Our priority today was making it to Plaza de Jaume in time for the Fat Tires Bike Tour. Our South African tour guide, JJ, met us in the center of the plaza claiming he could spot us from a mile away…. so much for blending in. Before we knew it we were off and riding around Barcelona’s Gothic Quarter on bright yellow and red bikes.
We saw the Barcelona Cathedral and visited the Placa del Rei, the castle that was once home to Ferdinand and Isabella. We then pedaled past the ornate, Gaudi-esque Opera House toward Barcelona’s own Arc de Triompf built in the 70’s for the World Fair. The Arc led us into Parque Citudela which had a beautiful pond with row-boaters, a huge statue of a mammoth, and the most beautiful fountain we’ve ever seen- a Gaudi original! We had just enough time for Ray to slam a huge chocolate muffin before JJ led us away.
The next stop was the bullfighting arena where JJ told us about Barcelona’s upcoming ban on the activity. Shows have been selling out since the announcement that this is the last year the arena will be in use.
We then saw Gaudi’s famous and unfinished church, Sagrada Familia. One of it’s facades whimsically depicts the nativity scene while the other side shows the Passion in angular, modern sculptures. Of course there were the signature Gaudi traits in the colorful fruit sculptures and flowered turrets.
Our final stop was at San Sabastien beach where we enjoyed sandwiches and sangria on the sand before biking home along the boardwalk.
Before siesta, we decided to head back to the Gothic quarter to visit the ancient Iberian ruins under the Plaza del Rei dating back to 10 BC. We were able to walk through an entire excavated city underneath the plaza while an audio tour told us about the various building remains and the people who lived in them. Unfortunately no pics were allowed, but we were all extremely pumped to be able to see things from thousands of years ago!
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