quite the contrast!

how did i get so lucky to be living in the lap of luxury? my own bath, fridge, double bed and access to the internet at the drop of a hat. seriously, u may think of it as a given but after a month of either shared or no access to any and all of these things, you develop an acute appreciation of the little things.

spent a good portion of my first day disinfecting and laundering all my effects in an industrial laundry to ensure there would be no chance of dragging bastardo bedbugs into my kind hosts´ home. also went mad on shopping spree with the goal of avoiding so much as a glance at my hiking clothes again. i wonder whether the neighbours would rat on me and call in the cops if i started a bonfire on the terrace, feeding it my hiking gear in some ancient form of ritual cleansing?! while on the camino, there was never any sense of fashion to contend with as i left with only two sets of clothes anyway. now, i need to give this a little thought. so many choices, how will i deal?!

on my first night in barcie, i slept an unprecedented 13 hours! this must have been my body saying ¨enough with the bedbugs, snorefests and night trains already!!¨ soaked lazily in a tub, hung out on the terrace, stuffed the fridge with fruit, beers, wine, spanish chorizo and all other manner of yummy local fare. all it takes is a glance at the fridge and i turn into a phhhat mess of drool! i even spoiled myself with heavy things i never could have bought while traveling like bottles of vino tinto, melon, big package of granola...oh yeahhhhh bayyybie!

i am still finding my sea legs following my stark change of scenery. only a few days ago, vast expanses of poppy-speckled wheat fields, bodegas and infinite blue skies stretched out as far as the eye can see. now i have returned to all the conveniences of city living, only with big traffic, big noise and development everywhere.

ahhhh, but the architecture. that is what i came here to breathe in. there is so very much of it that historic buildings are used at every corner for seemingly mundane purpuses. what i assumed had to be an ancient coliseum turned out to be an office tower and this to the great amusement of a local whom i asked. people here are so accustomed to immersion in this historical tapestry that many no longer even notice. the majority of buildings aren´t even called out as historic, so rich is the tradition of medieval roman architecture in barcelona. i picked up an architectural guide of the city and have been greedily gobbling it up over the past few days. so many treats awaiting me in the city!