Friends, family, and interested strangers… this is my new distraction.  If I seem to vanish for short periods of time, I’m likely off on some random spontaneous adventure with her.  She seems to bring out the explorer in me.

Anyhow, after being here for a week and trying to see and absorb as much Barcelona as possible, I decided to be a full-on tourist for a day. I rode the double decker on-and-off bus tour all afternoon to see and photograph all the tourist attractions. I even wore my camera dangling around my neck. I usually like to pretend I’m a local but today I let loose.

So after my bus tour, I decided to finish my indulgent day of tourism with a visit to Hard Rock Cafe Barcelona.

I was expecting a reasonable Spanish interpretation. After all, the Spaniards don’t appear to be the slightest bit interested in borrowing from North American culture. I was also expecting it to be relatively empty save for a few homesick Americans.

I couldn’t have been more wrong. I am surrounded by the same hardwood and brass. I’m sitting at the same center feature bar staffed by a bunch of wacky, cocky, bartentertainers. I am even looking at Marilyn Manson and Keith Richards autographed memorabilia on the wall next to me. The music videos are all classic rock. I’ve seen 2 Barenaked Ladies videos in less than an hour.

And the kicker…it’s packed full of locals and European tourists with a line-up out the door waiting for tables on a Tuesday night.

This is clearly a company that understands its brand, how to recreate it successfully around the world, and how to draw in the locals on a regular basis. Absolutely brilliant.

I’m going back to my second pint of Estrella Damm and this killer Corey Hart video now. Hasta luego!