Going through the photos and remembering our time in Barcelona, I’m still fascinated. The history, architecture, food, city life, language. The first phrase I asked to learn in Catalan was “What, you think I’m a tourist?” They said I had the accent down pretty well, but then again, I had nothing to follow up with except to ask for help finding the bathroom. Good thing they speak Spanish, too.
My favorite food of the entire trip was at the Boqueria, a famous market downtown. We stopped at a seafood vendor that both sells and serves it fresh. I had a plate full of grilled scallops, calamari, octopus, shrimp, and a variety of clams and muscles. I get hungry just thinking about it.
And then there’s the famous Catalonian architect GaudÃ. This guy must have been busy, because it seemed like he designed half of the city. After seeing his sculptures, buildings, park, and basilica, I was hooked. Fun fact: Gaudà was killed in his home town by a trolley car. He left a masterpiece unfinished.
As the proud owner of a digital SLR camera, I notice other people’s cameras. At GaudÃ’s Park Güell, I noticed the guy taking pictures next to me had an Olympus digital SLR. I heard him speaking English to his family, “Oh come on, you always complain when I’m taking the pictures but gush about how much you love them afterward.” I kept my distance from the obvious US American tourist and maintained the discipline of speaking Spanish to try and blend in. A few minutes later, our Catalan guide Marta said, “Hey, that’s Leonardo DiCaprio! Take my picture with him!”
He was walking away at that point, and I was caught off guard. I’ve never had the opportunity to be a paparazzo. I wasn’t sure I wanted to be one. Marta approached the guy who appeared to be the body guard. He affirmed it was DiCaprio, but denied the request for a photo. I couldn’t help sneak one in while no one was looking. Rosario and I went through the video footage and could see him in a few of the shots. On the tape, we could see the body guard positioning himself to block the camera. We were clueless at that point anyway. Sooner or later I’ll upload the footage.
Three days later, we were boarding a plane to Hanover. Next stop, the World Cup in Germany.
3 replies on “Ah, Barcelona…”
And I’ll look forward to that story/pictures as well. It sounds like you guys had so much fun. I’m so envious!
Despite the hoards of tourists, Park Güell is still one of my favorite spots in the world … with or without Leo the pretty boy.
[…] Mercat de la Boqueria: The huge market near la rambla in Barcelona. […]