The first city we visited on our Mediterranean journey was Barcelona, Spain. It was September 24, 2006, the last night of a week long, annual festival dedicated to the Virgin of Merce (Mercy). Upon arrival we we're in such awe of the festivities going on that we checked into our hotel, had a cappuccino at a local cafe, and went straight out to explore the city. We were so excited, we forgot to bring our camera which I still regret because this was one of the funnest nights we had on the trip. Two blocks from our hotel, at the square in front of the city's government building, we saw some traditional Catalan folk dancers and a group of castellers. All dressed in red and white, they had erected a human tower several stories high. It was really refreshing to see people celebrating their heritage and culture with such passion. 
After dinner we went to see some more of the festivities. The festival is city wide, and they have something going on in every square. We watched a parade with giant, fire breathing dragons, and I ended up dancing in the street with a 7 foot tall skeleton puppet. There were street entertainers, people with giant papier mache heads, and tons of fireworks. We decided to check out one of the concerts. There were lots of different types of bands playing, and we had such a good time meeting people and dancing. The people in Barcelona are so friendly that it was easy to conversate with them even through the language barrier. At one point, one of the bands started to play YMCA and the entire crowd danced along with it.
The next morning we set out to see as many of the popular sites in Barcelona that we could in one day. We walked down Las Ramblas. It's a rather touristy shopping street, but it was charming and fairly quiet. Everyone must have been sleeping in after the previous night's festivities. We rode the subway to La Sagrada Familia which was a fun experience. You can tell a lot about a city by watching the people on it's subways. On this day, there were a lot of young people flirting with each other.
La Sagrada Familia is a large, Roman Catholic church designed by Spanish artist and architect, Antoni Gaudi, which was never fully completed as he died during it's construction. Despite being incomplete, the church is unbelievable. Constructed in a mixture of Gothic and art nouveau styles, it is truly breathtaking, and is a must see for anyone visiting Barcelona. We had to wait in line a little while, but it was worth it. At the entrance I noticed the very intricate carvings of roses around the arches and thought about how long it would have taken just to do that one little area. We walked up a very narrow dark, spiral staircase for what seemed like forever to get to the top. We could see the entire city and got a really good view of the strange but beautiful spires at the top of the cathedral. There are so many details, from the stained glass windows, to intricately carved statues and ceiling, it took us half a day to see them all. 
After leaving the cathedral, we decided to see another design of Gaudi's, Parc Guell. It is a beautifully designed park at the top of a mountain which also has a phenomenal view of the city. To get there on foot was pretty easy. There are miles of escalators that go all the way to the top. Everything in the park was designed by Gaudi, including the house he lived in. There are some benches and a gecko fountain covered in colorful mosaic tiles, and a cool walkway with stone arches. We sat in the shade and listened to a man play the guitar. There seemed to be music playing everywhere we went in this city. It was definitely in my top two favorite cities that we went to, and I highly recommend visiting especially during Festes de la Merce.
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