Living in Barcelona: “Sobremesa”, a Tattoo, & First Impressions.

It has been over two weeks since we made our short-term move to Barcelona and time has flown by! Travis and I both looked at each other this week and it was one of those “pinch me” moments of wow we are really here and doing this. I remember being here in November and wondering what it would be like to call Barcelona home, even if it was for a few months — and here we are!

This week I went and got two tattoos at a local tattoo shop that is run entirely by female tattoo artists called Desideratum in El Born (My tattoos were done by Carla and she is incredibly talented!). One of the tattoos I got are the words “on y va” in French which translates to “let’s go.” For me, it’s much more than a statement said when you’re ready to leave or go — it’s a statement of jumping into things with two feet and not looking back. Taking risks, chasing our dreams with open hearts, and pursuing our passions. This time in Barcelona is exactly that for us.

Barcelona feels oddly familiar in the sense that there is a ton in common with our home in San Francisco. The city is relaxed, coastal yet elevated. Heading out each day to walk through the neighborhood feels second nature and I couldn’t imagine it any other way. There’s a contagious energy throughout the city that sparks my creativity as well which has felt like a breath of fresh air.

In the first week we’ve made some local friends who have been inviting us out a few nights a week. It’s been amazing to get to learn more about Catalan history and culture and how much it has shaped Barcelona today. One word I learned this past week is “sobremesa” and it resonates so much with what I love about the culture here. “Sobremesa” describes the time that is spent around the table after all the food is done — it’s the time where the conversation continues far into the night with no rush to leave. I adore it. There’s no urgency to depart once dinner is done and everyone is happy to hang out in late hours of the night and pour into conversation instead of worrying about the next day’s work (within reason). It’s a gentle reminder of being present and what is truly important.

A few questions have come in on how we’ve been enjoying our time here and I wanted to take some time to answer some of those as well.

What’s been the biggest adjustment?

Time. The arrangement of the day is completely opposite of what we have been doing at home. Dinners are late, I don’t think I’ve sat for a meal out before 9:30/10pm. If you’re meeting someone for a drink, it’s usually around midnight. The other big adjustment has been walking to everything. In SF, we had a car and used it more than we probably should have so walking to literally everything has been a great change. We have a rule if that it’s less than a 20 minute walk, we always walk.

What’s your daily routine like?

In the mornings we have been getting up a bit later than normal and committing to making coffee/breakfast in our apartment. We typically go to our gym around 10 or so, workout and shower there. We’ll eat lunch out as it’s our most free time during the day. Some times we run errands, explore somewhere new, or head back to the apartment afterwards. We work from around 2:30/3 until about 9/10 pm each day. If we’re eating in, we eat around 8 or so and if we are eating out, we go around 9:30 or so.

What are you enjoying the most?

Cliché but the food. It’s incredible — fresh, affordable, and delicious. I love how much is going on in the city, there is always something to go do. The other great thing about Barcelona is the proximity to so much nearby. We’ve been taking advantage of the good weather and have gone up the coast to Costa Brava for a few days of beach time as well.

As our first two weeks come to a close, we are really excited for what October holds. We will be doing most of our travels this month with some destinations we can’t wait to share with you! You can follow along on IG and if there’s any questions, feel free to email me at jessica@bontraveler.com.

Xx

Jessica