A little more than halfway through the CIMBA semester, we get a week-long spring break. This was such a nice time to relax before the workload increased leading up to finals. Many of us decided to spend the first half of the week in Barcelona, Spain and the second half in the Canary Islands. We left Friday night and arrived in Barcelona very late. For the first couple days, I was in a small group before everyone else arrived so we decided to get to know and explore the city. We did an Airbnb guided tour of the city.
Starting off in the Gothic Quarter, we saw so many unique buildings and old churches as our guide told us the story that lies within. We ended the tour in Ciutadella Park next to the beautiful fountain. We decided to find a restaurant with paella to try an authentic Spanish dish. I really enjoyed the dish and I would definitely recommend trying it in Barcelona. The next day, we took a day trip to Palma, which is an island right off the coast of Spain. Palma was empty because it’s their off season but we still got to visit the main church, caves, and relax on the beach.
On Monday, other CIMBA students arrived in Barcelona so we had a much bigger group to explore the city with. We decided to walk by the harbor during sunset which was absolutely beautiful. I noticed a gondola that took people across the water to the mountain on the other side. We decided to do it during sunset with the views being incredible. Towards the end of our time in Barcelona, the whole group decided to go to The Bunkers to watch the sunset and reflect on our time in Barcelona. The Bunkers is a look out spot on one of the highest points in Barcelona to look over the whole city. The hike was very steep and tiring, which made the end even more special to see.
The next day we got up early and had a couple hours before our flight was supposed to leave. We decided to check out Park Guell which is one of the main tourist spots in Barcelona. At first, we walked through the park and were disappointed by it because there wasn’t much to see. Then we went up to the employees and asked for a map then realized we were in the wrong part of the park. Once we walked over to the front we realized why it was so popular. It was absolutely stunning, there was tile art all along the pillars as well as the ceiling of the structure. We were not able to explore as long as we would have liked to because we had a flight to catch.
Our flight from Barcelona to Canary was one of the longest ones we have taken so far. Our Airbnb was brand new and absolutely amazing. It was in the perfect location with access to the beach less than a five minute walk away. We got a good night’s rest and woke up early to start our day of laying on the beach. Since I am from a coastal town, going to the beach is one of my favorite things to do. We were able to find a smoothie place for breakfast which was so refreshing. We found a nice spot on the beach and laid down enjoying the sun for many hours. There was a Starbucks right on the boardwalk so I made several trips to get a frappuccino to cool myself off from the heat.
The second morning, we decided to go snorkeling. The waves were still calm so it was a relaxing swim over to the coral reef where we could see all the colorful fish. This was definitely the highlight of my trip. I swam for what felt like hours, admiring all the beautiful colors of the fish and watching them swim around. I relaxed on the beach for the rest of the day because I was very tired from the swim. Unfortunately, we didn’t get a ton of time in Canary but being able to spend a week in the warmth and by the beach was the perfect reset for us to come back to school well-rested and prepared for the coming weeks.