Revisiting the Gothic Area

Breakfast was at a corner restaurant. Delicious scrambled eggs with bacon and sliced French bread and fresh-squeezed orange juice at a reasonable price.

Tried to retrace the route I took with the Captain and found most of the places more or less. The ambience is, of course, different in the daytime. (Pictures of the old alleys and plazas and ancient Roman ruins of Barcelona in Smugmug.)

I found the La Estrella restaurant again but it had the metal slide-down doors covering the doors and windows with graffiti. I felt like Cinderella after midnight.

Cathedral de Santa Maria Del Mar

More Cathedral de Santa Maria del Mar pictures in Smugmug.

I found the Cathedral de Santa Maria Del Mar easily. The Captain said that he often went there for peace, but there was no peace for me. Maybe because there were so many tourists. So I walked around and took pictures quietly. Then, as an offering for the new significance of the site, I bought a red candle and decided to leave it in front of a statue near one of the side doors, just as an usher was herding everyone out because it was already 14:00.

As I was taking a picture of my candle and the statue, a man in his late 20s or early 30s started asking me questions excitedly about my camera. He must have looked over my shoulder and saw the display on my tablet. He was very excited about the technology, which he didn't know existed. I told him the brand and showed him the model number in the back and I demonstrated how it worked. He figured that it required an app. Then he thanked me and went back to join his friends, excitedly telling them what he learned.

Museo de Picasso

I started looking for Calle Petritxol to look for the chocolate place that the Captain recommended, but turned into an alley and saw the Museo de Picasso so I decided to go in since I was already there. I was a bit disappointed that there was a very long line to enter but every place was crowded anyway, since it was a Sunday. While I was in line, I overheard that the entrance was free on the first Sunday of the month after 15:00; that was why there was a long line. What synchronicity!

The audio guide costs 5€ and was actually very helpful in giving context to the works. Otherwise, you'd just think that the works were just random. To be honest, after seeing these works, I think Picasso had gone mad as he got older. I wonder if going mad is necessary to be a great artist.

Barcelona Cathedral

More Barcelona Cathedral pictures in Smugmug.

The Barcelona Cathedral is beautifully ornate with a little garden with a fountain and large white geese. But again lots and lots of people, who were too noisy while Mass was going on. Some areas were restricted but I didn't mind since it was getting late anyway.

It took at least three people to guide me to Calle Petritxol: a saleslady in a women's clothing store, a street cleaner, a policeman in front of one of the government buildings. Each of them said that it was complicated, and, after giving me the complicated version then seeing my confusion, they repeated the first few directions and advised me to ask someone when I get there. There were probably one or two more who helped me and there were a lot who didn't even know where it is.

I discovered it when I crossed a plaza after passing the Cathedral de Santa Maria Del Pi. Pictures of Cathedral de Santa Maria Del Pi in Smugmug.

Petritxol Xocoa

More Calle Petritxol pictures in Smugmug.

The servers weren't so welcoming but helpful anyway. I felt like I accidentally invaded a teenagers-only place where they resented adults showing up and ruining their fun, but I saw a pair of older women there. It can't be that they don't welcome tourists because they're only a block or two from La Rambla. So it must be some other reason for discrimination. Being me (with so many things to discriminate about), I'll never know.

Anyway, the one who took my order explained what they did there. I opted for the hot xocoa with xurros. She said you dip the xurros in the chocolate. (I guess the 'x' is pronounced like "ch".)

OK. I thought it would be like dunking doughnuts in your coffee. Nope. The hot chocolate has the consistency of thick chocolate fondue, but with lots more milk. But after that snack, I bought something that looked like a dark chocolate-covered macaroon that's the size of my palm. My server explained that it had almonds and caramel. It turned out to be delicious.

Afterwards, I walked down La Rambla again but faster this time.