York Round Two

Friday I was off to York, England to see Lindsay!  Woohoo I was really excited to see Linds!!! It is so easy for me to get to England from Ireland, and even better, I get to fly from Cork.

I had a 7 AM flight to Manchester, and I landed around 8:30 AM.  I had to take a bus from Manchester Airport to the larger train station in the city, and then a train from there would bring me to York.  I was meeting Lindsay at the train station a little after 12, which gave me some time to wake up and get a coffee at Starbucks (finally, some good coffee).  When I met up with Linds, we walked right into the city for some lunch, we were starving!  We went to Bill's, an awesome restaurant that Lindsay took me to last time I visited.  We even sat at the same table, it is turning into our place, I guess!  Lunch was delicious, we shared these incredible honey sausages, and then had steak sandwiches with arugula.  As good as lunch was, it was even better being back with my other half :).  We could not stop catching up and filling one another in on the happenings of our lives.  We could have sat at the table forever!

Once we finished lunch, Lindsay and I decided we would do a little shopping.  I needed to find a dress for a ball I had coming up later that week, and York is full of some great stores.  I definitely looked a little silly because I was still carrying my luggage.  People were giving me funny looks in the store when I would walk in with a big luggage bag, but I did not care, shopping was on my mind!

After shopping, and successfully finding a dress, we headed back to Lindsay's apartment.  We were both a little tired, so we just hung out and watched a movie.  Lindsay and I are both so similar, our idea of a perfect night is hanging out and watching a good show or movie...I think we will make great housemates next year!  When the movie ended, we got dressed and headed back into the city for dinner.  We had such a big lunch, we were not very hungry at all, so we went to a really late dinner.  We were meeting another Holy Cross girl studying in York, Emma, at this cute French restaurant, Cafe Rouge.  It is always really nice seeing other HC Study Abroad kids.  I feel that the year is such a commitment and we all sort of share this bond from the experience, no matter where you are studying.  I loved hearing what Emma had done so far, and what else she had planned!

When the three of us finished dinner, we headed to a really cool bar, Evil Eye, but unfortunately, the line was really long, so we could not get in!  Lindsay thought that if would be better if we went there on Saturday, so instead we went to the bar across the street, which ended up being really good too!  We stayed for one drink, and then headed back home pretty early.  I was pooped from my long day of travel, and we still had so much of the weekend left ahead of us!

Be back soon!

XO,

Caitlin

Sunrise on my flight that morning!

York, England

The Shambles, the most picturesque street in England.

Back with my best friend! 

A Full Day of Classes

Thursdays are really busy for me with school.  I have five hours of classes, each with an hour in between.  So it is a little hard to do anything but go to class!

This Thursday I only had four classes, because my Science in Society lecture has not started.  I guess you could say I am being eased into classes still, which is fine by me! My first class was from 10-11, and that was my Folklore class, then 12-1, Sociology of Globalization and Development, next, 2-3, Political Sociology, and lastly, Sociology of Development and Globalization, again.  I really do not understand the schedule of classes in Ireland at all.  There is no rhyme or reason to how anything is set up regarding school, so it is still taking me some time to get it figured out again.  My classes seem to be going well, though!

After classes, I went to the gym, came home and got dinner ready, and started packing for my weekend trip to England.  I was going to visit Lindsay in York!  The last time we say each other was before Christmas, so I could not wait.  On Friday, I will have seen the four of my best friends from Holy Cross in less than a week!  Crazy!

Be back soon with details from England!

XO,

Caitlin  

After 5 PM, and it is still light out!!!

Dinner and the Theater

Wednesday was a day I was finally going to go to all of my classes, or so I thought...I swear, Mom and Dad, it will happen at some point :)

I only had two classes on Wednesday, Political Sociology and Sociology of the Media.  After Political Sociology, Jane and I thought we would be productive and go to the gym.  We were finally getting in a routine!  However once we came home and showered, we really had no motivation to go to Sociology of the Media.  We were not a huge fan of this professor, and he puts everything online, so we decided to go shopping instead.  I needed to get a gift to bring to Lindsay's, in England, for the weekend!  Oh how I am NOT missing Holy Cross classes right now...

