Dia del Libro in Barcelona

Barcelona have this great day, akin to Valentines Day called Sant Jordi's Day and it was being celebrated when I visited. It's based around the patron saint of Catalonia, St Jordi and the legend that he slayed a dragon to save a princess. When the dragons blood hit the ground, a rose bush appeared and he picked a red rose for the princess.

Also called el Dia de la Rosa (Day of the Rose) or Dia del Libro (Book Day) where the tradition is for a man to give a woman a rose as a sign of his love and woman to give the man a book in return. This is such a great tradition! I want books next Valentines Day.

Heading back to Barcelona for the second time was very exciting. I didn't really see much first time around after ending up in hospital and spending my three days there quite unwell. This trip was much more successful and filled with evenings on the terrace drinking wine and eating cheese, eating all the tapas in town (that's right, ALL of them), wandering the city and visiting the amazing work of Gaudi.

The view from the Airbnb apartment

La Rambla

La Rambla

One of Gaudi's first pieces in Barcelona

Graffiti art

Gaudi's Casa Batllo

Casa Batllo at night

Cuitat Comtal

Gaudi's Sagrada Familia

Inside the Sagrada Familia

Gaudi's Park Güell

Park Güell

Park Güell

Park Güell

Park Güell

Park Güell

Evenings on the terrace 

 

Catedral de Barcelona

Catedral de Barcelona

Catedral de Barcelona

The Port of Barcelona

Taller de Tapas

Parc de Montjuic

 Parc de Montjuic

 Parc de Montjuic

Incredible!

Copenhagen

The happiest of all cities in the world is Copenhagen. And I was pretty happy to be spending a weekend there. 

Having been there a few years ago with my sister, it was nice to get back there. Arriving in the city centre, we were greeted with blood running down the pavement and stairs… a lot of blood. And then a police cordon and tent because apparently someone had been stabbed just 20 minutes beforehand. What a happy city indeed!

Luckily the weekend took a turn for the better after that and we made our way to the charming Airbnb apartment we'd booked on Strøget (the main shopping street). 

I guess you could say Copenhagen is like a lot of other European cities with its canals and bikes but it feels very unique. Starting out the day with a walking tour, we learned snippets of history and how exceptionally disappointing some of the main attractions are (ie. the little mermaid - a small statue inspired by the story written by Hans Christian Andersen, quite cool but LOADS of people crowding round trying to get their own picture with the her). UGH.

There was a great billboard thing you could make patterns and stuff with. I'm not sure what the point was but I wrote my name anyway!

One place I remembered to visit was Kastellet. This place is a fort with barracks and cannons and even a windmill, but best of all it's shaped like a star! Check it out on google.

The majority of Copenhagen is one height, but there are a few towers which stretch taller and offer great views of the city. We climbed the Church of Our Saviour for just a few euros - money well spent. 

After tower climbing, the next stop was Freetown Christiania. Home to 1000 residents, Christiania is a free state within Copenhagen (with no cars or taxes) founded in 1971 by hippies who wanted to live by their own set of society rules. Most people know it for it's Green Light District, where you can buy and sell weed. I thought I would find a colourful, friendly, buzzing, hippy community, but instead I was greeted by graffiti, litter, many lists with things I couldn't do (like take photos) and stalls selling weed on 'Pusher Street' shrouded in secrecy. I didn't like it at all. 

But then the day was made much better by a boat trip. Yay! Boats! 

One of the most picturesque spots in Copenhagen is Nyhaven, where Hans Christian Andersen lived.

And last stop on the list was Tivoli, but having been closed over winter, it was only due to open the following week.

Learning to Snowboard in Chamonix

I don't have the most thorough knowledge of French ski towns and the mountains... but Chamonix is spectacular and definitely one of the best. 

In March last year, I was invited on a snowboarding trip to this lovely town. Having barely ever skied before, and definitely never boarded, it was an experience to say the least. But at least Sam and I looked the part. 

We stayed in an amazing chalet, equipped with hot tub, sauna and six bedrooms, each with their own ensuite. I felt fancy. The views of the mountains weren't half bad either...

Most of the time I spent on the kiddie slopes perfecting my turns and trying to interpret what my French instructor meant by 'lift your outside toes' (when you want me to shift my weight on to a different foot, surely this doesn't narrow down either foot?). Oh and there were snow angels. 

Just to prove that we did actually learn something, here are a couple of videos of Sam and I carving it up*.

On the second day, I ventured up to the proper slopes with the others but it was a bit premature and on seeing the size and gradient of the slope, I sat down and refused to move for about half an hour. I did eventually make it down, but there were tears! I am sometimes not as hardcore as I'd like to think. 

And of course there was some irresponsible drinking with Keith Richards. 

Even though I say this of most places, I will definitely be back. 

*Video has been edited to remove parts where I fall on my face.