Barcelona's Weird Attempt at Disneyland

Tibidabo is a mountain on the fringe of Barcelona that is famous for its views, church, and ancient amusement park. This is my last weekend in Barcelona so I figured I would cross off the final item on my To-Do checklist and enjoy what it had to offer. We all awoke in the afternoon feeling abysmal. Spirits were low as we took three trains, a trolley, and a lift up to the park. Upon arrival, our mood instantly changed. The amusement park was not the run down, tacky, mess that I expected, but instead, a very legitimate, wonderfully designed complex of classic rides. After admiring the views, we purchased the all day ticket for the rides and slightly descended down the mountain, unable to wipe the smiles off our faces. We began with bumper cars, and the hilariousness commenced. We followed that with the chair swing carousel which twirled you over the edge of the mountain, circularly gliding you above the park. It was inexplicably euphoric.

We then attempted to go on some sort of flipping, spinning contraption, but I was stopped at the front and told I could not partake due to my height. I watched from the sidelines. It was humiliating. We made our way through the Pirate ship swing, two roller coasters, and a log flume. We had time for one more ride and hesitantly chose the haunted house. It was called “Krueger’s Hotel” and appeared to have not been culturally updated since 1986. This was appealing to me. We waited far too long and eventually entered with our enthusiasm at a pretty low level. At first, the actors spoke Catalan and wore ridiculous face make-up. We could not help but laugh. However, things quickly turned around and we found ourselves transported into the setting of movies like Silence of the Lambs, the Exorcist, A Nightmare on Elm Street, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, and Friday the 13^th. One after another, the settings changed drastically to perfectly match the movie’s atmosphere. The actors had no moral code; they swung their blades inches from your face and cornered you relentlessly, shrieking and moaning with all their might.

The piece-de-resistance was the second to last room. It was a dark, unassuming child’s bedroom. Beneath the window sat an array of dolls. This was it, my 5 year-old self’s worst nightmare. I knew what was coming. Suddenly, one of the dolls stood up. A little person dressed as Chuckie drew a knife and sprinted our way. It was the most terrifying thing I have ever witnessed. Afterwards, we descended the mountain and stopped at an all you can eat Chinese buffet for dinner.  I am writing this, bracing myself for the digestional storm that is heading my way.