I had the chance to travel to Spain at the beginning of March and it was an absolute dream come true. My Dad’s family is from Cuba and our ancestry traces back to Spain so I have always been drawn to visit there. According to one of my aunts, we have distant cousins who still live in Northwest Spain and I would love to travel to that region one day. There is something so special about visiting a place your ancestors once called home and, even though I didn’t visit the exact area my family is from, just being in Spain made me feel more connected to my heritage.
The reason I was able to visit Spain when I did is that my friend Caitlin, the same friend I traveled to Kauai with, asked me in January if I would be interested in traveling to Spain with her during her spring break in March. I said “yes!” in a heartbeat. We bought our plane tickets in February only three weeks before we were to leave, which didn’t leave us much time to plan. Fun fact about me: I am a huge planner when it comes to trips. I find that I get less anxious while traveling when I’m prepared so I like to have an itinerary or at least a list of the main attractions I’d like to visit. Also, being vegan, I always do research on vegan/vegan-friendly restaurants I’d like to eat at. I was a little stressed with only having three weeks to do research on Barcelona and Spain but it all worked out in the end. I was able to see a lot of attractions in both cities and ate some amazing vegan food.
Day 1
Caitlin and I left from Miami on Friday, March 1st, and took an overnight flight to Barcelona. We departed around 6 pm and arrived in Barcelona on Saturday morning around 9 am. I will never forget the last hour of the flight, watching the sky lighten as the sun rose and seeing Spain for the first time from above. We crossed over mountains and little towns as we made our way east and it was beautiful.
A good two hours after we had landed, we finally made it to our Airbnb. We had to take a train to the neighborhood our Airbnb was located so in and it took a while to find the train station and buy our tickets but we got there eventually. Luckily, the guests before us left early so we were able to check in and shower once we arrived. It always feels good to shower after a long plane ride.
After we showered and got ready, we headed out into the city. The Airbnb we stayed at in Barcelona was outside of the city center in a quieter neighborhood called Sant Andreu. Depending on where we were going, it was about a 15-30 minute subway ride to the main part of the city. Despite the extra travel time, it was worth it to stay a little outside of the city to be in a quieter area because, as we would later learn in Madrid, Spaniards sure like to party late into the night.
Anyway, once we got into the city, our first order of business was to eat lunch. We decided on Flax & Kale which is one of the more popular healthy restaurants in Barcelona. The restaurant was packed when we arrived, which I always take as a good sign. Flax & Kale is not entirely vegan but it does have a few vegan options. I decided to play it safe and order an avocado toast. To my disappointment, it was not that good. The bread was really hard and way too thick so I could barely bite into it. I ate as much as I could before giving up. I figured I might as well give something else a try so I ordered a carrot juice and that actually was really good. While the food didn’t meet my expectations, I did really like the atmosphere and decor at Flax & Kale. I would probably give it a second chance if I ever go back to Barcelona. I just won’t be ordering the avocado toast again.
After lunch, Caitlin and I just walked around thy city and tried to hit up some free tourist spots. We walked down La Rambla, passed by the Barcelona Cathedral, strolled through Ciutadella Park, and saw the Arc de Triomf (not to be confused with Paris’ Arc de Triomphe). While it might not have felt like we did much our first day, it was nice to take it easy after a red-eye flight.
Day 2
Even though I went to bed around 8 pm the night before, I didn’t wake up until around 10:30 am the next day. Caitlin and I had chosen not to set an alarm the night before because neither of us slept on our overnight flight so we were pretty exhausted and needed our rest. However, I didn’t expect us to sleep in that late but I suppose our bodies needed it.
Feeling very well rested, we took the subway to our lunch destination, The Green Spot. We arrived shortly after the restaurant opened at noon and had the place to ourselves for a bit. I immediately loved the vibe inside the restaurant, with its soothing music and minimal, earth-tone decor. The Green Spot is a vegetarian restaurant with several vegan options to choose from. I ordered the kale and quinoa salad which came with cherry tomatoes and hazelnuts. It was meant to come with a miso vinaigrette dressing but I substituted it with another dressing that was essentially a vegan honey mustard sauce. The lettuce and cherry tomatoes were super fresh, the hazelnuts added a nice crunch, and the dressing had the perfect amount of tanginess. For dessert, I order a slice of carrot cake which I had mixed feelings about; the cake itself was good but the icing wasn’t sweet enough, in my opinion. All in all, it was a delicious meal and one of my favorites from my trip.
