Saturday, January 30, 2010

Our first night in Pest, we ended up traipsing the streets in search of a good place for a drink with a group of travelers that we met at the hostel... ended up at this HUGE dance club thing feeling sort of out of place, danced and made the most of it, then headed home... got a bit lost on the way back, but made it home nonetheless. This picture was taken at the good place for a drink, a little pub with very red lighting, before we were finagled into club mode. Thus ends day one.
One of the may beautiful buildings that are pretty much all over the place.
A view from the top of Buda.
Heading up a slippery slope to the Buda Castle Palace, where we poked around the History Museum for a bit.
I like.

The Chain Bridge, with the House of Parliament in the background.
Ah, snow.
Going under the bridge made the most sense, and here is where we encountered birds fluttering amongst the branches of a naked tree.
Crossing the street can be quite difficult in Budapest, and jaywalking in not always an option. At this point Sara and I are trying to figure out (while also in awe of the beautiful hillside covered in a crooked staircase) how to get to the other side of the bridge and continue our walk next to the river. We investigated the jaywalking option, realized that we would essentially be crossing a freeway and decided against it.
And the walking begins... We decided to go for a walk almost immediately after arriving at the hostel, as it was only noon by the time we were all settled in. This is the more modern of the bridges (the Elisabeth Bridge) that cross over the Danube River.
On the train heading to the hostel. We stayed in a great place called "11th Hour Cinema" which was located in an old building right in the middle of everything, and had an impeccable selection of movies (hence the name).
On Friday January the 22nd of this lovely year 2010, my dear friend Sara and I embarked on an adventure, for real this time. Unlike the Palamos randomness and utter lack of planning, we went to Budapest, then Berlin with many things to see, places to stay, and plenty of socks. Since it's the dead of winter, we were a bit nervous about our preparedness for the snow, but all in all we stayed warm, and were able to brave the cold. Actually, traveling in this type of weather was pretty awesome. Rather than be amongst tons of tourists, and dying of heat (summer), the streets are quiet and white, the buildings are all heated, and as long as you're equipped with the necessary accessories, walking around in the cold is quite fun!

Sunday, January 17, 2010




I believe that it was the 9th of January, I went to Vic (a small city/town about an hour east of Barcelona. Though it wasn't exactly as amazing as I thought it would be, it was wonderful to get out of the big city for the day nonetheless. We explored a bit, came across some very abandoned buildings, had a scare with a dog (that is, I was near terrified by the sound of a dog barking from inside one of the buildings), ate ridiculously decadent sandwiches, and headed back to Barcelona full. Here are a few pictures.
Hi everyone! I started a new Blog yesterday while procrastinating on my spanish lit. paper. Check it out!

http://alexandrajanewilliams.wordpress.com/

Thursday, January 7, 2010





Putrid

Here are some more picture of the Parc del Laberint d-Horta (mentioned a few days ago) on a gray, rainy Barcelona day.

Monday, January 4, 2010

Typical
The sky was ridiculous again. From the balcony (where we spent the majority of the night). A blue moon.
Happy New Year!
Trains and stuff.
Light!
The sky was ridiculous
Port Olimpic
So ever since the new year rolled around, i've had an un-satiable craving for persimmons. I'm talking 2-3 persimmons a day. Aren't they pretty?
My house is the second full building from the left (beige-yellow, wooden door, green-grey shutters)

Parc del Laberint d'Horta. The following image does not do this place justice, but when we went there it was pretty crowded which is not conducive to good photos. These gardens, located on the former summer estate of the Desvalls family, were constructed beginning in 1791 by the former owner of the estate. There are two gardens: a Neoclassical garden where the hedge maze resides, and a Romantic garden, a completely different scale than the Neoclassical garden, containing large flower beds and shaded by large trees
The circus is in town
La Playa
Barceloneta
A harbor building
Puerta
A deserted Rambla de Catalunya
Travassera de Gracia

Just down the street from my casa.


Christmas day this year was unique for me. Rather than be at home with family, opening gifts and whatnot, the day passed as any other would with a few exceptions. I think we finally woke up somewhere around noon (which has been sort of the norm for the past few weeks), had a lovely breakfast of toad in the hole (or egg in a basket if you're from that school of thought), and a delicious coffee/hot chocolate/whisky creation. Then, we set off to walk around a "deserted" Barcelona and take photos, only it was not very deserted. It was a pretty cloudy, windy day, which was just perfect. Upon arriving home from our excursion, we made a huge pot of black bean soup and had a quiet night: A very lovely day, indeed.

Friday, December 25, 2009

Really epic bocadillo.
Ingredients: Roasted eggplant, onion, garlic, barra rustica, tomato, edam cheese, fancy mustard, balsalmic vinegar, salt, pepper.
Food= good.