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Noel 2008
Beaucoup de cadeaux pour Tiggy…
Et une dinde de 22 livres!
Le Pere Noel est passe
Il y a un petit garcon qui va avoir du boulot dans quelques heures…
Redmond toujours sous la neige…
La neige n’a pas encore fondu. Pire, il a de nouveau neige… Ca commence a devenir penible.
Barri Gotic: Barcelona’s Medieval Quarter
Juju and her family live and work near the Cathedral and the Santa Maria del Mar church in the old part of the city. The ground floor of her family’s apartment building dates back to the fifteenth century. Some of the upper floors were either added or rebuilt centuries later.
One afternoon, we met up with Juju and her dog to pick up her sons from school. From the Cathedral, we followed the maze of narrow streets from behind Jaume to the school at Placa Sant Felip Neri. The square in front of the school that served as a playground was bursting with energy. The younger kids get out early and swarm the playground while waiting, with their parents, for older siblings to get out of school.
I read that Gaudi, the famous Catalan architect who designed the Sagrada Familia, was a student here. But not all of the school’s history is glamorous: during the Spanish Civil War, for instance, it was bombed accidentally and children who had taken refuge inside were killed. The wall plaque and the damaged facade serve as reminders of the unfortunate event.
Snow day in Redmond
Today is one of those days when everything is paralyzed: no work, no school, no driving without chains or snow tires…
Chances are that tomorrow is not going to be any better.
Casa Mila, Barcelona
Casa Mila (also known as La Pedrera, or quarry) is one of two Barcelona landmarks that we paid to visit last month. For roughly 10 euros, we got to tour the building lobby, a model apartment on the top floor, and the roof terrace, with its bizarre chimney stacks that look like warriors.
The undulating façade was so intriguing that we had to see the interior. The model apartment home was an interesting distraction until we got to the rooftop and walk around outside. Neither of us had ever seen anything like it. It was like a sculpture garden.
The views from the terrace were spectacular.
AC Barcelona
We stayed at the AC Barcelona Hotel, located about a block away from the Mediterranean and across the street from a shopping center. The hotel is about 15 minutes outside the bustling city center so the streets are quieter and more livable. We weren’t woken up in the middle of the night by Friday and Saturday night partygoers returning home, for instance. Our travel partner who stayed in a hotel near La Rambla and the old Cathedral, spent sleepless nights both weekends we were in the city.
The décor is ultra modern and Zen, with lots of glass, dark brown wood and green marble, and clean, straight lines in the artwork and architecture. The look is cold and impersonal and won’t appeal to everyone but it’s coherent and gives the hotel a distinctive look and feel.
The rooftop terrace on the 13th floor has a pool and nice sea and city views. Time permitting, we would have loved to take advantage of the other hotel amenities on the top floor, such as the sauna and steam room, whirlpools and gym.
The rooms were comfortable with lots of amenities, including good-quality toiletries, slippers and plush bathrobes and comfortable single beds. Our room faced the sea, and got unbearably warm in the daytime. We had to sleep with the windows open. I wonder what it must be like on a torrid summer afternoon.
Wireless Internet connection was so expensive and slow that it wasn’t worth paying for more than 24 hours. What’s more, our room lacked a clock of any sort, or an iron, which I thought was strange in a hotel that catered to business travelers. It also lacked a safe, which would have been useful for storing our passports, tickets and valuables. At least the mini bar was free.
V, A, A, T and D family blog 