In this blog I present to you, my weekend in Barcelona with most of my wonderful family. It started with an organized school trip to El Escorial and Avila and ended with me taking a train back to Salamanca from Barcelona. On Thursday, my mom and sister came to Salamanca and were waiting impatiently for me while I finished my classes. My Spanish teacher noticed how antsy I was waiting during class and she let me out early because she said that she does not want to be the reason why I do not see my family, what a sweet heart. I ran out of class with barely enough time to thank my teacher for letting me out early, and ran to the clock in the plaza where we originally planned to meet. Finally after what seemed like years I saw two people that looked like my mom and sister walking through the Plaza Mayor yet I could not seem to register that they were actually there. After the much needed bombarding of hugs and kisses we had just enough time to get some dinner and see a bit of Salamanca.

The next day I went on the school tour to El Escorial and Avila, where my parents and sister would pick me up to go to Barcelona—yes overnight my dad also joined the banter. El Escorial from what I understood was a summer home for the king and queen, seems like a pretty good time-share. The only thing I did not like about the palace was that I did not fit through any of the doors, but I managed to make it out with no major head injuries. As for Avila, the rain stopped just in time for us to get up to the walls and see the incredible walls of Avila. They reminded me of the Great Wall of China except they were in a circle around the center of the city. We were able to walk around on the walls and take terrifying pictures standing on the edge, and that’s when all of a sudden I hear my mom screaming my name from the bottom of the wall. They somehow found me in the middle of Avila with no phone or sense of direction, but I guess my mom was right, moms do know everything. We went down from the walls when my parents got to meet my friends and finally put a personality behind the pictures they have been seeing and I was relieved but not surprised that my parents loved them all. It was weird/sad saying bye to my friends because it was my first time away from any of them in a month of being here but at the same time I was extremely excited to go to Barcelona with my family.

Finally I was off with my parents and sister on the way to see the famous Barcelona. It was so refreshing to be around my family again, and enjoy the company of people that I knew before the trip. Yet at the same time I could not stop thinking about how I missed my friends and how hard it would be to leave them after the trip. It was a melancholy thought that I pushed to the back of my head so that I can enjoy the weekend with my family. On the drive to Barcelona the weather and time zone were not on our side. Both my parents were completely jet lagged and fighting sleep with every ounce of power they had, and the rain was coming down mercilessly. After my mom fell asleep at the wheel for a moment we realized it was in our best interest to stop in Zaragoza, get some rest, and continue on to Barcelona early the next day. Zaragoza was gorgeous and it’s a shame that we did not get to enjoy it for more than 12 hours. That night, Tal—my sister who from now on has a name on this blog—and I went out for a drink and some tapas and had a lovely time. We sat down at a nice place and sat there and talked until we were kicked out when the bar closed.

The next morning we headed to Barcelona, which is completely different from any city in Spain or any city in the world that I have ever seen. When people ask if it’s the best city in Spain I tell them that its not even comparable its just on a whole new level. Its not necessarily better than any other city in Spain, it is just special in a unique way, which it is largely due to Antoni Gaudi’s architecture. I was literally enchanted by the buildings that Gaudi designed. They were all inspired by various aspects of nature and he somehow managed to make a wall made out of tile look like a wavy ocean. He was an architectural mastermind who completely deviated from the norm in building style and you have to see the inside of the Sagrada Familia to understand just how dream like his architecture is. Last but certainly not least we saw the Parque Guel, which is where Gaudi lived and designed, which is also a place I like to call pickpocket-ville. When and if you go there do not be too distracted by the incredibly aesthetics and make sure you watch your pockets.

The weekend ended way too quickly and I did not spend nearly as much time as I would have liked to with my family. We crammed as much as we could into the short time we had together yet I still feel like we only scratched the surface. It seems like they were only here for 10 minutes and they left as quickly as they came. I’m writing this blog a week after our Barcelona trip and my parents left two days ago and I’m just realizing I wont see them until June 7^th. This is the longest stretch of time I have gone without seeing my parents in my whole life and I hope it will be the last. I have never been one to not appreciate his parents, yet somehow this trip managed to make me appreciate them even more for giving me this opportunity and opening my mind to a whole new world and giving me a completely new perspective on life. And for that they have my undying gratitude, love, and respect. As for seeing Tal, every time I see her it takes a second for me to fully comprehend that she’s actually there, and with being in a foreign city for such a short period of time, I feel like we were robbed of a true sibling bromance. Sure it was amazing seeing her and we made each other laugh like we always do with our awkward unique humor that most people don’t understand, but 3 days is simply not long enough for a reunion. Don’t take this the wrong way all I’m saying is that with a sibling that lives across the world, seeing them for a weekend for the first time since summer simply does not suffice. Love you Tal and I cannot wait to see you again in Israel a month and a half from now 🙂

I guess that’s all for this blog I’m actually in Granada right now with Dana and the boys, but don’t worry you will hear all about this road trip in the next blog. We went to Sevilla, Malaga, Granada, and tomorrow Cordoba so I figure I’ll write about it when it actually ends.

So my mom, dad, and sister have come and gone, my girlfriend is here right now, and next week my best friend is coming.  Just letting you know about the stuff that you can expect to hear about 🙂