From Boisterous Budapest to Beautiful Barcelona

[spectralbovine]

Some astute readers may have noticed a few references to an impending trip to Europe, specifically Budapest and Barcelona. In two weeks, I will be on my way to Europe on the company dime. My boss and I are going over there for some Investigator's Meetings at which I will give a half-hour talk in each city. Also, there will be face time with people

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[sabra_n]

In Barcelona, see anything designed by Gaudí: Sagrada Familia is the most obvious choice, but there's also the gorgeous Parc Güell, which has a gorgeous view of the city from the top of its hill, and a couple of houses along Passaeig de Gràcia in the Eixample. There's a block along Passeig de Gràcia called Illa de la Discòrdia because it's got several crazily...well discordant Modernista buildings on it, if you want a lot of architectural bang for your buck.

You can go to the Gothic Quarter for medieval architecture, and eat at Taxidermista in Plaça Reial, a square which is also notable for having Gaudí-designed streetlamps. (No, really.) Oh, and the National Art Museum of Catalonia is housed in a Disney-worth palace with an awesome "magic fountain" show a few times a week. Music! Lights! Really big fountain sprays! It's really a blast of a way to spend an hour or two at night. :)

Erm...apart from that...hm. If you're eating at a restaurant around La Rambla, don't pick anyplace that has seating in the middle of the street - they'll charge more for seating out there and chances are their food will be totally mediocre. The Café Vienna has lovely sandwiches, but apart from that, you might want to go a tiny bit off the Rambla for eateries that are less exploitatively touristy.

As far as your last questions go:

-Yes, you'll need an adapter. A type C "Europlug", I believe, which works in most of Europe but not in Britain. A European plug will have round pins rather than the flat ones on American plugs.

-The cash thing is up to you, but you should check how your bank and credit card companies feel about foreign transactions and ATM withdrawals.

-As far as I could tell, no one gave a flying crap that we were American.

-The Metro! If you've used subways before, it's a breeze to figure out, and the ticket machines can be set to work in English.

-I've never used travel insurance, and it seems pretty useless to me. But your individual circumstances could vary, I guess.

-Buy souvenirs! Or not. When I travel I mostly content myself with taking tons of photos and eating all the local food I can stuff down my gullet, but again, that's just me.

-You'll be fine in customs as long as long as you're not carrying agricultural products, unpackaged food, or mass quantities of cigarettes back to the States. :) I'm sure you can find a copy of the standard customs form online - just look at it to see what the agents are looking out for.

[spectralbovine]

There's a block along Passeig de Gràcia called Illa de la Discòrdia because it's got several crazily...well discordant Modernista buildings on it, if you want a lot of architectural bang for your buck.
Sounds fun.

eat at Taxidermista
Uh...

in Plaça Reial, a square which is also notable for having Gaudí-designed streetlamps. (No, really.)
Ha!

Oh, and the National Art Museum of Catalonia is housed in a Disney-worth palace with an awesome "magic fountain" show a few times a week. Music! Lights! Really big fountain sprays! It's really a blast of a way to spend an hour or two at night. :)
That sounds awesome! I love magic fountains! Oh, that's probably the modern art museum heartsways was mentioning above. I have to take some cable car to get to it or something. Aw, Wikipedia says the fountains only run on summer evenings? Ah, got it, "from May to September Thursday through Sunday every half-hour between 9:00 and 11:00pm." Late!

If you're eating at a restaurant around La Rambla, don't pick anyplace that has seating in the middle of the street - they'll charge more for seating out there and chances are their food will be totally mediocre.
Got it. I think the hostels I'm looking at are in that area.

The Café Vienna has lovely sandwiches, but apart from that, you might want to go a tiny bit off the Rambla for eateries that are less exploitatively touristy.
Adventure!

Buy souvenirs! Or not.
I don't really collect anything from places, I don't think. Maybe I should start.

You'll be fine in customs as long as long as you're not carrying agricultural products, unpackaged food, or mass quantities of cigarettes back to the States.
What if I stuff a Spanish hottie in my luggage? Will she go through okay? (In this scenario, she is obviously a contortionist.)

[sabra_n]

Taxidermista is full of totally delicious food, and when you come home you can say you ate at a restaurant called Taxidermista. It's a total win-win. :D

The magic fountain show gets a bit less crowded around 10pm, and the light show is more effective once it's dark. The shows also change every half-hour, so you can go from one set to Disney songs (in Spanish, natch) to one backed by an utterly random 80s pop medley to another with classical music.

If you're staying by La Rambla, try to get a room that's not facing the street so you don't have to listen to drunk people all night. There's another Gaudí building by there, Palau Güell, but it was under renovation when I was visiting in July.

Tsk. If you get involved in human trafficking, I'm totally not defending you. :P

[sabra_n]

Oh, and there's no cable car necessary to get to the fountain show or palace. It's at the lower part of Montjuïc. Now, the castle of Montjuïc is at the top. That's where Franco would hold his political executions. Good times! And yes, you can use a cable car to get up there.

I preferred the cable ride to the top of Montserrat, but that's a bit outside of town. The rock formations up there are freaking amazing, though.