Barcelona Brief

Well…  Did Andy and I go to Berlin, as we had originally planned last summer?

Nope, we went to Barcelona instead.

We rented an apartment in the suburbs via AirBnB, and have been here for almost two months.  Though we didn’t do a whole lot of touristy stuff (WTF, no Parc Güell?!?) I have fallen in love with the place and hope to return.  The weather has been poopy (rainy season!), the food has been mostly so-so compared to other places we’ve been to, but the people have been (mostly) wonderful. Barcelona is undoubtedly a beautiful city but its beauty isn’t as in-your-face as that of, say, Paris.  In that way, I felt as though it was more…accessible.  Does that make sense?  I didn’t find it to be an overly flashy and glittery city, just a very pleasant one.

If we can get work visas, we’d like to try living here for a while. My guy and I are very sick of moving around and though we do want to continue to travel, we desperately need a “home base.”  So…who knows?

Anyway, what did we do here?

We ate, duh…

I was pleasantly surprised to find so many vegan options!  If you’re checking out La Rambla, you must go to Gopal!

Gopal (crowded of course!) C/ dels Escudellers, 42 08002 Barcelona

Gopal's menu--look at all the choices!

It’s a cute little 100% vegan deli with delicious, affordable hamburguesas.  And if you need a vegan dessert, you’re in luck–their cakes and brownies come from Lujuria Vegana.  Mmmm… it’s best to go in the early afternoon because it’s a small place that fills up quickly!  Or, get some sammiches “para llevar” (to go, or literally “for to take”) and go back to La Rambla.  Have a seat next to the statue at Plaça del Teatre and have a picnic!

Other stuff I enjoyed:

Pimientos de Padrón! Available at most tapas bars...just padrón peppers pan-fried in olive oil and sprinkled with sea salt--yum.

Vegan Paella @ Organic, C/ Junta de Comerç, 11 08001 Barcelona

Vegetable Couscous @ Venus Delicatessen, C/ Avinyó, 25, 08002 Barcelona

Also available at many places... Hummus, BEER, and pan con tomate, a Catalan favorite

Because we stayed in a non-touristy suburb (Cornellá de Llobregat) and are on a tight budget, sadly we didn’t visit as many “veg” establishments as I would have liked.  You’ll have to visit them for me and tell me how they are.  :)

Places that I didn’t visit and am looking forward to visiting next time include:

• Veggie Garden, C/ dels Angels, 3, 08001, Barcelona  (I hear they have vegan lasagna…)
• The Dog is Hot, C/ Joaquin Costa, 47 08001 Barcelona (Veggie dogs!  Loads of toppings!  Yesss)
• Cat Bar, C/ Bòria, 17  08003 Barcelona, Spain (quarrygirl said it had the best veggieburgers in BCN… is that true??)

One place that’s within walking distance of our place, Café Bambu (C/Vicenç Bou 12, Esplugues de Llobregat, 08950 Barcelona), which had tasty burgers and hummus, is being sold and may be an Irish pub or something by the time we return.  :(  If you get a chance to go before it closes, the owner, Stephanie, is very nice!

Oh yeah, what else did Andy and I do recently?

WE GOT ENGAGED!!!!

Yaaay!!

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