June was a month full of adventures to new places, new activities and another incredible hike.  July kicked off with an American 4^th of July celebration and an English summer camp in the mountains. Started off August with a hike in Andorra and added another country to the list.

Sunday Funday to Figures to visit the Dali Museum and explore the nearby village of Girona (Sunday, June 1). Another fun Sunday with Cristina and this time north of Barcelona to the town of Figures to visit the Dali Museum.  I’m not big on museums but went in with an open mind and wow, was I fascinated. Salvador Dali had one crazy, imaginative mind to say the least.  He used every material possible and made it some interesting piece of art – paintings, drawings, furniture, household items, paper, jewelry, photography.  You name it and whatever he turned it into was fascinating. On the way back to Barcelona we stopped in the town of Girona where we explored for a couple hours. Another really cool, medieval village. Photo album: Click here.

Korfball (Thursday, June 5). You are probably wondering ‘what is korfball’ and so was I; so I met a group on the beach and learned how to play. It’s a sport that originated in the physical education classes in the Netherlands where boys and girls could play a sport together. It’s similar to basketball in that there are two hoops…but without backboards and you can run around every side of the backboard. You also cannot run or move with the ball and have to throw it from the position where you received it or shoot. We used a soccer ball to play. It was a lot of fun, great exercise and I learned how to play a new sport.

One of the most incredible hikes I have ever been on in Gorges de la Caranca, France (Saturday, June 7). Prior to this hike, I had three ‘favorite hikes’ – Cinque Terre, Itlay, ‘Path of the Gods’ in Positano, Italy, and Bridal Falls in Telluride, Colorado. This hike in France was INCREDIBLE and now I’ve added a fourth hike to my list. We started the hike in a lush forest and next to a beautiful waterfall. As we curved up around the mountain, we had the most beautiful views of the valley and the bridge in the distance. The trail become narrower and was soon curved out of the side of the mountain.  At some points we had to hold onto a cable because the trail was narrow and the fall was far. The trail then went back into the woods and over raging waters. Literally, over raging waters where we had to cross over narrow cable bridges that swayed when walked on. It was so adventurous, fun and gorgeous. Photo album: Click here.

Stand-Up Paddle Boarding (Sunday, June 8). Another favorite hobby of mine is stand-up paddle boarding…so of course I had to do it in the Mediterranean Sea. I’ve been paddle boarding a handful of times before, but in calm waters. This time was in the sea…with huge waves…needless to say, it was a little harder than what I was used to, but I loved it. It was also a pilates class on the paddle boards which made it more interesting and challenging. I had a great workout, it was a lot of fun and I was in the water. I definitely want to do it again.

It’s great to see a familiar face on this side of the world (Thursday, June 12). A close friend of my mom, Joan, was traveling through Barcelona on a trip chaperoning youth and reached out to meet for dinner. I couldn’t have been more excited to see a familiar face and showed her around the Borne/Gothic neighborhoods (my favorite areas of Barcelona) before finding a place to eat dinner.  I thought it would be fun to send something home to my parents and she took the magnet of Barcelona that I bought that night and gave it to my mom the next week.

Saturday boat ride followed by a wonder through the Borne and Gothic Neighborhoods (Saturday, June 14).  I had a training for a summer camp I would be working in July and prior to the training, the directors of the camp offered to take us out on a boat ride to see Barcelona from the sea. I loved it and it was beautiful view of Barcelona. I was finished with the training with no other plans for the day so decided to wonder through the Borne and Gothic Neighborhoods of Old Barcelona for hours. This is my favorite area of Barcelona. The walkways are narrow, the buildings are old…very old. There are still remains of the ancient roman wall.  I love it and I feel like I am back in time 100’s of years ago.

Sharing an American Tradition: PB&J (Friday, June 20).  I had a class of 10 business students and none of them had ever had peanut butter and jelly!  Yes, PB&J, the sandwich every kid in America grew up on. Peanut butter is rare on this side of the world and people actually think it’s very strange and gross to eat smashed peanuts.  So, on our last day of class I brought PB&J, the students brought traditional Catalan food and we shared our cultures.  They said they liked it, but not sure if they were just trying to be nice.  We also played one of my favorite games, ‘Identity Crisis’, but instead of having people’s names on the cards, I put English words we had learned during the class.