After finding a gift in the City Centre, Jane and I headed over to the far end of the city.  We were meeting our advisor, Shane, and some of the other HC kids for our first dinner of the semester.  We were going to Isaacs, a restaurant I had never heard of, and then to a play, "Matched."  Dinner was delicious, and everyone went all out with their orders, it was on Holy Cross's expense!  I had a brie and jam dish to start, lamb curry for my main dish, and s sticky toffee pudding for dessert.  When Holy Cross pays, we absolutely take advantage of it!  After dinner, we headed across the street to the theater, Everyman Theater, for the play.  The play was a little too long, but still entertaining.  It was definitely interesting to see some Irish art!

Now that we have met with Shane, semester two was officially a go.  So far, things seem great :)

Be back soon!

XO,

Caitlin

Dinner at Isaac's!

    

Third Time's a Charm

Tuesday was a day that I really got to witness the bipolar weather of Ireland.  It was GORGEOUS when Sarah and I woke up, but as the day went on, it got really cold and rainy!  This did not stop us from our day, however.  We had to go kiss the Blarney Stone!

Sarah and I grabbed a 10:30 AM bus to the Blarney Castle.  The weather was not as bad as the last time I went to the Blarney Castle, so we were able to walk around for a while.  This was my third time kissing the Blarney Stone.  I must really be graced with the gift of gab now, right??  After kissing the stone, we walked around the grounds for about an hour, and then caught a 12:30 bus back to Cork.  Sarah had to go to Galway at 2:30, so we had to get back to the apartment so she could pack.

When we arrived back in the city, we ran to the English Market so Sarah could bring some lunch with her on the bus to Galway, stopped at an ATM, and ran a few more errands.  I was VERY impressed with how fast we were going.  We were on a mission!  During our mad dash of errands, I went to call the taxi company to schedule a car to pick Sarah up from my apartment, but my phone ran out of money!!  I had never had this happen to me, and I panicked a little bit.  Luckily, Jane was home when we got back, so she called one for us.  Otherwise, we would have had a little bit of a problem!  Sarah packed in record time, and was off to Galway.  I did not like saying bye to her, I had such a fun time with her here in Cork.  But, hopefully we would be seeing each other in a few months during some of our travels!

When Sarah left, I took it easy for the rest of the day and passed out, I was exhausted.  A quiet apartment did not feel right to me!  Having so many of my HC friends visit over the past few weeks made me so excited for senior year.  Allegra, Anne, and Sarah were three of the five other girls I am living with in my house next year, and I already know it will be awesome!

The past few weeks have been great, and I loved showing off my (not so) new home to my best friends.  Be back soon!

XO,

Caitlin

Third time kissing the Blarney Stone!

Post-kissing the Blarney Stone.

View from the top of the Blarney Castle:

I Fell in Love with the English Market, Again.

Monday was a quiet day.  Sarah and I had lots of catching up to do, so we did not have any plans to leave Cork.  We wanted to just hang out with each other!

Sarah had a very long day of travel on Sunday, so, she slept in while I went to my one class on Monday.  Unfortunately, this is not a class I can miss because weekly attendance is taken.  But, this was the only class I have on Mondays, so it was not a problem.  When I got home, Sarah and I were both starving.  She has heard me talk about the English Market so much, so I obviously had to take her there!  We went to the Farmgate Cafe for lunch, which as delicious, per usual.  We got a bunch of different little dishes to share.  We didn't want to fill up too much because we had plans for dinner at a restaurant in the city.  Sarah loved the English Market, I mean, how can't you?  It has to be one of my favorite places in Cork, along with O'Connail's, which I took her to next :)

We enjoyed walking around the city with our hot chocolate, shopping around, and catching up.  The weather was not great, so we went into as many stores as we could, a perfect excuse!  I was seriously bumming that I only had a few days with Sarah in Cork, because it was so nice to see her.  When she left, it would also mean that my company was over for a while, unfortunately!  But, I was enjoying the time I had with her!

