Helena's Super Secret Ninja Missions

So since so many of my friends seem to want to visit Barcelona this semester, I figured I should should compile all my tips into a blog post. Partly to help them, but also partly so I don't forget my favorite parts.

First of all, and possibly one of the most important things I have to say is to watch out for pickpockets. They're basically everywhere. A little bit of paranoia is healthy. After all, someone did steal my watch two days before I departed the city (I don't know if I'll ever get over the fact that 1-I was so close to leaving without having been pickpocketed or 2-that I was actually wearing my watch when the theft occurred). So if people are crowding you on the metro, or anywhere for that matter, put your hand on  the zipper of your bag to make sure nobody can stealthily steal from you. And if you're male, I don't recommend that you keep your wallet in your back pocket. Never leave anything unattended.

The metro runs from 5 AM to midnight Sunday through Thursday. On Fridays, it's open until 2 AM and it does not close on Saturday night. You will probably end up using the metro quite often, so I would suggest buying a pass with 10 rides. It's much more cost effective.

I understand that when many people think of Spain, they think of paella and sangria. I feel that I should warn you that if you find sangria in a restaurant or a bar, chances are that they got the cheapest wine possible and mixed it with whatever juice and fruit they had on hand. Basically, unless you're invited to a Catalan gathering, you are falling into a tourist trap. However it probably wouldn't taste bad, so if you really enjoy sangria, then go ahead. I just don't recommend it. And in regards to paella, a good rule of thumb is that if there is a picture of the dish outside the restaurant, it is not going to taste good. There may be exceptions to this, but in general, it's a good guideline. Also, if the menu says that at least two people in your party need to order paella, then you'll know that it will definitely be freshly made. Some places simply make huge portions early in the day and heat it up for each customer.

Speaking of restaurants, unless you have already looked up reviews or received a recommendation from someone, try not to go to a place that's located right next to a tourist spot. If you wander along a side street, you might be able to find a better place. Look out for places with a menú del día. It's usually a pretty good deal; you can get a three course lunch for around 8-15 euros. Also, tipping is not necessary. It's not America; waiters/waitresses are not dependent on tips. If you're having a meal in a restaurant, you might want to round up to tip. The last thing I'm going to say about restaurants is that Spaniards eat lunch at 2 PM, and they tend to be long meals. They eat dinner at 9 PM, or sometimes even later. Let me know if you want more specific restaurant recommendations, and I might be able to point you in the right direction.

Some of my favorite dishes were tortilla de patata (Spanish omelette), pan con tomate (bread with tomato rubbed on it), and esqueixada (codfish salad). Of course, I made a point of satisfying my sweet tooth with crema catalana (basically crème brûlée), ice cream (Use the verb probar-to taste/try-to ask for samples of the ice cream before buying.), and ensaimadas (delicious coiled pastries that sometimes come with fillings. Like pumpkin, which is amazing.)

Here's an ensaimada that K and I got for breakfast once. My fingers give an indication of its size. We only got the medium one, and somehow, she managed to convince me that we would have no difficulty polishing it off (honestly, I did not need too much convincing). Needless to say, we spent the rest of the day, carrying around half of a giant ensaimada. There's a lesson to be learned here, somewhere.

In case you didn't already know, Barcelona is in Catalunya, and is bilingual. In fact, some are actually more fluent in Catalan than in Spanish. Thus, almost every sign will be in Catalan, Spanish, and English. I don't know much Catalan aside from bon dia, bona tarda, bona nit, and No parlo el català (I don't speak Catalan). You should be able to get along fine for a weekend without speaking Catalan. And if you can read French, you might be able to read some Catalan.

As for tourist spots, some of my favorite places in Barcelona were Parc Guell and Parc de la Ciutadella. Parc de la Ciutadella has a gorgeous fountain, a pond, and a statue of a giant mammoth. Take a picture on or standing next to the mammoth. If you have time, hang around to watch other tourists' photo ops; watching someone struggle onto the mammoth's trunk can be quite amusing. The park is also walking distance from the beach, Arc de Triomf (which wasn't built to celebrate a victory or anything, by the way), the zoo (which I never actually saw), and the university that I attended while I lived in Barcelona. If you go to the beach, try not to let the massage-offering, beverage-selling people irritate you too much. Click here to read more about characters you might meet at the beach.

Aside from Parc Guell, Gaudí is also responsible for Sagrada Familia, Casa Milà (otherwise known as La Pedrera), and Casa Batlló. If you go to Sagrada Familia, I highly recommend that you go inside. Tip: the process may be significantly less time-consuming if you buy your tickets online beforehand. While you're nearby Sagrada Familia, I would recommend wandering through Hospital de Sant Pau. It's nearby and it definitely does not look like your typical hospital. Palau de la Música Catalana is also gorgeous, and is by the same architect that designed the hospital. In other words, they're some of the few famous works of architecture in Barcelona that Gaudí did not create.

Museu Picasso is also pretty amazing--I actually spent three hours there once. Sometimes they have free entry (you can look that up online), but if you're only in the city for a limited amount of time, it might not be worth it to stand in line for an hour, waiting to get inside. I really enjoyed exploring the neighborhood around the the museum, so you might want to do that as well.

Although flamenco isn't as huge in Barcelona as one might expect (it's bigger in Andalucía, but I once saw a show in Madrid), you can still find shows. If you want to see a show, I could give you the name of a place that one of my friends went to once. 

Finally, if you're going to be in Barcelona for a while, you might want to look into going on day trips, possibly to Sitges, known for its lovely beaches, or Figueras, home of the Dalí Museum. I briefly touched on my trip to Sitges in one of my past posts, but I want to note here that the beaches of Barcelona cannot compare to those of Sitges.

Writing this really made me miss Barcelona. Even more than I already did. But that's okay because I recently booked a flight back there, and as long as strikes don't screw it up, I'll be able to visit again before returning to the U.S.

Here's to Barcelona!