Lunch ended up taking about two hours which can be quite common at sit down restaurants in Spain. The Spanish like to savor their meals and enjoy the company they are with so meals tend to last long. Once we left The Green Spot, Caitlin and I headed to the Barcelona Cathedral. We had walked by the cathedral the day before but hadn’t gone inside so we decided to go back. The cathedral is in the Gothic style, which is one of my favorite architectural styles, and I really enjoyed exploring the interior, admiring the pointed arches and ribbed vaulted ceiling. We also went up to the roof where we could get an up-close view of the steeple and a panoramic view of the city. I got to see La Sagrada Familia for the first time from this roof which was pretty cool.
After visiting the Barcelona Cathedral, Caitlin and I walked to Casa Batlló, one of Antoni Gaudí’s most well-known works. Unfortunately, the famous front facade was all covered up due to restoration work. I was kind of bummed because Casa Batlló was one of the attractions I was most excited to see. Luckily, the interior did not disappoint. The house is a work of art with colorful mosaic tiles, flowing lines, and a lot of natural elements. What amazed me was Gaudí’s attention to detail and his tact for blending beauty with function. My favorite part was visiting the roof because the sun was setting right as we made it up there. It was a serendipitous moment and one of my favorites from the trip.
By the time we made it through the rest of the tour, we were ready for dinner. We decided to eat at Honest Greens, a healthy restaurant with a lot of vegan options. I really liked the concept of this restaurant because you get to create your own meal: you pick a main dish, a protein, and as many sides as you want. I ordered a kale caesar base with falafel and sweet potato and oh my was it good. They had some of the best falafel I have ever had.
Day 3
My third day in Barcelona ended up being one of my favorites from my trip. Caitlin and I started our day at Espai Joliu, a coffee shop filled with plants. I’m not a coffee drinker but they had a decent selection of vegan baked goods so I ordered a slice of banana bread for breakfast. What makes this place special is its rustic decor and all of the plants. If I lived in Barcelona, I could see myself sitting in the shop working on my laptop for hours. I swear Barcelona has some of the most aesthetically pleasing restaurants/cafes and Espai Joliu is one of them.
After breakfast, we walked about a mile and a half to a bike rental shop in La Barceloneta, a popular seaside neighborhood in Barcelona. We rented bikes from Barcelona Rent A Bike and it was only 6€ for a 2-hour rental, which is an incredible deal; I had never rented a bike so cheap before. Caitlin and I rode along the Mediterranean Sea and we couldn’t have asked for more beautiful weather. It was probably the warmest day of our trip and the sky was clear and the water was a deep blue. It was my first time seeing the Mediterranean so I was trying to soak up every minute of it.
We rode for about an hour before we returned our bikes and then made our way to Park Güell, another famous work by Antoni Gaudí. The park is rather large, with several walking paths and landmarks to explore, and most of the park is free to roam around. The iconic stairs, terrace, and mosaics of Park Güell are located in the Monumental Zone, which does require a ticket to enter. While the Monumental Zone only makes up a small portion of the park, the ticket is pretty cheap compared to other attractions and definitely worth it. The views you get from the different terrace levels are incredible and all of the colorful mosaics are beautiful.
After bike riding and walking around Park Güell without having eaten much, it was time to get some food. Caitlin got avocado toast at Hammock Juice Station and then we both picked up snacks at an all-vegan grocery store called Ecocentre Supermercat Vegà. The store is a vegan haven with a large variety of options. I picked up some snack bars to get me through the next few days.
Casa Milà was just a ten-minute walk away from the grocery store so we headed there next. Casa Milà, also known as La Pedrera, was designed by Antoni Gaudí and is a few blocks away from Casa Batlló on Passeig de Gràcia. Looking at the front facade, you can tell right away that this apartment building is one of Gaudí’s works. While Casa Milà is different from Casa Batlló in many ways, they both have a common theme of natural, flowing lines and a design rooted in nature. The audio-guided tour starts in the courtyard where you can see some of the intricate wrought-ironwork that is present throughout the building. We then took an elevator up to the rooftop, which was the best part of the tour. The roof of Casa Milà is unlike anything else and offers impressive views of the city. Four stairwell exits on the roof are like sculptures and each represents an element: earth, fire, water, and air. Chimneys and ventilation towers were also turned into artwork. It seems that everything Gaudí designs is both functional and decorative.
