DAY 9: BARCELONA AND EL GRAN PAELLA

You would expect me to start working now that I'd arrived in Barcelona, but you'd be wrong. It was Sunday, so of course, everything was closed. Well nearly everything. And I took it as the perfect time to get in a little sight seeing with friends. So off we went to the Picasso Museum. When we arrived, there was a huge line, so we left Greg in line and Jayna and I went off to buy some sandwiches for "breakfast". (Yeah, it was nearly noon, but this is Spain after all). While walking to the sandwich place, we passed the plaza in front of an old Spanish church (i don't remember the name right now, but it's famous with really cool gothic architecture) and they seemed to be setting up for some type of party. The main thing we noticed was this enormous black paella pan. It was so big that Jayna and I could basically lie down in it and still have room.

So after spending a few hours in the Picasso museum, being herded around like cows, we just had to go back to find out what was happening with that enormous paella pan. Turns out we were right on time for El Gran Paella. Huge long tables had been set up and everyone was taking pictures stirring a giant pan of paella that was bubbling away.I can't really convey to you how cool this giantic paella pan really was without some video. So please enjoy some Youtube.



After speaking to some people, we found out that it was a neighborhood festival that was taking place. And for 7E (that's less than $10) you get a massive plate of paella and all the bread, salad, wine and water that you could drink. (plus a little chocolate ice cream cup at the end). So without delay, we bought our tickets and got in line. Here's the ticket belowAnd here's some video of us (and all the other hungry people) waiting in line for the paella.



Luckily, we didn't have to wait very long, since they started dishing it out into these massive metal pans and then onto plastic plates.I think one of the coolest parts of El Gran Paella was the communal aspect of it all. We sat down amongst normal Spaniards and tourists, too. Actually, the people sitting to our immediate right were just 3 old neighborhood people. They were kinda funny, eating their paella and enjoying the day. Really, this is what life should be like.We spent the rest of the afternoon walking off all the paella and we looked into the windows of some chocolate shops. But ultimately, we decided it was time for a siesta (don't you just love Spain??) So I headed back to Shirley's place where I crashed for a bit.

When Shirls finally arrived (she had just come in from Costa Brava where she spent the holiday weekend at the beach) we hung out for a bit and before we knew it, it was time to eat again. I, of course, wanted tapas. And Shirley complied with my wish. We headed out to a neighborhood tapas bar, gaseteria, in the area that Shirley lived, Gracia. I really liked the area because it is full of locals. No herds of tourists like we'd experienced earlier in the day at the Picasso Museum and on Las Ramblas.

When we arrived, it was still a bit early by Spanish time (about 9pm), so the place was empty. We quickly found seat at a bar, and started ordering tapas. Here's a view of the interior.So in Barcelona, tapas doesn't work like it does in the way that we're accustomed to in the U.S. Lots of tapas are served on bread and they don't arrive hot. Basically, they were all lined up at the bar, you'd point at stuff and the bartender would hand the tapas to you on a plate. Oh, and we loved our bartender/server. He was Lebanese and actually preferred to speak to us in English rather than Spanish. When Jayna and Greg arrived later, he was also a big fan of Greg. So Shirls and I started off with these tapas:On the right are red peppers stuffed with tuna. And on the left is the traditional potato omlette.
Here we have goat cheese and walnuts in the back, and in the front is smoked salmon salad.

And finally, I got this tapa with white aspargus on top of an egg.All the tapas were simple, but super tasty and they weren't too expensive either. I really enjoyed the casual atmosphere. And of course we washed it all down with local wine. Actually, the bartender insisted we get a bottle of local white wine, which he taught Greg how to pour. (I won't go into the details of what he actually said, but enjoy the video below.)

Of after stuffing ourselves with tapas, we had to head out for ice cream, of course. Shirley took us to another one of her favorite places just down the block from the tapas place. They had lots of different types of ice creamBut i decided to be simple since it was so hot out and since I'd eaten so much for dinner. So i just got a lemon sorbet. (sorry for the white on white pic).While Shirls got a double scoop on a cone.All in all, it was a spectacular day for food. And it wasn't just the food, I think it has a lot to do with the culture and lifestyle. The enjoyment of it all. It was only to be topped by my food experiences the following day.