Cloudy sky painted with tones of yellow before the sunset. Buildings and mountains on the distance. Planes taking off and landing.
That's what I'm looking at through the window of a plane headed to Barcelona.
There's this certain feeling of excitement when you are going somewhere unknown, new places, new food, new everything. But going back to one of the places you have visited the most is different. The excitement is there, but it's just not the same. You know exactly where you're going and what you will see there. But you know as well that you will see something new as well, there is always something new and different from the last time you've been there.
Barcelona is a special place for me; I've been there around 10 times since 2018. First trip was with friends and my first time in Europe as well. Second time with my family. Third time was for work, and the rest have been a mix of work and leisure. I don't see the city as a touristic place anymore, rather as a home far away from home.
As I'm sitting here, waiting to depart, I can't help but think how it will surprise me this time. I'm going for work, so I have a tight schedule, but I will have a couple of days to see the city once more.
I know where I want to go eat, where I want to get my coffee, and what places I want to see. I have explored the city so intensely in so many trips that I want to relive those places with different eyes with the limited time that I'll have.
That's why the excitement feels different. I'm not looking to discover the city this time, rather see it again with different eyes.
Once more, I'm going with my father. He told me something curious the other day while we were thinking of what we could do on our spare time. He's been there even more times than me, but he hasn't explored it as much. He told me he felt like he hasn't seen much, so I should take him somewhere he's never been to and explore the city.
First thing that came to my mind was the Palau de la Música Catalana (The Palace of Catalan Music). It's one of the hidden gems in Barcelona that is not so touristy compared to many of the other landmarks and attractions that the city has. We've been to most of Gaudi’s places, and don't get me wrong I love the architecture and his buildings, but seeing the inside architecture of the Palau is something else. And the acoustics, I can't even explain.
The first time I discovered it, I was walking through the Gothic Quarter, heading somewhere near the beach. Walking down a narrow street, I saw the Palau from the outside and thought it was weird looking, but once I saw it from the front, I was impressed. I was in a hurry, so I kept walking, but I knew I wanted to go back and check it out.
Some days later, I went again with one of my friends who lived there for a while. He didn't know of its existence either, so we went in. We took the tour of the building. I was amazed by the beauty and the number of details of the construction. Columns with sculptures of winged horses with their riders. The ceiling has a mosaic of colored glass with a Sun that looks like it’s coming our of it. The main stage has sculptures of women from different countries with their respective instruments, as if they were muses. I was left speechless by the beauty of the place. And once they made a sound display of the music and acoustics, I can’t even describe what I was hearing. I closed my eyes while listening to the music. It felt like I was in a dream. I knew I had to come back to see a live performance there.
Just like my view from the window now, it feels like you are above the skies. That's the beauty the Palau reflects with its incredibly thoughtful details, you already feel like you’re in a dream before even listening to the music.
So, that’s why I chose to come back to this place. I looked online to see what performances we could attend. I found one on Sunday that was a homage to Hans Zimmer and John Williams, performed by a symphonic orchestra. They'll play music from the films these two have scored, such as Star Wars, Interstellar, Inception, Pirates of the Caribbean, etc. I really love these movies, and my dad likes them as well. I was checking the availability, and it was almost full, so I bought the tickets immediately.
Most of the times I've been here, I’ve arrived by train. Now, looking at the city out of the window from above, identifying all the places I've already been to, it just makes me wonder what surprises await me. I see in the distance the now finished Sagrada Familia, the mountains in the back, the treeline of La Rambla, the curved beach of la Barceloneta, the port, Montjuic.
I finally landed. Graced by the beauty of Barcelona from above, I looked out the window one last time, and saw a beautiful bird with a long tail flying by, as if welcoming me to the city.