MoFate's Drop in the Bucket List: Spain

Espana! Finally get to practice the language skills learned from four years of high school and one year of college classes. Good thing we don't remember anything.

We landed in Barcelona and spent two night there. Then began our road trip: Barca --> Valencia --> Granada --> Arcos de la Frontera --> Sevilla --> Cordoba --> Madrid.

If there's one way to capture Barca's vibe, its this: Thieves. Thieves everywhere. No but seriously, we've never received so many warnings about watching out for pickpockets than we did in Barca. Apart from that, its got a cool vibe. Plenty of European tourists around but the locals are also frequenters of the outdoor restaurants, bars, and beaches.

Valencia on the other hand is much more laid back than Barca, even though it is the third largest city in Spain. It's a lot more manageable to visit in a couple of days and has a great old town area. We also loved our accidental five course lunch at a local Valencia restaurant that was delicious and just 14 euros! Here's a quick summary of what we did, followed by some advice if you visit, fun facts, and a summary of our favorite pictures.
Barca

Stayed at the Four Points Diagonal
Dinner on Rambla del Poblenou
Playa de la Mar Bella
Basilica de la Sagrada Familia
Park Guell
Playa de Barceloneta
Barri Gotic

Valencia

Stayed at the AC Colon Valencia (Marriott)
Lunch at Restaurante Delicat
Old Town
Central Market

Advice if you visit

It's worth staying at the Four Points Diagonal in Barca if you have SPG points. At 4k points a night, its very well connected with the metro. It's also the starting point of Rambla del Poblenou, a pedestrian only street that runs about half a mile ending at the beach. It's lined with restaurants and bars that are pretty lively even on weekdays.
Get to Park Guell earlier in the day if you can. It's quite big and hilly. We didn't buy the ticket for the Gaudi museum but still spent around three hours there.
The Central Market is a must visit in Valencia. We went there around 10:00am, got some breakfast inside, and wandered the rows. Lots of great food and wine to shop for.
We paid ~40 euros in tolls from Barcelona to Valencia... So factor that in if you debating between train or car :)

Fun facts

We will be coming back to Barca around 2026 - 2028. It is allegedly the completion date of the Sagrada Familia, a basilica that's been under construction since 1882. We're not sure what the hold up is :)
National Geographic names Barca the world best beach city. The British have definitely read this listing because the beaches look like Panama City Beach during Spring Break (not a compliment.) Also, if you've been to some of the better beaches in Florida, you're not going to like the tiny beaches here.
Paella was invented in Valencia! Instead, we had Asian Spanish fusion food.
Taco Bell has prime property in Valencia's Old Town area. The food is slightly better quality than the US but what's most amazing is that you can get a beer + a taco for 1 euro! No wonder its the place where teenagers hang out in the evenings.