Spain – Day 1 & 2 – Barcelona

Published by

Shelby Nook

on

November 26, 2025

Alright people back at it’s with the blog!! Also sorry for the delay, I was so exhausted my first night, so you’re getting 2 in 1 today! 😁

Day 1! I arrived around noon November 25th. My day consisted of getting settled in, wandering, then a cooking class! This is typically how my first day on my trips look. I usually wonder for a while to get a feel for the area, as well as something food related, either a food tour or cooking class. A food experience is such an easy way to learn about a culture, as well as educate you on what you should or should not eat while you’re there!

Here are some random things that caught my eye while walking around:

Sagrada Familia : church architected by Gaudi

Arc de Triomf : it’s funny how so many countries have their own version of this… I’m sure at the time they were all jealous or trying to one up each other.

I’m surprised by the number of bakeries here. You always associate pastries with France but had never thought about it with Spain.

Now on to the cooking class. Courses were as follows:

Romesco Sauce : sauce made of peppers, tomatoes, garlic, olive oil, hazelnuts. Used to dip roasted vegetables. 10/10
Tortilla de Patatas con Pan con Tomates : potato omelet with tomato bread. Wow, both were so good, I’m especially a fan of the tomato bread. At first I thought this was going to be tomatoes cooked into the bread (new sourdough idea?!) but instead, it’s toasted bread smeared with garlic, tomato, and olive oil. I would make both of these for sure. Tortilla de Patatas 8/10 and Pan con Tomates 10/10
Paella Valencian Style : Everyone knows paella… it’s a rice/risotto dish with some kind of meet, this one being chicken, with peppers, tomatoes, green beans, onion, chicken stock, saffron, paprika. Got to be honest… I have maybe only had paella 2-3 times in my life, including this. And I maybe think paella just isn’t for me. It was definitely cool to learn to make it, as it requires certain techniques and a special paella pan, but I don’t think I would order this at a restaurant. 5/10 for me personally
Crema Catalana : lemon and cinnamon custard (similar to creme brulee). Mixed eggs, sugar, lemon, cinnamon with a melted sugar glaze. 7/10

Day 2! Lots more walking, with a historic walking tour in the afternoon and flamenco show in the evening!

Dry aged meats🤤

Lunch! So simple yet so delicious! Baguette with thinly sliced dried pork shoulder.

Okay now for the walking tour… the day before, u had already walked past half of these things and had no idea what they were!! So glad I did this to add some important context. Youre walking past potentially thousands of years of history… so make the effort to learn about it!

What we know now as Barcelona, was originally much much smaller and was founded by the Romans and they created a colony called Barcino. When I was walking around yesterday… surprisingly enough, I was thinking that this city felt very similar to Rome….. now I know why! Barcino had a wall around it built in 1st century BC, in the area now called the Gothic Quarter. The photo below is all that’s left of the wall.

Cathedral of Barcelona. This church looked very different – small, ugly smooth concrete (built in 1200-1300) – and was restored to this neo Gothic design 1927 for the Worlds Fair in 1929. During this time, Barcelona was not up to standard with the world architecture, so they quickly restored numerous building like this before hosting the Worlds Fair

Temple of Augustus : The temple was built in the 1st century BC and dedicated to Emperor Augustus. Was originally the highest point of Barcino. Today, only 4 columns remain. The ruins were hidden within medieval buildings for centuries and were only fully uncovered and restored in the early 1900s.

Shows the narrow alleys – a result of the Romans

The next four buildings are all located within 2 blocks on Pg de Gràcia, called “The Block of Discord”, exhibiting three different architects.

Casa Lleó Morera : an example of Catalan Modernism g de Gràcia in Barcelona. It was designed by architect Lluís Domènech i Montaner and built between 1902 and 1906.

Casa Amatller : It was designed by the Catalan architect Josep Puig i Cadafalch and completed around 1900. It combines Neo-Gothic elements with a stepped gable facade inspired by Dutch architecture.

Casa Batlló : Catalan Modernist building designed by Antoni Gaudí. Gaudi was often inspired by nature as that was his way of showings Gods creation. He is often known as “Gods Architect”.

Casa Milà/ La Pedrera : designed by Antoni Gaudí. It was the last private residence designed by Gaudí and was built between 1906 and 1912

Finally onto dinner, thanks to my guide for providing a list of restaurant recommendations!!

La Alcoba Azul for Tapas!

Left: Mushroom and pickled vegetables with purple cauliflower puree
Right: “toast” with Brie, bacon, almonds.

Flamenco show to end the night. An intimate venue with 4 different performances. Loved the music, the guitar was insane!! Flamenco dancing originated in the south of Spain near Seville.