Tibidabo

After classes today, I went to Mt. Tibidabo with my friend Eve. We took an underground train about 10 minutes to the outskirts of the city, then a bus most of the way up the mountain, and finally a funicular which took us the rest it up to the top! At the top of the funicular there is a big cathedral with a terrace where you can see the whole city, the mountains on the sides, and the Meditteranean sea stretching on forever. We were lucky to have warm weather and clear blue skies this afternoon. The mountain is the highest point near Barcelona, meaning the views from the top are incredible. 

You can read more about Tibidabo here: http://gospain.about.com/od/thingstodoinbarcelona/ss/Mount-Tibidabo-Barcelona.htm 

And the wikipedia page has a spectacular panoramic photo of the view from the top: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tibidabo

Here are some photos from our adventure!

After Tibidabo, I went to Eve's apartment building where we swam in her pool and laid on the grass soaking up the sun. This is the life. We talked for a while about how hard it's going to be to leave this place. Barcelona is amazing, and while the classes are good and we've certainly learned a lot, the experience has been so much more than that. We agreed that having the freedom to go on excursions and adventures and visit different parts of the city -- like today's trip to Tibidabo -- is the best part.

When I got home, Amparo had a bowl of pasta and a hamburger all ready for me to eat (in Spain, hamburgers are served on a plate and eaten with fork and knife). She is the best! Amparo and I were glued to the TV during dinner as a young couple lost 25,000 euros on the last question of Atrapo Un Millón tonight. I noticed that I've been getting more comfortable speaking Spanish recently, so we've been chatting more and more each day. It's fun to hear her stories about growing up in a small town in Valencia and I learn a lot when she expresses her (often very strong) opinions about the Spanish government, the monarchy, and the financial crisis.

Amparo and I are very similar in a lot of ways. The other day, she taught me how to make Spanish-style hot chocolate and the two of us sat at the kitchen table eating hot chocolate (because here, it's not a drink, it's closer to warm pudding, and you eat it with a spoon) with whipped cream and dunking magdelenas (kind of like pound cake, but in the form of muffins). We both enjoy game shows. We both doze off on in the living room or on the terrace after lunch. I'm lucky to have such a fabulous host mom (and family!).