After our exploring the city, we went back to the apartment and hung out for a little while.  We bought a few beauty supplies in town, including nail polish, so we of course had manicure time.  Jane came over and did her nails with us before leaving for dinner.  The three of us were trying a restaurant that Jane and I have had our eye one for a while, Cafe Mexicana.  This place looks so divey when you walk by, but it was incredible.  They had very authentic, delicious food, and even better, sangria!  The meal was so awesome, a new place for me to bring guests!

Once we finished dinner, we headed over to the Franciscan Well for a drink.  I bring all of my guests here because it is something so unique to Cork, and always a good time.  I tried their seasonal hot hard cider, which was spiced with cloves and oranges.  It was a perfect drink for a chilly night!

Tomorrow was some tourism stuff with Sarah, be back soon!

XO,

Caitlin

The English Market

Farmgate Cafe

Dinner at Cafe Mexicana!

Drinks at the Franciscan

More HC Friends!

On Sunday, I slept in very late.  I was definitely catching up on some much needed sleep.  It was weird not waking up to Allegra and Anne on my floor, though!

I cleaned the apartment and got a little organized.  I had not done this in a very long time, so the apartment was looking a little rough.  It was a very slow moving day for me, I did not shower until 3:30, and that was only because I had to leave the house to meet up with some people...oops!  A lazy Sunday never hurt anyone :)

After cleaning up the house and showering (becoming a real person) I met Jane, and another HC student, Francie, for some O'Connail's.  Jane asked me if I wanted to join her and Francie, and I NEVER say no to O'Connail's!  It was the perfect Sunday treat!  I had to go that way in town anyways because I was meeting up with my friend, Sarah, who is studying in Spain this year.  She was coming to Ireland for the week, and her first stop was in Cork.

I picked Sarah up from the bus station, and I was SO happy to see her!  We have not been together since Oktoberfest, in September!  To say we were making a scene when reunited, would be an understatement.  After picking her up, we headed back to my place to get ready for the night.  Sarah only had a few days here, so I had to show her everything.  Our first stop, Oliver Plunkett with Jane and Nicole.  There was some great live music, and we were able to find a table to sit down and have dinner.  I had the Irish Stew, which was so delicious, most definitely one of my favorite Irish dishes thus far.

Once we finished up at Oliver Plunkett, we met up with Julia at An Brog, a bar showing the football playoff games.  We needed to feel like we were back home a little bit, and American football is just the trick!  Sarah and I were tired, so we unfortunately could not last for the Pats game, but the Seahawks vs. Packers game was definitely a thriller!  It is nice to know that there is coverage of football, especially this time of year.

It was an early night for us, we had a busy few days coming up!  Be back soon!

XO,

Caitlin

Reunited!

At An Brog for the games!

Goodbyes

Saturday was the day I had to say bye to Allegra and Anne.  I was NOT looking forward to this, it was goodbye for four more months! I had an awesome time with them here, however, and I knew they were going home to an great second semester at HC.

The girls were being picked up at the hostel at 10:30 for their 2 PM flight.  They were leaving plenty of time, but it is better to be safe than sorry!  When the girls grabbed their shuttle, after many, many hugs goodbye, Jane and I picked up a taxi and headed to the train station.  We were getting an 11 AM train back to Cork.  I was glad that we were able to make this train because we would be home with a lot of the afternoon left to goer some errands done.

