It’s been awhile since we’ve been in a new place where we have never been and it always strikes me how different a place looks than you imagined when you looked at pictures.  It’s kind of a funny thing since you will likely imagine Barcelona after reading this blog that is very different from what it will actually look like when you come here, which I hope you all will (if you haven’t been here already).  Before coming many people told us Barcelona was their favorite city and my biggest concern was the “this is the best restaurant” or “that was the best movie/book I ever saw/read” and it’s always a disappointment.  So far no disappointments here.  Barcelona gets many visitors/tourists/travels (whatever you want to call it) and I have confirmed that I will try never to come to Europe in the middle of the summer. I think one of the things that makes Barcelona so easy going is of course how nice everyone is but also how well they have managed the infrastructure of the downtown to accommodate visitors.  There are information stations everywhere, the signage is better than any city I’ve ever seen so you almost never get lost and it’s great for walking, something we love to do.  Here are a few preliminary views.