Small town, smoke, and funiculars

Things I like: Small town feel.

Yesterday I went to the top of Montjuïc, a part of Barcelona on top of a hill. I could see all of Barcelona, spreading out for miles to mountains on three sides and the Mediterranean on the fourth. It´s a big city! And there are so many people in the center of town, speaking all languages, walking the Ramblas filled with cafes, restaurants, shops. But, when I get back to the neighborhood where my hostel is, it feels like a small town.

My first night here, the kind people at the hostel directed me to a grocery in the neighborhood and the nearest tobacco shop so I could pick up a calling card. On my walk, one of the streets was blocked off by a small, raised platform. Some ladies all dressed up in vibrant, flowered, ruffled dresses, with their hair done up. They gathered in a circle, and when the music started, danced a lovely flamenco dance. People from the neighborhood were gathered around watching. Neighbors and friends greeted each other, waving across the small audience. They kept time clapping, and when each dance ended, shouted "¡Olé!"

This relatively quiet area of Barcelona is filled with houses and apartments. Every few buildings, the ground floor hosts a small shop. I´ve seen peluquerías (hair salons), panaderías (bread shops), carnicerías (meat shops), grocerías (grocers). I´ve even seen tiny auto shops. Above these are apartments, perhaps where the shopkeepers live. Having everything mixed in together gives everything a small town, neighborly feel.

I found the tobacco shop I was looking for and bought my phone card. A little further down was a little square surrounded by some cafes and restaurants. People sat on park benches and chatted, or sipped cervezas at cafe tables. I bought a lime gelato and ate it on a bench, people-watching. I stopped at the grocery and picked up some apples and yogurt for breakfasts. As I passed by the stage on my return, the flamenco dancers had finished, and couples were dancing together to music. Older couples, and even pairs of ladies, danced the foxtrot together in the middle of the street. Talk about a blockparty!

Things I dislike: smoke.

The guidebook was right: people do smoke a lot in Europe. I had to leave the hostel´s common room last night, it was so bad. Sometimes I can even smell it coming through the window in my room at night from people out on the patio.

Things I´ve learned: funiculars.

A funicular is two cars, one at the top and one at the bottom of a hill, joined by a cable. There is one track that splits into two in the middle for the cars to pass. The one at the top pulls up the one at the bottom as it goes down.
There´s one taking you up to Montjuïc, though you have to take cable cars to get to the very top. There´s also one taking you to Mount Tibidabo, where there´s a church and an amusement park.