Caitlin and I stayed on the roof of Casa Milà for a long time, taking it all in and enjoying the city views. After about forty-five minutes to an hour of exploring the roof, we decided to continue on with the tour. We were hoping to catch the sunset like we did when we visited Casa Batlló the day before but it was still too early and we couldn’t stay up there forever. Next on the tour was the attic which houses the Gaudí Exhibition containing models, drawings, and other objects from his various projects. Then, the audio-guide led to an apartment that has been refurbished to show how an upper-class family in Barcelona lived in the early 20th century. The apartment was very lovely and I always enjoy seeing furniture, clothing, and other artifacts from different time periods.
By the time we finished our tour of Casa Milà, it was dark out and time for dinner. Caitlin and I decided to go back to Honest Greens because we loved our meal so much the night before. I ordered the same kale caesar salad with falafel as my protein but I got mini potatoes and an ancient grain blend instead of sweet potato this time. My mouth is watering just thinking about this meal and I wish Honest Greens would go international and open a location in Miami.
Day 4
On to my favorite day of the whole trip, the day I visited the one and only La Sagrada Familia. We started the day at the Museu Nacional d’Art de Catalunya, the largest art museum in Barcelona. The museum contains artwork from several periods, including Medieval Romanesque, Medieval Gothic, Renaissance, Baroque, and Modern art. It took us about 1.5 to 2 hours to walk through all of the galleries and it was nice to see a good variety of artwork. Before leaving, we headed up to the roof, which offered views of the mountains to the northwest and the Olympic Stadium to the Southeast. Luckily the sky had cleared up because it was kind of gloomy when we first arrived at the museum.
After the museum, we took the subway over to La Sagrada Familia, the #1 attraction I wanted to visit while in Spain. It is considered to be Antoni Gaudí’s greatest work. I remember studying this basilica in an architecture class I took in college and being absolutely amazed by its design. Well, pictures of La Sagrada Familia might be beautiful and all but it is an entirely different experience seeing it in person. The Nativity Facade, which is the only facade completed by Gaudí, is intricately detailed and contains sculptures related to Jesus’ birth story. The interior is just as astounding, with stained glass windows and columns that branch at the ceiling, making them looks like trees.
If you plan on visiting La Sagrada Familia, I highly recommend buying your tickets in advance because it is definitely the most popular tourist attraction in Barcelona and you’ll want to avoid the long ticket lines. I also recommend getting a ticket with the tower option. There are two towers you can currently go up in, the Nativity Tower and the Passion Tower. I went up the Nativity Tower because I read a lot of reviews that said it had a better view than the other. We went up one Nativity Tower in a small elevator, got to walk across a bridge to another tower, and then came down a narrow spiral staircase. The best part of going up a tower, other than the view, was getting to see some of the details of the facade up close.
Once back down from the Nativity Tower, we continued on our audio-guided tour, exploring the inside and seeing the Passion Facade, which looks very different from the Nativity Facade. We ended up staying at the basilica for close to two hours, soaking it all in. Neither Caitlin nor I wanted to leave; there’s something so special about La Sagrada Familia and I hope to visit again one day once it’s completed. Construction is on track to be completed in 2026, 100 years after Antoni Gaudí’s death.
The last attraction we wanted to visit this day was the Picasso Museum but, first, we needed food. We ate an early dinner at Bohl Wholesome Kitchen, a healthy restaurant with vegan options that we just happened to come across. I ordered the vegankini, a panini with avocado, arugala, cherry tomatoes, and Violife vegan cheese, and it was so yummy.
After dinner, we walked about ten to fifteen minutes to the Picasso Museum. Picasso is an artist I knew of, of course, but I didn’t know much about his life or his paintings, other than his blue period and his abstract works. It was really interesting to see his work progress from his childhood through late adulthood and also learn more about his life.
Overall, I had a wonderful time in Barcelona and I would love to visit again. The city had such a nice energy to it and I truly enjoyed learning more about Spanish culture and visiting a lot of attractions. After four days in Barcelona, my friend and I headed to Madrid by train. Keep an eye out for Part 2, which will document my time in Madrid.