Barcelona with Kids
September 1st - September 30th, 2014
Our Story
We have always wanted to travel to Spain, and we knew from the onset of our planning that Spain would be a definite stop on our trip around the world, we just didn't know where or for how long. While figuring out locations in Europe to spend our 90 days allowed by the Schengen Visa, Spain quickly began looking more and more appealing because prices are relatively low compared to the rest of Western Europe and the weather remains very warm and beach friendly even in September. Barcelona wasn't exactly a city on our bucket list, probably just because we hadn't had many friends or family that had been there, but as we looked into it and talked to had been and loved it, it began to climb up on our list of cities to travel to. Using AirBNB, we discovered a perfect apartment for us close to the Camp Nou football stadium (link to AirBNB listing), and that decided it for us: we were going to spend a month living in Barcelona!
Although our apartment was located a bit outside the center of town, the metro (which is wonderful by the way) was nearby and it was very quick to get most any place in the city. During our month in Barcelona, we really grew to love it. Language was a bit of an issue, as the limited Spanish we knew did not provide much help in a Catalan speaking country, but most everyone spoke enough English for us to get by. The architecture in the city is amazing, thanks in a large part to the beautiful works of Antoni Gaudi, such as Sagradia Familia, Casa Batllo, and La Padrera. The beaches, though crowded and a little dirty with litter, are still very beautiful considering they are located in the middle of such a major metropolis. The weather in September was perfect, hot and sunny most every day, though by the end of the month we could feel Fall trying to push out Summer. As far as traveling in Barcelona with kids, it was a great experience and the kids loved it. The people are very friendly, and unlike France there were no shortages of playgrounds full of friendly kids that did not mind the language barrier one bit. The cherry on the top for us was that we visited during La Merce festival, where for a week the city is full of great festivals, carnivals, fireworks, and all kinds of free events, many even tailored specifically for kids! For all these reasons and so many more, Barcelona was our favorite city that we stayed in during our trip around the world.
Barcelona Blog Posts
Did you know Monserrat literally translates into serrated mountains! What a fitting name! Keep reading and check out the pictures to see why.
To keep with tradition, since it is towards the end of our stay here in Barcelona, I have decided to dedicate a small post to a few words and phrases we have learned in Catalan. In case you are ever in Barcelona or other parts of Catalonia, I hope this little, yet random collection helps you out :)
We leave Barcelona on Sept 30th. Before leaving this amazing city, we decided to visit one of our favorite spots, the Gothic Quarter, one more time and check out the Barcelona Cathedral.
Today was the last official day of La Merce 2014 Festival here in Barcelona and it was surely very exciting. Schools and most businesses were closed for the day to allow everyone to attend the festivities.
Today, we finally got to experience more of the amazing festival that is La Merce. Looking at the schedule of events is always a little intimidating, due to the sheer number of things going on all over Barcelona, so our goal for today was to head to Parc Ciutadella and just immerse ourselves in the thick of it. Mission accomplished!
We rushed to get out of the house to get to Placa Jaume I, where we planned to see the human towers, another traditional La Merce event. It started drizzling as we walked quickly to get there in time. We arrived and saw a few people, mostly tourists, holding umbrellas and looking at maps and just milling about. Umm...Where is everyone? Where are the human towers?
Today, we decided to head to Barceloneta beach to check out the International Fireworks Festival. Tonights' performance was hosted by Tamaya Kitahara Fireworks (Japan) and Pirotècnica Igual (Catalonia). The fireworks were beautiful, and watching it at the beach made it even more magical.
Ahhh...this is one of the reasons why we love to travel slow. It affords us days like this, where we can rest and recover.
Where did this last week go?! We had such a lovely time this week with my sister and brother in law. We did lots of touristy things, but we also made time to hang out and enjoy each others company. We also ate at some really delicious restaurants!
Tomorrow they will get on a plane and head back home, and we will miss them lots and lots until we see them again back home.