When I arrived back in Cork, I went straight to business.  I had lots of cleaning, grocery shopping, and organizing to do for the week.  On Sunday, my HC friend Sarah, who is studying in Spain, was coming to visit for a few nights.  So, I wanted to have everything in order.  I cleaned the apartment first, which is sort of a relaxing thing for me.  I really enjoy cleaning, which means I definitely got my mom's cleaning gene! Thanks, Mom :)  After cleaning, I headed to the City Centre for groceries.  It was, once again, a gorgeous day, a little cold, but still really nice!  I was in the city for a very long time because I did a huge shopping run.  I was stocking up on a lot of the items I had not had time to get since being back.  But, it was really fun wandering the city by myself, taking in everything I love about Cork, and more :)

Once I got home, I had Jane and Nicole over for appetizers.  I bought some great hummus at the English Market that I needed to share!  I also got the hostess gene from my mom, well, actually Nana.  I love having everyone over for a little party whenever I can, even if it is just appetizers.  It was great catching up with Nicole, it had been so long since we sat down and just caught up!

For dinner, Jane and I made mini pizzas for ourselves.  At the English Market, I also bought burrata.  This is a really nice cheese, like mozzarella, made from buffalo milk.  The cheese was amazing, and our pizzas came out really great too!  While we were making the pizza, we decided we would kill some time and try out a new face mask I bough earlier in the day.  I was feeling really homesick on Saturday, and face masks with Jane was the perfect pick-me-up.

In the middle of our pizza dinner, I received some INCREDIBLE news.  Kathryn, the fourth Spalluto daughter, and Tommy, one of Maureen's best friends from Holy Cross, were engaged!!!!!!!! I could not be happier and more excited for them!  There was a bug surprise going on in Boston later that evening as a celebration, that I wish I could have been at.  It is definitely times like this where being 3,000 miles away really starts to show itself.  This just means an even bigger celebration in April when Kath and Mo come to Ireland :)

Saturday was a great day, with lots of happy news!  Be back soon!

XO,

Caitlin

I love this place!

Pizza time

A little relaxin'.

CONGRATULATIONS, KATH AND TOMMY!!!

HC to Dublin

Friday was a day of showing Allegra and Anne around Dublin.  They were leaving Saturday morning, so we had lots to get done! To make it even better, the weather was great.  No more snow, and no rain.  Dublin, here we come!

Our first stop on the tour of Dublin was brunch.  We stopped at a quick place in Temple Bar to fuel up with some coffee and delicious food.  It was a nice, relaxing morning.  We were in no rush, and just sat and enjoyed the morning.  After eating, we headed to the Grafton Street area.  There is always live music around here, lots of people, and some great shopping.  Four girls in a city definitely calls for lots and lots of shopping.  I had to resist in my spending, but it was still fun to look around!  Next, we were on a mission to find the Dublin Doors.  These are many colorful, large doors on one street in Dublin, right by Saint Stephen's Green.  It took us a little while to find them, but eventually we did it. I was really enjoying strolling around the city, walking through the Green, and spending the last day with my best friends.  Dublin is an awesome place, and I needed to show that to my friends.  Ireland is my home (right now, do not worry, Mom, not for good!), and I was really excited to share that with everyone from home.

Once we finished our walking tour of the city, we had some afternoon tea at Bewley's and then headed back to the hostel.  We had to get ready for our dinner reservation at my favorite restaurant, L. Mulligan Grocer.  This was one of the places I went with Mom, Dad, and Carolyn back in October, an amazing gastro pub.  It feels as if that was such a long time ago!!  The dinner did not fail to impress me, once again.  I had vegetarian scotch eggs to start, and muscles as my main course.  The eggs were to die for, one of the best dishes I have ever had!  I think Jane, Allegra, and Anne all loved the choice in restaurant as well, so everything was a success!

I was sad to see our last night come to an end, but it had been a great two weeks.

Be back soon!

XO,

Caitlin

Anne and Allegra in front of Temple Bar!

Jane, Allegra, Anne, and myself walking around Dublin.

Dublin Doors

Me, Anne, and Allegra after our tea break.

BEST FOOD EVER.

 Dinner!

