Barcelona: First Impressions

Spring Break at AUI is March 10 – 14, so two of my friends and I decided to spend it in Barcelona! We left Ifrane and spent the night in a riad in Fes on Friday and flew out of the Fes Airport at about 12:45 on Saturday (yesterday).

First, the riad in Fes was amazing. It cost about $18/a night per person, which for Morocco is about a medium-priced place to stay. However it was VERY nice. It’s located in the medina, and the room was lovely. It was a 3-person room; we had two beds, our own private bathroom (with toilet paper, soap, and towels provided!!), wifi, and breakfast included. The breakfast, by the way, was SUPERB! It was so good (and so much!), that I had to take a picture:

It included mint tea, FRESHLY SQUEEZED orange juice that was amazing, croissants, bite-sized msemen and harsha, muffins, and bread with butter/jelly/cheese. And chocolate pudding. (I also realize that I’ve not mentioned anything about the food here, and I will. I promise! I’ll make a post dedicated solely to Moroccan food, because it deserves it’s own post!) But yes, the riad was so nice that we actually ended up booking another room for next weekend when we fly back in so that we can meet up with one of our other friends and stay the night in Fes before going back to Ifrane on Sunday.

So, on to Barcelona. Our flight went okay — other than me white-knuckling the take-off and landing, which I predict will never change. We got into the airport, got through the passport check, and found out that we needed to get a bus from the airport to the big square near our hostel. It wasn’t too hard to navigate and after wandering around the street for a couple blocks, we found our hostel. For a European hostel, it’s pretty well-priced: 11 Euros (15 USD)/night for a 20 person shared dorm w/ 3 bathrooms and small breakfast.

The main thing that we all three have been experiencing, though, is culture shock. Like SIGNIFICANT culture shock. And I guess technically it would be reverse culture shock, since we’re coming back into a ‘western’ country. It’s… the most unnerving thing I have experienced since leaving America in January. It’s been over 24 hours since we’ve left Morocco and we’re just now starting to come out of our daze. Because that’s kind of what we’ve been in. It’s very hard to explain, and I’m sure even if I try I won’t be able to. Of course Morocco is different from Spain and we know that and we were expecting that. But to turn a corner and see a Starbucks and a Subway restaurant; and then to see wide, paved roads where the drivers all obey the traffic laws; to see street signs and tall buildings; people strolling down the sidewalks with their dogs on leashes; cappuccino shops and museums and guided tours around the city… it’s like another world. Again I don’t know how to explain it, but I feel so uncomfortable. All I can do is just stare at people as they walk past. Everything is so different. And like I said, my friends are experiencing the same thing — it’s not just me. But we are starting to get a little more accustomed to it, especially after being out all day.

Which I guess I’ll mention now what we did today. There was a free guided tour throughout the city starting at 11AM this morning that we took advantage of. And it was a very nice tour; it lasted about 2.5 hours! We saw part of Las Ramblas, the gothic quarter, the Jewish quarter, and walked up and down several small alleyways as Spanish history was being spouted to us (of which I remember very little, so I’ll spare you). The tour ended at a park that we spent some time in, and then we made our way back toward the hostel, stopping to get some food on the way. Tonight we went to a history museum (free on Sundays!) and had Chinese for supper, because we were all craving it after not having it since we’ve been in Morocco. We also bought a 10-ride pass for the metro, and I rode one of those for the first time! (Why don’t we have more of those in America?)

We’re all very exhausted tonight, and plan to sleep in a little later tomorrow morning. Other than that, we have no plans. It’s Spring Break, we have a whole week in Barcelona, and we’re going to have a relaxing and enjoyable time for as little money as we can. Because if you didn’t get it from my previous post, Europe is EXPENSIVE. And it’s sad because Spain is probably one of the least expensive European countries; and I’m still having a rough time with it. I just can’t get over the amount of money we’re having to pay for our meals after mentally converting it back to dirhams (or even just dollars). It’s very difficult. And we’re eating cheaply at that!

Regardless we’re starting to adjust to not being in Morocco, I think, and Barcelona is beautiful and vibrant and there is much to explore. So, though I can already tell I’ll be glad to get back to Morocco, this week will be a great place to spend our break.

Source link