona! Our friend Brendan reminded us that the first Sunday of every month means free admission to all museums. So, he, Tessa, and I visited Caixa Forum, near Montjuic, to see a few art exhibits (perfect timing with our current Meet the Artist project in 5th grade!). After that, we wandered around some neighborhoods I'd never been in, discovering new streets and delicious empanadas and gelato flavors. It was a fantastic "cultural" Sunday!

On Thursday, we had a field trip to  Poble Españyol - a little village created to showcase the different styles of architecture, foods, and crafts from each of the regions of Spain. I loved visiting this place last year, but learned even more this time. For example, cities in each of the regions of Spain were built for specific reasons. In Aragon, the buildings, particularly the doors, were built to represent the different religions living there - Jewish, Muslim, and Christian. In Andalucia, cities were constructed to stay cool - white buildings, narrow streets for air flow, arches to provide shade. What I didn't know was that Catalonia, especially Barcelona, was constructed for the artisans and tradespeople. The streets were named based on what was sold on them - Carrer de Pescadores (fish), Carrer d'Argenteria (silver), Carrer Rubi (rubies), etc. I had no idea! Learning this has made me pay even more attention to street names. (And it makes so many details from The Cathedral of the Sea even clearer!)

Learning about Aragon

Trying to stay cool in Andalucia

Learning about Catalonia

Yesterday, I went on a bit of a climb up Montjuic. Tessa and I went on a big walk here last week and I was shocked to see just how much is there! I decided to explore a bit more and came across so many beautiful gardens, statues, and fountains. The views from the top are incredible as well.

Old City Wall

Statue near Hotel Miramar

Fountains in the Botanic Gardens

I love this! Also near the Botanic Gardens.

View of BCN - you can see Sagrada Familia in the distance

I have a feeling rediscovering Barcelona is going to be great both for me and upcoming visitors. I'm already starting to plan visits to a few places off the beaten path. I can't wait to keep finding the hidden treasures of Barcelona!