Cobble Stone Streets
Barcelona’s streets are paved by locals and trafficked by nations of the globe. Their culture is poetic from the infrastructure, greetings, and street art. I started away from the crowds toward the edge of the city and climbed up to view a panoramic view of the city. I saw steeples in the distance, as I made my way back down in search of the building. After a short time, I wound up in a beautifully graffitied park. Next, I found myself surrounded and taking in the beautifully shaded part of town. I made my way back to the ship without making it to the steeples. However, I enjoyed the rest of the night talking with professors. This time was unintentional but quickly became intentional. I heard stories told by two Ghanaian sisters, whose father was once their prime minister and journalist who has worn many hats throughout his life. Akosu Busia, is a renowned actress who has starred in many New York broadways and Hollywood films. Dr. Abena Busia currently represents Ghana as its ambassador for the entire content of South Africa. Pamela Hollie was a journalist from the New York Times and Chicago Tribute- we had a wonderfully long, dynamic conversation.
I took to the streets the next morning, this time with four others and no plan. We made our way through the city to Park Guil. I admired the curves, color, and creativity that made up the surroundings. After, we made our way to a metro station where we met Dani a local from a small outskirt town. He spent the day showing us around the historical city. We eventually made it to the steeples of La Segrada Famelia, (I advise you to google it) that I had admired from afar the day before. We walked small quaint streets filled with an abundance of texture, and crowded markets filled with colorful fruit. While walking through the streets, we noticed cans painted with single letters combined together and hung high on building walls. Dani translated the can “I want to live adventures and I want to live them with you because I know you want to.” Another read “I am not going to let you down I want to grow old with you.” These cans directly reflected the emotions evoked from the interactions happening around me. Dani then caught us off guard and opened his home for us to stay. After, 12 miles of walking we caught a train to Torredembarra and squeezed in his small Toyota, ate Tapas at a small bar, and made our way to his traditional home. We woke up to views of the Mederterian Sea and spent the day exploring his small town from his favorite beach spots, finding ourselves in abandoned houses and towering lighthouses. After missing two trains, Dani insisted we pile in once more as he drove us through the winding roads of Spain, past Roman Ruins all while jamming to music of every kind to the next train stop in Tarragona. We parted in true style kissing each other's cheek.
Upon arrival in Valencia, we wandered our way back to the ship; emptied our packs, and headed back out to find dinner. The next morning we took to the streets on a mission for croissants and gelato, of course. We made our way through the art and science district which consisted of modern buildings entangled together and set in large pools of water. Then, only after walking through numerous small allies, we found the holy grail of croissants... which we promptly ate on a nearby bench then went in for round two. We followed it up with gelato, walked to the historical district which resembled Barcelona, and then headed back to the ship to send out some postcards and again watch one more poetic performance of the crew pulling in the ropes. The blow of the horn signaled the routine had ended but more to await in the near future.
