A TIME TO BE GIRI
Thursday, 10 August
BARCELONA, Spain _ After several days of trying to convince the locals they were a Barcelona youth team, the promesos acted like all other visitors _ los giri (tourists).
A bus and walking trip to Barcelona's most famous sites, La Catedral, Mont Juic and the Olympic stadiums and La Sagrada Familia was followed by a pickup game at one of Paul's childhood haunts, Parc Guell.
(The spires of La Sagada Familia)
The last stop was Temple de la Sagrada Famila, an unfinished Roman Catholic church dedicated to The Holy Family (Jesus, Mary and Joseph) that is one of, if not, the most recognizable landmarks of Barcelona. Begun initially in 1882, the temple is one of designer Antonio Gaudi's most ambitious projects that fell by the wayside after his death from being run over by a street car in 1926 and the Spanish Civil War of the late 1930s.
The day wasn't over for los promesos. Paul's childhood often took him to Parc Guell, where pickup soccer was, and still is, the activity of choice. With the assistance of Jorge and his ever present Pugg goals, los promesos quickly started a game on the sand and gravel pitch, drawing a crowd and even critiques from some of the park's grizzled regulars.
