Girona
About 60 miles northeast of Barcelona, Girona makes for the perfect day trip and excursion into a smaller city of Spain. Our day focused on the old town area of the city around the cathedral and the roman walls surrounding the area. One thing that is painfully apparent here is the extreme belief in independence from Spain. Walking down the the tiny cobblestone streets Catalan flags can be seen hanging from nearly every Balcony. The architecture and medieval feel of this city make it one of most mesmerizing cities I have been to and if that weren’t enough the culture and the food here would certainly make it worth a visit.
This little guy is part of a legend of Girona supposedly if you kiss the lioness’ bottom then you will eventually return to Girona one day.
Besalú
Even smaller than Girona, Besalú is a tiny medieval town about an hour outside of Barcelona. As you walk across the long bridge and thru the gate of the medieval city you feel like you have been put into a time machine. With the river running under the bridge and the Perennes mountains in the background the views in this city are truly awe inspiring. The city is very small and everything can be seen in a couple of hours but one of the best moments was just walking down the river taking in everything around me.
Tarragona
About an hour down the coast from Barcelona will bring you to Tarragona a city marked with Roman buildings, walls, and gates. A UNESCO world heritage site the ruins of the ancient arena have been kept exquisite and standing in the middle of the ruins you can imagine thousands of ancient Romans enjoying a gladiator match. Other then the Roman heritage it is obvious that this city’s beautiful beaches would be packed during the summer but still a much better alternative to the even more popular beaches of Barcelona.
Sitges
Just outside of Barcelona, Sitges is nice little beach side town……. that is until carnival comes to town. One of the most gay friendly places in the world the city hosts one of Europe’s biggest parties. The party lasts for days with different parades and thousands of costumed party goers packing the streets. I actually ended up going twice because I had so much fun the first night and had even more fun the second night! If you are anywhere near Barcelona when this festival happens it would be a huge mistake to miss out as it will be an experience you won’t soon forget!
The crew in all of our last minute throw together costumes…. not bad!!!
Barcelona 2013 