I recently attended the Crowdstrike annual event in Europe. This year it was in Barcelona. I had never been to the city before (or any other part of Spain. I was truly impressed with the city and rank it in the top cities I could imagine living. Some of the highlights below. Lots of pictures!
The People
Barcelona is a young city. It reminded me of my time spent in Tel Aviv. There were families and people in their teens and twenties walking everywhere. The people seemed a bit eccentric and full of life. There were many street performers with varying talents. One nice thing was that most people spoke passable English.
The Food
I had a variety of food while I was there ranging from the fancy to street food and pizza. I found the most local places to be the most tasty. The seafood was just OK for me. I though the Pizza in the gothic sector of the city was really good. One Tapas place we went to was especially yummy.
The Architecture
I loved the creativity and diversity of the architecture. There were Gaudi buildings that seemed like Beetlejuice and Dr. Suess collaborated. It has old world charm combined with modern chic. Walking around the city gave me a new look every few minutes.
The Beaches
Similar to Tel Aviv, the beaches butted right up to the skyscrapers. I was not quite warm enough for me to swim, but I imagine the beaches are full of people in the warmer months. There were also many boats near my hotel.
The Vibe
It was a really fun city. The vibe was alive and energetic. It definitely was a late city. Many people did not start their night until 9 or 10pm. I am not a night owl, so I missed out on some of that part of the culture. Still, you could tell during the day that the city was full of life.
I walked 9 miles one day, all the way up the hill where the 1992 Olympics were held. I took this video of the whole city. It’s really big!
Frankfurt Airport
On the way home, I had a 90 minute layover in Frankfurt. Unfortunately, the flight was delayed and we had to sprint across this massive airport. I was dying and finally when we got to the gate, they shut the doors. We missed it by just a few minutes. I could take a picture of the plane with the walkway still attached!!
I ended up having to stay at a motel for the night.
Still overall, a wonderful trip and a great city. (Barcelona, not Frankfurt)
Whatya think?