On Thursday, thanks to an early finish at university, my friends and myself decided to visit Vilanova i la Geltrú, a small town just along the coast from Tarragona.
Although I had an amazing first semester in Aix-en-Provence in France, I feel like I didn't make the most of visiting smaller, more provincial towns within the region and instead, opted for larger cities such Toulon, Montpellier, Avignon, Marseille and Nice, to name but a few.
I must admit, it wasn't a bad thing, because after all I love the hustle and bustle of a large city.
However, with this in mind, I want to make a more conscious effort to visit smaller, less tourist crowded towns during my semester in Spain, especially as I've already visited cities such as Barcelona, Madrid, Girona and Pamplona.
Although I had an amazing first semester in Aix-en-Provence in France, I feel like I didn't make the most of visiting smaller, more provincial towns within the region and instead, opted for larger cities such Toulon, Montpellier, Avignon, Marseille and Nice, to name but a few.
I must admit, it wasn't a bad thing, because after all I love the hustle and bustle of a large city.
However, with this in mind, I want to make a more conscious effort to visit smaller, less tourist crowded towns during my semester in Spain, especially as I've already visited cities such as Barcelona, Madrid, Girona and Pamplona.
Vilanova i la Geltrú is the capital of the El Garraf district of Barcelona, situated on the coast, about 40km south of Barcelona itself, and 45km north of Tarragona.
A hidden gem on the coastline where sea and agriculture, art and tradition, and history and gastronomy merge together to make this town a must-see.
We took the train from Tarragona and arrived at Vilanova i la Geltrú in under half an hour.
A return ticket costs only €8.20.
Arriving mid-afternoon, we were rather hungry so we headed straight to the sea front in search of some tapas.
We found a nice little restaurant which over looked the marina and tucked into...
croquetas de bacalao
gambas a la plancha
mejillones al vapor
calamares andalucía
pescado a la plancha
All washed down with a nice cold glass of vino blanco.
¡ Muy bien !
After lunch, we took a stroll around the marina and walked all the way to the mouth of the harbour.
For almost an hour in the red-hot sun, we sat and relaxed, and watched the fisherman try their best to catch something...unfortunately, to no avail.
Walking back into town we made our way to the more commercial area and in particular, la Rambla Principal.
This main street was littered with bars, cafés and shops, which reminded me a lot of la Rambla Nova here in Tarragona.
We also stopped at Plaça de la Vila for a while and had a few cañas (small beers), a perfect end to a lazy, yet relaxing day.
Vilanova i la Geltrú is a very pleasant small town, which is definitely worth a visit if you're ever in the area.
It was the most relaxing visit of my year abroad so far, which was made even better by it being so close to Tarragona.
I will definitely go back and visit once again before I leave Spain for good in June.
For more information about Vilanova i la Geltrú :
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