Our Barcelona Ramble

Many folks ask us how we are enjoying the Barcelona late night ramble. Well, um, we have a two-year-old daughter, so, no, we don't really get to experience it like we did years ago as tourists. However, last night we took the opportunity to get out and see a friend's jazz performance while my mother is still in town. We invited our friend Jordi as well. We started out getting a bite to eat at 9 pm at a local Greek/Lebanese joint (the Greek yogurt here is awesome). Then we set out to look for the Sala Monasterio (clearly unmarked!) down by the sea and enjoyed two hours of Frederique's jazz trio plus guest guitarist. They played jazz standards and some of Frederique's compositions.

We then walked over towards the famous Rambla, cutting through the Raval. We caught sight of "Sidra & Cabrales." As I had a yen for this very rich and dense Spanish blue cheese (which I have yet to have since we moved here), we stopped in. Not surprisingly, Jordi knows someone who is also hanging out. Unlike other more upscale Asturian bars where the waiters pour sidra (cider) from a huge barrel with grace and flair, we are served the sidra from a bottle and are given one glass to share (the more traditional way). The pour starts out high, and any liquid not making it into the glass falls into a small barrel bucket on the floor by our feet. The cabrales was excellent and we also ordered chorizos with sidra as well before we headed out again.

As it was St. Paddy's Day, the streets were filled with green-hatted revelers (forgot to take a pix of that). We then walked through many winding streets, with young men approaching us with 6-packs of beer. We passed through the Plaça Reial, where it was packed, and then made it over to the Rambla. We finally found the bar Jordi wanted to take us to, The Black Sheep. We were asked for documents, not for our age, but for security! The place was huge, with many college-age students flirting with each other, of course. After a few American-sized pints (I had a pacharan instead), we headed out to catch a cab home. By this time it was 2:3o am, and we took a cab home (the metros close at 2am). Felt like my old days of hanging out in the East Village!

To see more photos, including the bucket, click here:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/barceluna/sets/72157600007185695