Good Friday

I managed to sleep in this morning which was fabulous. My roommates were all passed out and I knew they would be in bed most of the day. I couldn't help but thinking of the phrase my mom always used to say to me "Don't sleep the day away!"

I walked over to El Palau de la Musica Catalana, a concert hall that is another modernista masterpiece, and stood in the line. When I got up to the ticket office they said all the English tours were sold out for the day and I could book for tomorrow. I looked up at the screen and it did say "1 ticket left" so I booked that one for 3pm. Perk of travelling alone. I could tell people around me were jealous.

It's an hour guided tour with lots of facts about the venue, history, and its ornate decorations. It's owned by the Orfeo Catala, a private choir group, and they don't allow you to take photos. So I bought a little book which has photos of some of the gorgeous highlights. If they did allow photos I probably would have spent the entire tour focused on picture taking, so maybe it was a good restriction.

I then walked to the Picasso museum and stood in the longest line yet. It was rainy today so everyone was focusing on indoor sights. Besides the long line of tourists outside, you could walk right by this museum tucked into the Gothic Quarter. I'm excited to do my neighborhood walks of the Barri Gotic & La Ribera tomorrow. I haven't explored those neighborhoods enough yet, but I can tell I'm going to love them. They have lots of character with tiny little winding streets. Will get lost for sure. In a good way.

On the walk back to my hostel I encountered a religious procession of some kind for Good Friday I assume. Was cool. It's fun to be here during a religious holiday.

Am about to meet up with a friend of a friend of a friend for tapas and drinks. Should be fun. He's a Brit who has lived here for several years.