First travel after lockdown: Spain

I trully believe I am not the only one person that misses travelling so much during these days. This story is for you - those who need to travel to breathe.

The end of June. Spain claims to open to tourists from July 1st. Great! 10 minutes in airlines pages, and here we go - my ticket to Barcelona is ready. On 6th of July I am happily going to my plane - 3 hours and finally after so much time at home I will be able to inhale the air of the world.

The first thing I saw in Spain was overcrowded airport - seems like nothing has changed after the lockdown. However, the truth is a bit different.

The first, most obvious thing is physical - everyone around you wears mask. Everywhere. In shop, in street, in metro, in bus. For sure wearing mask everywhere in the heat of July is not the best feeling ever, but safety comes first these days.

The second thing that has changed is the quantity of tourists in Barcelona. It was really strange to hear only Spanish language around me, no English, maybe a few German guys. Because of that many cafeterias and restaurants are still closed. Well, I guess the shortage of tourists is both good and bad. The best thing of it is that you have total freedom to go and see places, monuments, take photos without hundreds of people and see the real face of this amazing city. You do not have to stand in queus to buy tickets, and you will easily find place to stay or free table in the restaurant.

Moreover, Spanish people seem to miss the foreigners. All the people I've met were so friendly and willing to help in any case. We have lost on our way from Tibidabo back to Barcelona center, and the bus driver took us to metro station, even though it was out of his route.

I've spent 11 days in this pleasant, however still calm atmosphere of Barcelona, and this travel showed some different perspectives of it. You won't be able to feel it during usual period of tourism.

Here are some suggestions from me, if you plan your travel to Spain in nearest future:

1. Be sure you have medical masks to cover your face. You will be asked to wear it everywhere, and fines if you are not doing this are big.

2. Take hand cream with you. You will be asked to disinfect your hands on every entrance of the shop, so believe me, you'll thank me for this tip later.

3. Plan your time differently - you will not have to stand in big queus. Either you want to chill in park Guell or have fun in Tibidabo - you will have more free time than usually in Barcelona.

4. Do not be afraid to ask for a help from locals. Believe me, you will be surprised with their kindness.

Travel and stay safe!