Barcelona – Viva La Vida (Part I)

I took a break from blogging and now I’m back! I can’t believe it has been 2 months since my last post. It seems like such a short break. There’s definitely lots of catching up to do!

It was Eid holiday last week. My family and I took a trip to Barcelona and we had a lovely time. We stayed at Silken Diagonal Barcelona, a modern hotel in mainly black and white. I like the simplistic design and decoration of the room but not so much the all-glass, see-through bathroom.

Even with the screen, it’s still pretty much see-through

Though the hotel is not in Las Ramblas, it’s only a few stops away and the hotel is near the Metro station. There’s also a shopping mall opposite and a Carrefour within the mall. Very convenient since the hotel does not supply complimentary drinking water, tea and coffee.

My son calls Torre Agbar (next to Silken Diagonal Barcelona) a giant bullet. Looks like it, doesn’t it?

Torre Agbar Day & Night

Silken Diagonal Barcelona has a rooftop bar, with stunning view of Torre Agbar. Beaujolais soirée, anyone?

No trip to Barcelona will be complete without visiting all the architectural wonders, especially works of Antonio Gaudí such as Sagrada Familia (Metro: Sagrada Familia - Blue Line L5; Purple Line L2), La Pedrera or Casa Mila (Metro: Diagonal – Green Line L3; Blue Line L5) and Parc Güell (Metro: Lesseps – Green Line L3). I’m still in awe.

Sagrada Familia by Antonio Gaudí

La Pedrera – Casa Mila by Antonio Gaudí

Parc Güell By Antonio Gaudí

I also like the gothic architecture of Barcelona Cathedral (Metro: Jaume I – Yellow Line L4).

Barcelona Cathedral

We also visited the Picasso Musuem (Metro: Jaume I – Yellow Line L4). We happened to go there on Sunday after 3pm and entrance was free. Because of that, there was a super long queue.

Took this photo while waiting to get into Museu Picasso

Picasso Museum – Photography is not allowed inside the museum

Besides Parc Güell, another park worth visiting is Parc de La Ciutadella (Metro: Ciutadella Vila Olimpica – Yellow Line L4), which is the main park in the center of Barcelona. Barcelona Zoo is in this park.