Easter Weekend in Barcelona

So much to write about, not enough time! 

We've had a few long weekends of late (Easter, the Royal Wedding, and what I have decided is a completely made up holiday called "Early May Bank Holiday"), as a result, we decided to get out of London a bit....

We spent Easter weekend in Barcelona.  The Mediterranean city was at the top of both of our "must go to while in London" lists...and it didn't disappoint.

We stayed at an amazing hotel right on the water next to the Barceloneta neighborhood.  It's odd to travel 1.5 hours south on a plane and feel like you're in a totally different world.  Although the weather didn't completely cooperate (it was actually warmer in London than Barcelona while we were there), the palm trees, engaging culture, and sandy beach made us feel like we were truly on vacation.

The city itself is beautiful.  It's small and manageable while maintaining a vibrant feel.  The architecture is differentiated from anything I've ever seen.  Specifically, the work of Antoni Gaudi; a Catalan architect who designed and built some of Barcelona's most famous structures, was amazing. 

 See below for some pictures of the Sagrada Familia, which actually gave me chills....

 For Easter Mass, we went to Santa Maria's Cathedral (below).....Mass was conducted in Spanish (as well as having stints in Catalan, English, French and Italian)...

We also rented bikes.....trucked it around the entire city and up a mountain to Guadi's garden...



The pictures above don't do the city justice.....5 days in Barcelona was enough to cement it as one of my favorite places in the world....can't wait to go back...