5.29.2008

Barcelona, Tarragona Spain


It's been a while since I've posted here (sorry), but there has been so much to do. When a city is this exciting it becomes difficult to peel myself away and update The Happiest Activist. It's even harder when I'm not blogging about style...

Yesterday we ventured out to a nearby city, much smaller than the Barce, named Tarragona. At first it was hellish. That is no exaggeration. We arrive from the train station and attempted a self-tour of the ancient Roman ruins scattered throughout the city. Well, it is still a city. And cities have highways. And the only way to get to the Roman aqueducts (something I'm still dying to see) we would have to walk on this highway. With impatient Spanish traffic, ghetto neighborhoods at all sides, and tired feet to cap it off. It was worst experience we have had in Spain, without question.

If you haven't guessed by now, we turned around in such a foul mood I was ready to call it quits and just head home. HOWEVER, we (I) called a taxi and FINALLY found the Roman quarter, sans aqueducts. Beautiful, sun-kissed buildings and red tiled roofs, children playing soccer in the street--it was idyllic. We ate at a rip-off cafe because everything else was closed, but as mom and I finished off an entire bottle of red wine (botella de tinto), the sun appeared from the gray abyss like a great travel guide falling from the sky when you're walking on a screeching highway in rural Spain, both literally and figuratively. Mom was drunk, which was far more disturbing than can be put into words, but we meandered around the stunning scenery and finished the day watching the sun set from an ancient Roman circus tower. The Mediterranean is far more beautiful in real life, with sunlight (lol) than in pictures. The day started out so bad, but ended up being one of my favorites on the entire trip.

We got home around 10 and grabbed dinner at a fantastic restaurant in the Catarina market. I had a chicken and tofu red curry, and as a self-styled Thai connoisseur I deemed it the best I've ever had. Seriously.

I'm off to see Casa Mila and Casa Batllo.

1 comment:

Justin R. Wright said...

1. it sounds like you're having an amazing time. i hope it holds up. (when do you return?)

2. thank you for the advice. i agree that i need to experience more. i always knew i needed to, but like you say: corpus is a dead town and there's not much to experience in the town that i haven't already. and YES i am confident enough to say something so bold.

3. i think we have differing views on inspiration, however, or perhaps i'm not communicating my interpretation of it well enough. but then again, varying interpretations of the seemingly same emotions are beautiful aspects of humanity, i do declare!! thing is, i know what i want, really, in every aspect of life. no question, no doubt, no alternative. it's just a matter of GETTING there.

4. rebekah! wow, you did remember. spelling and all. okay just for shits and giggles (in case you care)... rebekah's sister monica is my best friend whose graduation i attended in indiana a couple weeks ago. tidbit.

5. thank you for the encouragement. i hope your move goes smoothly, as well. we shall meet in austin soon. enjoy barcelona, buddy.

6. my comment is longer. pwned.