I was really excited to go to Spain because, in my mind, it’s all red dresses and passionate people and midnight tangos. And, honestly, it’s still kind of like that in my dream world.

I went to Spain for all of 48 hours. It’s a quick flight from Paris, and Barcelona has been on my heart ever since Aqua, Galleria, Chanel, and Dorinda took it over in Cheetah Girls 2. Don’t judge me; we’ve all thought about this.

My trip to Barcelona was certainly not the gold standard of trips that you should follow, as we were strategizing on a budget and walking ourselves all over town. But it was, however, well researched. We covered almost everything that we wanted to, minus a mountain that neither of us felt like climbing at the end of the day. So, if you’re planning a trip to this fun city, I hope that our path through Barcelona will be helpful to you.

Have some tapas.
I didn’t have a bad meal in Spain. We stopped by an awesome tapas joint and drank red wine. Tip: Drink red wine with every meal. Spanish wine is spicy and inexpensive.

Check out Gaudí’s work.
Gaudí is one of Catalonia’s best-known artists, and his work is all over the city. We saw Casa Batllo, which is a topsy-turvy house in downtown; the Sagrada Família church, which is honestly the coolest church I’ve ever seen (minus the construction); and Park Guell, which is a whole park that Gaudí worked on designing for some wealthy businessmen back in the day that wasn’t finished – but it’s colorful and cool to explore. All of these things are free but you can buy tickets to Park Guell for some bonus access, which I thought was worth it.

Go down to the beach.
We stumbled on the beach by accident, but it ended up being my favorite part of Barcelona. There is a long pier, tons of boats, and a surprisingly clean stretch of beach with little cabana restaurants. You can even walk out onto some broken rocks at the end of the pier and just sit. The water is blotchy blue and teal. It’s beautiful. I’d also recommend a frozen lemonade at this point.

Watch a fútbol game.
Barcelona is known for having an incredible soccer team, with highly publicized players like Neymar. Camp Nou – the area where the athletic teams play – is a whole campus of training facilities and arenas. While watching the actual FC Barcelona team can be a little expensive (and, hard to get tickets!), the FC Barcelona B Team also plays at Camp Nou. This is a group of younger guys (maybe 18-20) who are scouted for the A team. They are fantastic players, and the stadium is small, inexpensive to get into, and a really cool experience. If you’re a soccer fan, this is totally worth the trip! There is also a fútsol team, which is closer to indoor soccer, that fans can support.

Eat paella.
You may as well get some paella while you’re down in Spain, because that’s the best you’re ever going to get. If you’re not familiar, paella is a savory, spicy rice dish that usually contains chicken, shrimp, or seafood. It’s hearty and the ultimate Spanish comfort food. There are restaurants that advertise paella all over Barcelona, but be careful – you’ll start to see the exact same menu pictures at multiple spots. These places get their paella from one central company, so it won’t be as fresh. We ended up at one of these spots. And, it was good – but, I can imagine that a Mom-and-Pop Spanish restaurant could do it better. I’ve heard great things about Restaurante Arume and Gaudim Restaurant.

The locals are friendly if you try to speak in their language. Out of all the cities we traveled to, folks in Barcelona spoke the least English. Memorize a few key words before you go (hello, bye, please, thank you, can I have the bill?) and people will be nice.

We also heard before visiting that Barcelona is one of the least safe cities in terms of pickpocketing. While places like the Sagrada Família are totally packed with tourists, we never really felt unsafe in Spain, even at night. Make smart choices, and you’ll be fine.