O.K. So we did it. All 6 of us (Our family + my sister and brother in law), went on the cable car known as the Teleferico del Puerto here in Barcelona, and we lived to tell the tale!
Today we checked out 2 restaurants, 1 bakery, and probably the last Gaudi work we will check out on this trip: La Pedrera (also known as Casa Mila).
Before we headed to Barcelona, a few friends and colleagues suggested a variety of sights and restaurants that they deemed worthy for us to check out. My sister also obtained a similar long list of places before flying in. Surprisingly, a hole in the wall sandwich shop called Bo de B had appeared on all of our lists.
We spent the entire day today admiring the architectural works of the design genius, Antoni Gaudi, also known here as God's architect. He really was one of a kind!
Today we went on a 3 hour walking tour of Barcelona. We learned so much about the history of the city, saw sights that we would have otherwise missed, and it was all FREE!
Today is a very special day for us! My sister and brother-in-law are coming to Barcelona for 1 week to visit us and see the town. After not seeing any family for 83 days, this sure is a nice treat and we are all very excited.
The Spanish children we have been meeting here in Barcelona, whether at the playground or the beach, have a great personality trait that I think should be advertised more in the world: They are extremely sociable and are not afraid to ask for something they want.
Today was Catalan day here in Barcelona. Nearly 2 million people wearing red and yellow took to the streets to take part in a rally to show their support for an independent Catalunya, "the next state in Europe".
Today our walking adventures around Barcelona took us to 2 markets, the Arena (which is now turned into a 5 story shopping mall), and the bodies exhibit.
The park near our apartment has a small water fountain that has two primary purposes: washing hands and of course filling up water balloons :) Kids gather around the fountain and wait for their turn to fill up water balloons. Of course our kids took notice, so today we joined in the fun.
The Barceloneta Beach, known as the most touristy beach in Barcelona, is a little more than a half hour away from us via walking and public transportation. We had read mixed reviews about the beach, and decided to check it out for ourselves. We knew it would be crowded, so we purposely delayed our visit to a Monday, hoping we would encounter less crowds now that some schools have started.
Our adventure for today took us to Poble Espanyol. Poble Espanyol is meant to represent historical Spanish Villages from Spain's various regions, from the look and feel of the buildings and streets to the crafts to food and more.
Today, we explored the Montjuic hill area of Barcelona. It was a lot bigger than I had anticipated it to be. We walked hours and hours, and were rewarded with many beautiful sights.
Casa Batllo was built in 1904 by the genius architect Antoni Gaudi in the heart of Barcelona on Passeig de Gràcia. If you are wondering by now who this Antoni Gaudi guy is, the story of his life (and untimely death) are worth a read. He really had an amazing imagination. When you walk into the house, you feel like you have walked into a dream. There are many curved elements, and the house itself is supposed to portray an under the sea feel visible by the choices of colors and shapes.
Even travelers and adventurists need ordinary days. There is nothing wrong with a perfectly ordinary day, where the kids play with their toys, color, or draw, and the grown ups do grow up stuff, like laundry and learning more about blogging.
Tourist galore! Placa Catalunya and La Rambla seem to be big favorites among the tourists who visit Barcelona. There are many stores and shopping centers, and the area is very lively. After walking around here, I can accept that Barcelona is the third most visited city in Europe, after only London and Paris.
Girona is a town about an hour north of Barcelona. It is a beautiful town, and I think the Cathedral and the famous Eiffel Bridge (constructed by Gustave Eiffel just before the construction of the Eiffel Tower in Paris) over the Onyar River are the main attractions that draw tourists to this town. The colorful buildings along the river, the lovely atmosphere in the narrow streets, and the warm people are all added bonuses.
Barcelona Photo Gallery
Coming soon!
To take a break from our packing and cleaning, we took a short trip (with our car), to Barcelona's rooftop, Mount Tibidabo.