Carnaval 2007

Yesterday was Carnaval here in Barcelona, and what a party it was! The night started late, as with everything here. My roommate Ernesto invited his friends over. Our group consisted of Otto, me, Pedro, Ernesto, an Italian guy named Marco and Edgar (in first picture, from left to right). After a few drinks, we ran at a brisk pace to the Metro station called Passeig de Gracia. To get there, you have to walk up Las Ramblas, through Plaza Catalunya and up the Rambla de Catalunya. As usual, the city was full of people, yet this time there were a lot of people dressed up as pirates, witches, vampires and of course, the odd drag queen!

We finally made it to the the station and went down into the Metro where the 'rodiales' (regional trains) are. Tonnes of people were waiting for the train in a variety of costumes. The train arrived, which was a mini-party in itself. The ride took about 30 minutes, and then we all piled off the train.

Sitges is a beautiful seaside village full of lots of winding streets. The streets in the centre were filled with people drinking, dancing and having a great time. The first bar we went into was more like a taverna. Drag queens were on top of the bar, singing and banging their tambourines. The place was wall-to-wall!

We only had one drink and then headed to another bar, which was thumping out lots of house beats. Across the street, was Pachita, an offshoot of the famous Pacha bar that originated in Ibiza back in 1966. Back then, it was a hippie scene, but has slowly morphed into the dance music scene. You can visit it here at http://www.pachasitges.com/

We went to a few more bars, but ended up at a great space called 'Mediteraneo'. The music was amazing and it was also wall-to-wall. I seemed to be very popular with the drag queens! Anyway, it was a great party, and at about 4am we all headed back to the station. Everyone was pretty much destroyed on the train home, but what a great time for my first Carnaval!