Day trip to Cadaques (Sunday, July 29). Cadeques, on the Coasta Brava and two hours north of Barcelona, isn’t the easiest location to get to by train, so a friend organized a bus.  The Coasta Brava is known for the clear waters and breathtaking views so we knew Cadeques was a place to see.  The bus dropped us off in the village and from there we walked 20 minutes to the area where the famous painter Salvador Dali once lived.  We didn’t tour his house, we thought seeing the museum was a good enough fill of Dali, but instead took a boat ride up the coast.  It was a little rainy but the boat had rain jackets and we had a lot of fun. We even rode on the front of the boat like we were on the Titanic. We walked back to Cadeques, has some food and explored the village before getting back on the bus to Barcelona. Photo album: Click here.

4^th of July Party!! (Friday, July 4).  Although we are not in America, we couldn’t go without celebrating the 4^th of July. One of our friends offered his rooftop terrace for the party and out went the invite. My roommate Alli and I invited nearly everyone we knew in Barcelona; people from our certification course, friends we made when we first arrived, our roommate and her sister, people from the hiking group and anyone else we knew. Friends invited friends and at the peak there was probably over 50 people from many different countries; only five of us being Americans. It was a potluck style and we had everything from hot dogs, to hamburgers to the most delicious lamb with special sauce. We also had a traditional Catalan dessert, brownies, mojito jello shots and these yummy red, white and blue fruit parfaits (with American flags in them) that Alli made. There were a couple guitars and everyone sang along. It was a fun time with great people, beautiful views, delicious food and the best atmosphere. HAPPY 4TH OF JULY VIDEO: Click here.  Photo album: Click here.

English Summer Camp in Banyoles (Saturday, July 5- Friday, July 18).  I had the opportunity to escape the city and head to the mountains of Catalunya for a two week English camp.  I was given 20 kids, boys and girls, ages 10-12 and I had a great time getting to know them. Ironically, I was given the team name Cats, so of course I had my kids do the University of Kentucky ‘CATS’ cheer for the video that was sent home to the parents. 🙂  I really enjoyed the kids and was sad to tell them goodbye at the conclusion of the camp.

The days were full to max: ready by 8am to wake the kids, breakfast, then two 90 minute sessions of activities from 9:30-12:30pm (I will explain this part later), snack break at 12:30pm, pool from 1-2pm, lunch and a little down time from 2:15-3:45pm, then the Entrepreneur Program from 4-5:30pm, another snack, afternoon activity from 6-8pm, shower then dinner at 8:45pm (they eat very late here!), Show Time from 9:45- 11:45ish, staff meeting, make sure the kids are asleep (which they never were) and in bed around 12:30-1am.  I was exhausted each day and had no problem falling asleep each night. Back to the activities, which I enjoyed very much, each day we did different activities including: horseback riding, tree jungle course, laser tag in the woods, rock climbing, archery, water games, quads, mountain biking, a game similar to American football, football (soccer) and basketball.  At night during ‘Show Time’ the different team put on performances.  My team did a great job and I was really proud of them!

High School reunion in Barcelona (Friday, August 1). A friend from high school, Sarah, was in town with her husband and thanks to Facebook knew I lived here and reached out to have dinner. We hadn’t seen each other SINCE high school and end up meeting back up in Barcelona. We had a great time catching up on each other’s lives and I had fun showing them some of the ‘non-touristy’ parts of Barcelona.

Hiking in Andorra (Saturday, August 2).  Finally made it to Andorra, the teeny-tiny country in the Pyrenees between France and Spain, and it was gorgeous. We started in a smaller town of the country where we hiked up the mountain next to a ski lift and enjoyed the most beautiful views. We were walking around the mountain, enjoying a garden, when it started to pour. Luckily we were on guard and had rain ponchos so it wasn’t too bad.  We arrived to a lake with a restaurant and had a traditional Catalan lunch that was delicious. The hike back down the mountain was through lush, green, trees, plants, flowers and was absolutely gorgeous. I was in heaven.  We got back to the bus and headed to the capital where we explored for an hour. I had a great time and added country #15 to my list. Photo album: Click here.

Up next…France and Greece! I am so excited for one of my best friends, Alison, to get here this Saturday!! Also coming is one of her good friends from grad school, Angela, and her friend Vanessa. I am going to show them around Barcelona for three days, where we will also go to a Castellers Festival (Human Towers), before heading to France for wine tasting in Bordeaux, four days in Paris and a day trip to the Champagne region for more tastings. We will then jump on a plane to Santorini, Greece, the blue roofs you imagine when you think of Greece, and then take a ferry to Athens before flying home.  It’s going to be an amazing time! 🙂