Good Friends + Good Food

After a good night’s sleep, we were both much more rested by morning, though still suffering with the sniffles. We had breakfast included with our hotel so we got dressed and headed down to try a true “Continental” Breakfast complete with about a dozen types of cold meats and cheeses and even some Spanish tortilla. It was very good but we tried not to get ourselves too full because we already had plans for lunch.

"The Kids" in 2005

When we set up our plans to visit Barcelona, I got in touch with Alba, a friend whose house I had stayed at for a summer exchange program in high school. When I stayed with her family, they actually lived in Matadepera, a town in Catalonia about an hour away from Barcelona city. Recently, Alba had been living and working in Paris (something we found out last year when we visited the city and found out she lived only a few blocks from our hotel)! But I figured I’d get in touch on the off chance that she might be able to meet up for coffee or something while we were in town.

It turns out that not only had Alba moved back to Barcelona to start a new job, her father and brother had also moved into the city! And as it turned out, they didn't have anything planned for the Sunday we were going to be in town, so they invited us over for lunch, Catalan-style. I was so excited! It had been nearly 10 years since I’d seen them and was eager to catch up.

Alba had given us the address and as it turned out, it was clear across the other side of the city from our hotel. By metro, it is about an hour journey. However, by the time we finished up breakfast it was still early in the day and the weather was looking good so we decided to see how far we could get by walking and then just take the metro for the last leg of the trip. It was a pretty straight shot—we could just follow Avinguda Diagonal for most of the way up so there was not too much chance of us getting lost like when we tried to meet Alba in Paris (that should have been a 10 minute walk but we ended up going across town on the metro and back again before realizing this!).

Anyways, we ended up walking the whole way to the park next to Alba's house. It took about two hours, and it was a nice way to get a quick overview of the main street of Barcelona along the way. We arrived just in time to see a big yellow lab bounding towards us. I thought the dog looked familiar, but it wasn't until I saw Alba following closely behind with her arms outstretched that I realized why. This was Bril, the same dog that I had met during my summer stay in 2005! I couldn't believe it!

Bril in 2005

Alba came up to greet us and told us that she had been sent out by her father to “stall” us while he made some last minute preparations for lunch. She showed us around the park and told us about her new job that she had just started a couple weeks before. Of course, we had to give some love to Bril too! She was only about a year old when I first visited, but by now she is 11 years old and not quite as spry as she used to be. Still just as adorable though!

After our walk in the park, we went to Alba's house and she showed us a huge nativity scene in the front entranceway that the doorman had created by hand. It was meticulously crafted and very beautiful. Sadly, I was so entranced that I forgot to take a picture! Guess this just means that I will have to go back for another visit next year.

We entered Alba’s apartment and were greeted by her father and his girlfriend as well as her brother. Her father looked just like a remembered, and her brother looked even taller if that’s possible! They said that I looked even younger than when I had stayed with them. Sigh. We got a quick tour of the house while Pere finished setting up the table. It was a huge apartment with three bedrooms, three bathrooms, two sitting rooms, a kitchen, and dining room with beautiful views overlooking the city. And the most shocking part? They are paying the same in rent as we are for our little country cottage in England! Another great reason to look for a job in Spain…

Alba, Guillem, Scott, Brittany, & Pere

We sat down to lunch, but not before snapping a photo of the lovely presentation. I was very excited to see that it was homemade paella! Seriously, I remember having it back during my visit in 2005 and have been dreaming about it ever since. It was even better than I remembered, although I don’t think I've had whole shrimp since then so I struggled a little in eating those. My only regret is not having enough room for seconds!

We ended up staying and talking for about 4 hours about pretty much everything under the sun. We even mentioned that Scott had applied to a couple international schools in Barcelona, both of which turned out to be very near to Alba’s house. She even offered to drive us around the area to get a closer look. So, after a lovely afternoon full of true Catalan hospitality, we said our goodbyes and went with Alba and Bril for a tour of the hills of Barcelona.

Scott may or may not have had a bit much to drink during our 4-hour lunch, so the car ride made him a bit sleepy. Bril was also quite exhausted from her 4 hours of attempting to beg food from anyone at the table, so the two of them snuggled up in the backseat for the duration of the ride. In a totally manly, tough sort of way, of course.

Alba drove us up to the top of the hill in the park near her house and we walked up to the outlook at the very peak. She pointed out some of the important landmarks in the city, including Montjuïc, or “Jew Mountain,” so named because it was once the home to the city's entire Jewish population. It was later used as fortification during conflicts, but was bombed in 1842 during an uprising of the Catalan people against the Spanish government. It later became home to the Olympic Ring in 1992 and is now a popular tourist destination, complete with cable car. She also pointed out two nearby international schools and a couple other British schools with English-language instruction that Scott may be interested in working for.

By the time the tour was over, it was pretty late and Alba still had some preparations she had to do for work in the morning. She dropped us off at the closest metro station and we said our goodbyes, promising not to let another decade go by before we see each other again. By now it was starting to get dark and a little chilly, so Scott and I decided to head back to our hotel by metro. By the time we got back to our hotel, our colds had caught back up with us. We barely managed to get our pajamas on before we fell asleep!