It was the summer of 2022 and it was that time that travel was finally possible. The year gone by was at its best “gone by” and now that it was behind us; we were as jumpy as a cat on a hot tin roof during a middle eastern summer to journey.

We had a laundry list of what our summer holiday destination “must have” and it was exhaustive – we had a whole year to work on it. The front liners riding our holiday destination – it should have stunning cuisine, stunning cities, stunning towns, a stunning coastline, stunning weather, stunning culture, stunning drives, stunning beverages, stunning energy, stunning vibe …well, it had to be a stunner in all aspects. No pressure, yea ? This is when the great Don Quixote comes to our rescue; quite literally and gives us our heading and off we were to the land of the Don and the Hidalgo.

BARCELONA

Day 1

Started off our escapade most naturally in Barcelona. Such a soulful place. The vibe so exhilarating and tangible, you could pierce it through a knife. In an instant its rid us of all the travel fatigue and in an eye blink we were in the thick of the city. We knew that this was our purge. Literally, tossed our luggage in the hotel room and off we were to La Rambala. Went through the day hopping through the alleyways, square and the eateries there.

In the evening, we came across a star wars exhibition and for the big star wars fans that we had in our camaraderie, this was the Holy Grail.

The energy of the entire city is unmistakable but the quarter of Rambala is a tad bit special; its allure – so distinctive, it is impossible not to succumb to it. Fun and smiles all day. It was a perfect way to kick off a summer. We found an incredible restaurant called Ciutat Comtal where we dined in the evening. Everything on the menu was delectable but the churos – outstanding. We kept on returning here again and again and again.

Day 2

The following day we toured the city in a twin seat golf cart electric scooter car. Incredibly easy to navigate and an extremely fun way to explore the entire city. You could access all areas of the centre and also take the cart port side. The navigation was super easy with an on deck screen that would help you take the pre loaded routes. Super fun to drive and a breeze to park and hop off. During the day we went about exploring the city and in the evening we were by the coast. An ice cream with a view at the Parque de Mirador was our final stop.

Day 3

Spirituality came in knocking through the door bright and early this morning, as we visited the legendary Sagrada Familia. Aside from all the extraordinary that you would come to expect here at what is undoubtedly Gaudi’s magnum opus; the feat displayed by the ambient light entering through the tainted glass of the church, at different hours of the day, is absolutely mesmerising to say the least. Spend the better part of the day here watching the lights and be hypnotised; come out a better person, maybe. Hypnosis, lights, spirituality, inner peace – man I don’t know if I was in a Church or a therapy session. Maybe the eccentric architect did delve into being a therapist at some point. A a paradox in the flesh.

In the late afternoon, our therapy session continued, it just digressed from spiritual to retail in Passeig de Garcia; the infamous Casa Batlo is here as well – yet another of Gaudi’s masterpieces in this city. In the late evening, we the Park Guell in evening – another one out of Gaudi’s genius vault. They just keep on rolling. The views of the city from the terrace here are incredible. Left us stunned and captivated to the hilt.

Next stop – Zaragoza