Reunion

Thursday was the day we were off to Dublin.  I was really excited to show Anne and Allegra another part of the country, and I really love Dublin!  I was also super excited for this trip because we would be meeting up with some HC kids studying in Dublin, and some kids that I went to Northwest Catholic with.

Before I could get excited for the trip, I had to go to two classes (even though I had four that day, oops...).  I went to Political Sociology, and the Sociology of Globalization and Development.  Both are pretty dry and boring, but they have no finals, I cannot complain!  What am I going to do when I am back at HC and have to take hard classes....who knows.  But, I am enjoying my LAST semester in Ireland to the fullest :)

When I got home, Anne, Allegra, and I headed to the City Centre for some lunch before our train to Dublin.  We went to the Farmgate Cafe, which is the restaurant upstairs in the English Market.  I had a spicy chicken sandwich.  It was really great, and so fresh tasting.  I love how Ireland emphasizes organize, fresh food, no matter what.  It tastes so good, and you can really notice a difference (take note, America!).  After lunch, we had a quick last stop for the girls at O'Connails.  I have gotten them addicted in their few short weeks in Cork!

After lunch, Jane, Allegra, Anne, and I grabbed a 4:20 train to Dublin, getting us to the City at about 6:45.  This is so much more enjoyable than the bus, I need to utilize it more often!  We were staying at a great hostel, the Ashfield Hostel, right near Temple Bar.  We had a private room and private bathroom.  This is unheard of in hostels!  We changed quickly when we got there, and chilled out for a little bit.  We were a little sleepy, but we had a long night ahead of us!

At about 8:30, we walked around the Temple Bar area to find somewhere to eat.  We ended up going to Merchant's Arch, right in Temple Bar.  It had awesome food, and live music.  A great place to get us ready for the night and wake us up!  Once we finished eating, the four of us headed to a bar, Karma Stone, to meet up with one of my best friends from high school, Smurf, and another one of our NWC friends, Chris.  The two of them were studying in Dublin for the semester, and I could not go to Dublin and not see them!  Once we all met up, the HC kids arrived at Karma Stone too.  My two worlds were colliding and it was great!  Smurf then led me, Jane, Anne, Allegra, and Chris to another bar in the city, Dicey's, where we ended up staying for the rest of the night.  I had an awesome time with them, and loved seeing everyone!  It was almost as if I had never left these guys, it was so nice catching up, and I am sure I will see them again this semester.

Our first night in Dublin was a success, Friday was touring!  Be back soon!

XO,

Caitlin

Lunch at Farmgate!

Chris, me, and Smurf (all NWC kids!)

Chris and Smurf!

Me, Chris, and Smurf at Dicey's.

Me and Chris at Dicey's!

  

Oliver Plunkett is My Favorite

Everyone was pretty tired on Wednesday because we ended up staying up so late when we got home! It felt like dorm life again, when we got home we just stayed up in bed talking.  I missed it!!

I had two classes Wednesday, Political Sociology from 12-1, and Sociology of the Media from 4-5.  When I came home in between the two classes, Anne and Allegra were still sleeping! I died laughing, because I have never met two people who can sleep more than they can!  I forced them to get up so they would be able to sleep later, I do not think they were happy with me :)  My classes went well, but I am not a fan of the Sociology of the Media professor.  He made a lot of sexist comments, which definitely offended the American students who are not used to this culture.  It will be an interesting semester...

After classes, I came home and made dinner for Anne, Allegra, and myself.  I made a bean and lentil soup, which was delicious.  I have made it before last semester, and it one of those hearty, warm you up meals.  I feel like I make the same four dishes all the time, so I am open to new (easy) recipes all the time!  I received a Crock-Pot for Christmas, and I cannot wait to use it in my house next year!  The anticipation is killing me!

Once we finished up with dinner, some of the HC girls came to my place before going out.  We tried to go to The Rock, a pub by our house, but the line was crazy!  We decided that it was too cold to wait, so we headed to the City Centre and went to the Oliver Plunkett.  I never get tired of it, so it is a nice place to always have around!

