Give Me Liberty

Up early for our trip to Montserrat Monestary, we encountered our first hiccup from the independence protests.  The farmers blocked the roads in protest this morning preventing our bus from reaching our hotel.  Always flexible, we swapped our plans for Thursday to today.  We scrambled to prepare images for a critique this morning.

The protest in the square was scheduled at noon, so after class we took the metro down towards the Cathedral to see what it was all about.  It was clear the minute we emerged from the metro that something was happening.  People clothed in the independence flag of Catalan, red and gold strips with a blue triangle containing a star, were traveling towards the protest.  Reaching the square, we could barely enter the perimeter because of the crowds that had turned out to voice their desire for independence.  

The non-violent protestors waved flags, sang songs and chanted support for independence.  I saw one woman waving the Spanish flag, yelling at the protestors, very emotional about her stance.  The crowds started to disperse mid-afternoon which was our cue to continue our tour of the city.

The first Worlds Fair was held in Barcelona in the late 1800’s.  The park still exists with many buildings still standing although many are abandoned.  A beautiful fountain looked newly restored, gold leaf sparkling at the top.  It appeared the park serves as a gathering spot for some of the city’s homeless, but it is still a spot for families to enjoy the out of doors.

A short walk further brought us to the port flanked by old apartment buildings that once housed a large population of port workers.  It’s an area where laundry hangs from balcony alongside flags of both independence and Spain.  

We stopped in a little bar, lured in by one of the patrons that wanted to visit with us.  In his early 30’s, Carlos had a great command of geography naming cities from our native countries (USA, Australia and England).  He spent a year in Australia, was a contestant on a game show (he had the video on his phone) and made an excellent model for us.  I marked off a trip goal here by ordering a red vermouth adorned with an orange slice and a single olive.  Unlike the vermouth at home, this one was slightly sweet and reminded me a little of wine.  It was delicious.

We dined at 7 Porter tonight, a large restaurant at the edge of the port area right next to Oaxaca.  The menu had a large variety of dishes but most of our group chose the paella.  Both locals and tourists mixed in the dining room, filling the several dining rooms that made up the restaurant.

We walked back to our hotel for a relatively early turn in.

Tomorrow: Montserrat and Cava