day 10 - olympic feeling

day 10

Today was raining, not like raining a lot, just a few drops, but the sky was grey and all. I stayed one more hour in bed after all i'm on vacations. The room is empty i'm the last one to get up. I tried to book the bed for the next two nights but the computer was down and i could only reserve for a night, later in the day i founded out that i was going to need to get another hostel, because this was full.

Not knowing this i picked the stuff i needed a map and went on exploring. I got to the nearest subway station and bought a two day all access pass for 10 euros, the subway is really well organized and it doesn't take to much for me to be mastering the system. The corridors from the metro have this places painted on the floor, for the musicians that want to perform in here.

One monument after all, avoiding the Gaudi works that i reserved to see tomorrow hoping for better weather, i divide the map in half and did the all left side of it. In the historical buildings like castles i stopped to imagine me in does times, i even tried to walk like an aristocrat, i was physically alone like you can imagine, if Paulinho can imagine hippopotamus on the top of a three making bird's sounds i can well imagine me a few decades ago. Off course my sport shorts gave me away :)

That is the fun part of travelling alone, you don't have to answer to no one, time is your's to make with it what you want.

I went to the Barcelona Stadium, Camp Nou, well as you can imagine if you know me, i really went to Palau Blaugrana, but it wasn't open to the public. The Barcelona store is really big, and they explore everything, from old posters to chips, they even print your name on a t-shirt on the fly. For my sadness the store only minds soccer items, there is nothing about basketball. To see the inside of the stadium and the museum they charge 17€. They don't let me see Palau, i don't pay to see the stadium and that is it.

I went to el Corte Ingles in my quest for a spanish jersey, they are even worse than the portuguese, they had every time of nba jerseys , but not one from any spanish team or even the national jersey. To the subway again, this station even has a vending machine for books and a internal tv channel, and people are getting more civilized, they only take one side of the rolling stairs, so that does that are in a hurry can run up.

Next stop Mont Juic. It as free entrance and a well commercial explored bus tour, but i choose to walk. For does that don't know Mont Juic is a small mountain with many museums and sculptures and gardens. It was the place where the 1992 Olympic games took place. The problem with this free entrance is that every museum on the inside has its on fee. So if you want to see them all you have to let go at least 100 euros total. So i saw the gardens and some fountains and then went strait to the olympic arena.

The feeling i got in that place was amazing, i sat down for at least twenty minutes just to stare at it. Can you imagine qualifying for a olympic? and competing on it? the entire world watched this. It was the first time professional athletes were allowed to participate, in the building in from of me the Dream Team won gold that year, Michael Jordan played in this building.....
It was the high point of my day, definitely.

I decided to walk a little from one point to another, no metro for now. I went to the Barcelona Cathedral, the building is on reconstruction but we can go in any, 5 euros fee. It the first time i enter a church (its a cathedral, but it is a church for me) in a long long time. i started with this room, that looked like the rounded table room, but without a table, all covered in blood red velvet and leather chairs, it was more like a council room. Everyone was interested in the La Piedad de Despla, apparently the painting is one of the most famous pieces in the cathedral, i had to google it to know more (learning everyday).
Every one was whispering, and the painting were almost dark due to the age. The were all this gold objects covered in precious rocks, which still makes me wonder i could they kill so many people, and let so many other day with deceases and starving, and they were living among all that gold, but well... Now it is a piece of history, i found this amazing detailed piece for its size - La Custodia de Barcelona - it was gorgeous. No pictures sorry, lot allowed to take pictures in that room.
Next, the main room, i didn't felt anything spiritual and all, but i did like the acoustic off the room. The room as some things that didn't had one does days, like flat screens and electronic candles.

Even enjoying visiting the cathedral the idea i have of this institution is the same.

I got lost in the old part of the city. There was a bit more degradation on this area. The streets were so strait that the horizon line didn't exist at all, the people that live in this buildings can shake hands with the neighbour that live in from, literally. As i was already lost, i decided not to use the map, and just go with it. This is really a strange part, i caught this hardcore punk's being sweep by the police, it was really strange they came from nowhere and vanished with the same quickness.

When i manage to get out of the old roads labyrinth, i just had this nice surprise, i saw a LIDL supermarket, could it be my lucky day and they have portuguese water?
So i thought it, so it happens, they had good water. I'm not going to say the brand because off advertising endorsements (Aquarel by Nestle), i bought a 1.5L bottle, and i'm still drinking it while i'm writing this.

Today the picture i leave in the post is a picture i found on the olympic museum. The museum had an area for which sport there is in the olympic games, each area had a picture to represent the sport, so in hockey they had this that made me very proud.
In the text next to the photo was writed:
"The portuguese player from the 60's and 70's is considered one of the best hockey player of all time.", just to enhance this, in Soccer there as a photo from Pele and basketball a photo of Michael Jordan.

cya



ps: today i dont have the time to review my post, so if it looks weird just skip that part :D