It was a quiet night, which it what we needed.  Thursday, we are off to Dublin.  Be back soon!

XO,

Caitlin   

Jane and her Murphy's (she is DEFINITELY from Cork)

Oliver Plunkett!

My favorite drink out there, Stonewell Cider!

SNOW

To the second day of semester two, we go! It was very cold in Ireland on Tuesday, it even snowed!!! I can easily say that I never expected to see snow this year.  Snow in Ireland is so rare that is usually ends up with everyone freaking out.  This was definitely a funny sight for those of us coming from Worcester, the snowiest city in America.

I had two classes on Tuesday, a Folklore, and Science in Society.  Folklore is about the "Otherworld" and the belief system in Ireland, I actually really love it.  Jane and I went to Science in Society later that evening, and after fifteen minutes we realized it does not start for two more weeks, so we gained a free hour!  While I was in class, Allegra and Anne decided to go the Jameson Distillery for the day.  It is only a half hour outside of the city, and supposed to be an awesome experience.  They loved it, and I definitely need to get there soon!  

I was whipping up one of my classic dishes for dinner that night.  I made Dad's famous broccoli, sausage, pasta for dinner, and it was sooooo yummy.  It is definitely my favorite meal in the world.  The dish did not come out as good as Dad's, but it as a close second :)

After dinner, the HC girls came over to my place before going out.  It was so nice getting back together with everyone.  I missed the group, and was very excited to go to Rearden's.  I have talked about it so much to Allegra and Anne over the past semester, so they were ready to see what all the fuss was about.  It turned out to be an awesome night, a great way to ring in semester two!

I am missing home a lot lately, but very happy to be back in Cork!!!  Be back soon!

XO,

Caitlin

Snowy Bandon Road!

Dinner :)

Me and Anne at Rearden's.

Cork girls reunited (Jane, me, Nicole, Chelsea, and Julia in front)

Semester Two Begins

Monday was the first day of classes for semester two! I feel like I have had no time to organize my life in Cork and figure out what classes I was taking, so this would be very interesting.

I think I will only have one class on Mondays if I can keep the schedule I have been planning.  I really wanted to have no classes on Mondays, but that seemed almost impossible to try and make happen because I was also trying to avoid taking exams.  So, one class on Mondays does not seem bad to me!  I am taking the Sociology of Law, and it only meets for two hours on Monday afternoon. The class seems really interesting, but there is one problem: my Professor is so quiet! I am going to have to sit in the front for this class so I can actually pay attention!

When I got back from class, the girls were just waking up.  I think we were all very tired still from the weekend, and needed time to recover.  It was a gorgeous day out, so we walked into the city Centre to get some food for dinner.  I was making a new recipe, chicken caprese.  It turned out to be delicious!  I think I will have to make it again sometime!

Once we finished dinner, we really wanted to go to the Franciscan, but we were so pooped.  When we finally got the energy to go, it was closed!  Oops, maybe another time!

The week was off to a great start.  Be back soon!

XO,

Caitlin

Sunny UCC for semester two!

Christmas ferris wheel is com in' down! 

Dinner :)

Bye, Barca

Sunday was back to Cork.  Our first trip of semester two was a wrap!  I was sad to see Barca go, but I was ready to get back into my groove in Cork.  Classes were starting Monday!

We had a 10 AM flight from Barcelona, getting us back in Dublin a little after 12 PM.  Anne, Allegra, Anne's boyfriend, Bobby, his friend, Andrew, and myself all had to run to catch our 12:30 bus back to Cork.  Ahh, the first sprint to the bus of the semester, I did not miss this.  luckily, we made it in time, getting us back to Cork at a very reasonable hour, which is very atypical!

