The Trip of a Lifetime...The Hotel Arts, Barcelona

 As you know, my husband and I had the opportunity to travel to Spain this month. He had earned the trip by being one of an elite top 10% of his companies General Managers...and the trip was the companies way of saying: "Thank You for working 80+ hours a week".

The trips are always amazing...we stay in the best hotels, visit the most beautiful places, have access to exclusive excursions and experiences, dine at world famous restaurants with menus specially designed by the worlds best chefs just for us...and it is all FREE...

We started our trip in Barcelona, Spain. We stayed at the Hotel Arts, which is a Ritz-Carlton property...right on the beach by the Mediterranean.

The view from our room...

 There were several things I LOVED about the Hotel Arts...it's very very modern...lots of art and original flower arrangements (i was very fond of the bright purple pussy willows in giant stone pots that lined the hall to the elevators...and felt obligated to touch them every time we walked by...)

In our room were several very modern luxuries as well...like this cool "control panel" by our bed that allowed us to make executive decisions regarding the lighting and ambiance of our room while still beneath the sheets.

There was even a button that alerted the staff if you needed housekeeping or if you wanted to be left alone...all by turning on a light just outside our door...WAY better than hanging that little "Do Not Disturb" sign on our doorknob...

There were bowls of anise seeds placed around the room that gave it a delicious, spicy smell that had a strange (but much appreciated by Jason) effect on me...

 And lastly, I was enamored by the magazine racks. I really think I want some in my bathroom...

 We arrived in Spain in the afternoon, and had a few hours to kill before our presence was required at a Welcome Dinner served poolside. We decided to spend those few hours hunting up some food (we were STARVING) and relaxing by the sea.

So we changed into our beach gear and headed to the sand. We made a quick pit stop at a deli on the boardwalk that ran along the hotel, picked up some delicious bocadillos, and hit the sand.

We knew our whole trip would be busy and jam-packed, so we were really looking forward to this time where we had NOTHING planned but enjoying a Spanish beach by our hotel. We wanted to take lots of pictures...but had trouble taking any that didn't include a naked someone...

...gotta love those European beaches.

We thoroughly enjoyed our time at the beach...and I even remembered to collect several water bottles of sand.

From the beach, you could look back at our beautiful hotel and see a giant sculpture, called "Fish", that was done by Frank Gehry (yes...THE Frank Gehry...of Guggenheim Museum fame)...

The fish sits right over the pool area of the hotel (The Hotel Arts is the tall blue building on the left).

This was a great way to start our trip...after a long and cramped plane ride, and the with the knowledge that this vacation had nothing to do with relaxation, and everything to do about adventure...to sit back and enjoy the perfect 75 degree weather on the icy blue Mediterranean...

...which...by the way...was colder than expected...although not unbearable. I went swimming in the water, turning quick laps through the little bay. I even conned convinced Jason to get in, as well...although he high-tailed out of it after I started splashing him (big baby).

Kissy, kissy!!!