Best Day Yet!!

What a day!! We started the day with the choice to take a walking tour or a bicycle tour of Barcelona. Fifteen students and three chaperones took the bicycle tour, led by our fearless and hysterical tour guide, Buddha. He is from Sydney, Australia, living in Barcelona trying to make it as a chef, and running tours, I guess, to pay the rent until the chef thing happens.

On top is a group shot of the walkers, as well as the statue of Christopher Columbus. I can only take their word for it, but the walkers had a great time. They toured the gothic cathedral of Barcelona as well as many other sights.

The bicycle tour was fantastic. It was great to get some cycling exercise, and it was a ton of fun cycling on city streets. Everyone follows the rules of the road, and there are separate lanes for motor and nonmotor vehicles. Above is a group shot of the bikers in front of the Arc de Triomphe. After riding to a park we rode to the beach for lunch. A few brave souls actually went for a dip - most of us were content to order lunch and lay back in lounge chairs.

After a brief return to the hotel to freshen, we took the Metro to Gaudi's Familia Segrada, a church which was begun in the 1860s and is still only about half complete. It is impossible to describe the enormity of this church and Gaudi's ambition, which was to tell the entire story of Christianity from the birth, to the Passion, to the Resurrection of Christ in one building. The detail and design are mind-boggling and almost every student bought something, so you can either Google it to see right away, or you can wait until we get home.

Back to the hotel to change from sightseeing clothes to dinner and a show togs. The girls all looked spectacular and the boys went from scruffy to nearly presentable. Dinner was at a flamenco dance theater. Dinner itself was a seafood paella and almost everyone was great about trying this authentic Spanish dish, which contained shrimp, mussels, and prawns. Dessert was a flan in a strawberry sauce and it was great. Then the flamenco dancing began.

The show consisted of two singers, two flamenco guitarists, one violinist, one percussionist, plus the dancers, two men and four women. We didn't really know what to expect, but it was fantastic. We saw a variety of flamenco styles and all of the students danced their way home. Needless to say, we stopped for gelato and some of us rambled on La Rambla until we dragged ourselves back to the hotel and began planning for the next two days.

Getting funky now, I'm trying to upload two indie videos taken by our own Ms. West. In one, our students show off their language skills - your tax dollars at work; in the other, Ms. West throws caution to the wind and videos the bikers while riding.