Alex and Vanessa picked us up from the hotel and we headed toward the funeral home. We had wanted to go as a sign of support and friendship. Inside, we met the majority of Vanessa's family. Although it was sad to be at a funeral, it was nice that so many people had come to support the family.
The service was short. Sitting in the last row, it was interesting hearing the service in Spanish. We followed the black Mercedes hearse to the cemetary of Barcelona-Manjüic. It was a huge cemetery with vaults built into the mountain side. A beautiful ocean view and peaceful trees surrounded us as the coffin was put into one of the crypts and sealed off. All of Vanessa's relatives had been buried in same crypt, and to her, she was proud of the physical reminder of her family's history.
After saying goodbye to the family, Alex and Vanessa took us to the fanciest restaurant I've ever been too, "El Asador de Arega." A converted palace of Barcelonan antiquity, the exquisite exterior was only matched by its even more glamorous interior. We had a three course meal, starting with bocadillos, salads, soups, and wine from the Ribera region of Spain. The main course was a whole succulent ham. For dessert we had decadent pastries. Joining us for lunch were two more of Alex's students, Paco and Fran. Paco is Catalonia Police and Fran is in veterinary school. I enjoyed talking with them as they were around my age and could provide some personal insight into the Spanish educational system.
Just like the day before, we went straight from the restaurant to a small bar overlooking the entire city. I ordered an iced tea and enjoyed this Spanish relaxation lesson. If I had the time I would love to spend three hours on lunch every day.
Paco and Fran would drop us back off at the hotel so that Alex and Vanessa could get some rest (they had been up for 50+ hours as they received the news of the grandmother's death, they day they got back from California). When we went out to get Paco's car, it wasn't there. It had been towed for a parking violation. All along the street were tow trucks that were towing cars that hadn't parked just correctly. I'm sure it happens all of the time as the parking lot was confusing and it is an excellent source of revenue for the city.
Paco had to go to the impound lot with Alex and Vanessa. Fran offered to take us back to the hotel, which we did by using the Catalonia trains and Barcelona metro. It was an unfortunate but good experience in the end as I got to see a lot more of the city.
Catalan appeared to be the primary language, with Spanish a distinct second. Everyone we were with would speak in Spanish to be polite to us, but you could tell that they wanted to speak in Catalan, their native tongue. When I had been choosing where to study abroad, I had it narrowed down to Barcelona and Granada. The classes at the university in Barcelona are all in Catalan. Having heard how it sounds, I am glad that I chose Granada. I will have a difficult time as it is with Spanish, but to have to learn a distinct regional dialect would be very difficult.
Overall, I loved Barcelona. It is truly is the "jewel of Spain," as it has everything to offer. As a political science major, I enjoyed discussing the extremely complicated politics of Granada and the Catalonia region. A duality of perspectives, as Catalonia and the rest of Spain are integrally combined yet contain distinct differences.
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