My first stop (after the layover) was to Barcelona, Spain. I loved Barcelona! I could definitely see myself living there. You have the city and the beach all in one. Who could ask for more? I also appreciated the fact that Barcelona is a major city, but didn't feel like a major city. There was no hustle and bustle or lack of courtesy due to the limited space a major city usually comes with. Barcelona took on the beach water personality being smooth flowing and laid back. There is one thing you must be aware of while in Barcelona (or any other place in Europe from what I hear) - pickpocketing. Many of the locals will warn you to make sure you don't put your bags down on the ground and to keep your wallet and phone somewhere else besides your pockets because they will come up missing. Luckily we didn't have any victims on my trip.
One of the best parts of my Barcelona trip was the bike tour. We ended up having the guide to ourselves which was great. We were able to see so much of the city and learn a lot about the history of Spain. I try to find bike tours wherever I visit because it gives you an opportunity to visit little nooks and crannies the normal tourist wouldn't have the opportunity to see. Try it on your next trip.
My next stop was Ibiza. This is Miami, Florida Spring Break on steroids! If I would have come here in my early 20's I really could have taken advantage of all it had to offer, but we took it easy especially since we were only there for one day (one day was all we really needed in this environment). Unfortunately my carry on bag had to be checked at the gate when leaving Barcelona and that was the last time I saw it. Yes, I was extremely bummed and upset about it (still get angry when I think about some of the items that were in the bag) but I still had a trip to continue and places to see. We spent our one day at the beach where I literally baked in the sun all day. Later we had to check out the party scene because that's what you do in Ibiza. We ended our night a little early around 4 or 5am because we had an early flight to catch. On our way to the airport around 6:30am the clubs were still going (they close around 7am).
Next, I went back to spend one more day in Barcelona where I had the opportunity to check out some of the must sees in the city - a flamenco show and the Picasso museum. If you have the opportunity to visit the city make sure you check out some of the performing and visual arts the city has to offer.
That's the first part of my European trip in a very small nutshell. Check out my video below to see more. By the way the "we" I have been mentioning included James (my friend from Abu Dhabi), Asha (my best friend from home), Brandy (my fitness instructor and friend from Abu Dhabi), and Ashley (my friend from Abu Dhabi).
