Tuesday, August 26, 2008

Rain, finally, and the disappointing absence of "Jesus: The Ride"

Last Friday, we went to see a concert in the park. (Unfortunately, I forgot my camera, so no pictures that I actually took. Sorry!)

The park, el Teatre Grec, was very cool, with seats set into a stone amphitheater. The opening act was a guy who played flamenco versions of songs Mark Knopfler (of Dire Straits) did for movie soundtracks, such as The Princess Bride. A little strange, but cool. He liked making the "sensitive guitar-playing guy face," which reminded us of the John Mayer face.

The main act was a woman from the States. I thought she was okay, but Rowan liked her quite a bit. Then again, Rowan had more to drink than I did.

On the way home, we got caught in a massive rainstorm, the first we've had since we've been here. We got drenched and ducked into a local bar to escape the wetness, but the crowd and staff in there were not friendly, so we moved on quickly.

The next day, we took the metro out to a big hill that we can see from our apartment. First, we went to the science museum. I thought it was great because they had tons of interactive stuff.They also had an indoor rainforest, where the animals wandered around. They seemed quite acclimated to the presence of humans.But as this sign informed us, not all of the critters are that friendly.Rowan and I enjoyed ourselves quite a bit, but our British friends informed us that the museum was no good and that the museums in England are much better. Then again, they also think British food is tasty.

After the museum, we went to a large church, which from a distance dominates the view of hill. The church is described in one guidebook as "bombastic."Merriam-Webster informs us that "bombastic" means "pompous" or "overblown," but this church seemed much more subdued than other churches we've seen in Europe. Also, it strangely seemed much smaller up close than it did from the distance.

Right next to the church is an amusement park. I took this picture from the railing on the church's second level.None of the rides or attractions in the park were religious, though. I'm not sure what I was expecting, but the amusement park was not it.

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