Everyone was super tired when we got home, and it was a lot colder than Barcelona.  Welcome to winter!  But, I cannot complain, it was still way warmer than it was back in CT!  When Anne, Allegra, Bobby, Andrew, and I got to my apartment, we decided to just lay low and relax for a little while.  Barcelona was definitely exhausting, and the sleepiness was starting to kick in.  I knew one thing that could fix this, La Tana!  I hadn't been to La Tana since the very beginning of first semester, and kept telling everyone how delicious it was, so this was the perfect time to go back.

We ended up getting so much food here, mainly because the boys thought that they had endless appetites, however, La Tana proved them wrong.  I had the Atlas pizza, which consisted of salami, onions, mushroom, sausage, and garlic, DELISH!  I forgot how good La Tana was, which could be bad because I want to go back again!!!

It was a fu night of hanging out, eating pizza, and reminiscing on the awesome weekend we had just had in Spain.  On Monday, Bobby and Andrew were heading back to the States, so it was an early night for us.  Also, classes started Monday!

Be back soon!

XO,

Caitlin  

Sunrise on the way to the Barcelona airport!

PIZZZZZAAAAA

Explorin' Barca

Last Saturday was our day to tour around Barcelona.  Friday was a busy day traveling to Montserrat,so we did not have much time to see the rest of the city.  Luckily, it was very sunny, and a gorgeous day out, so we had nothing holding us back!

Our first stop was the Picasso museum.  This was hidden down one of the many side streets in Barcelona, and was very unassuming.  A fun fact for those of you that may be visiting soon, it is free for students!  Anything free is definitely a plus to us :).  We spent a little while in here, walking around seeing all that there was in the museum.  I never realized how much Picasso's style changed as an artist throughout time.  His early works looked nothing like the Picasso that we know today!  The museum was really interesting, and a stop I am glad we made!

After the museum, we headed to Parc Guell, the place where there are the famous mosaic makings of the artist Guadí.  We were all looking forward to this spot the most on our list of things to in Barcelona, because it is what always appears in pictures.  Before we made the trek to the top, we made a pitstop for some churros.  This was the one food i was DYING to try in Barca, and oh my god were they delicious.  Once we finished our quick snack, we continued on with the journey through the park.  It was such a beautiful day out, I would have never guessed that it was the middle of winter!  Strolling around and just taking in the artwork and crowds, this was what perfection truly was.

Once we finished at the park, we headed for the beach!  Everyone wanted to catch some of the sunset, and we timed this perfectly.  On our way towards the beach, we stopped at the Sagrada Familia, a massive church in the city.  We wanted to stop in, but there was a really long line, and it costs about 12 euro to get in! We decided to pass on this, and felt that we were able to embrace the immensity from its size.  We continued to the beach! As we arrived, the sunset was just beginning.  We got some popcorn, and walked, and walked, and walked, until it was dark!  The setting was so pretty, almost  magical.  Barcelona was absolutely stunning.

We stopped for tapas at a small restaurant along the beach to grab a snack before our last stop of the night.  I had ham and chicken croquettes, and some white wine.  Everyone was enamored by the setting, a restaurant, on the beach, with wonderful food, drink, and people.  This was the life...

After our quick bite, we went to the last destination, the Icebarcelona.  This is one of those famous bars that is made our of all ice, and you are given winter coats and gloves to wear inside.  It was just us in the bar, so we were able to stay for a long time (which was not took long, it was freezing!).  It was such a fun time!!  On the walk home, we were all pretty starving.  Tapas are super small, and definitely not enough for a meal, so we stopped and had kebabs.  Seton got me hooked on these, I had never had one before Barca, and I am obsessed!!!!! Delicious!

Our time in Barcelon was winding down, and it was back to the hostel.  Be back soon!

XO,

Caitlin      

Gaudí's work

Allegra, myself, and Anne in the Parc Guell.

View from the top of Parc Guell!

Sagrada Familia 

Popcorn and sunset walks :)

Barca!

Marina, feels like BP!

Icebarcelona and the girls!