Ella and I were outside the gate of Park Güell waiting for our guide to show up when we were distracted by the loud screech-chattering of birds up in the drooping leaves of the short palm trees. We aimed our cellphones and caught two green parakeets working on their nest.
What a beautiful bird, we thought, how charming. Although noisy. The longer we waited for our guide we began to wonder—would they ever shut up? Our guide later told us they were Monk parakeets loathed by Barcelonans as pests.
No one is sure how the Monk parakeet first appeared in Barcelona, but it’s conjectured that they were imported as pets (from Madrid if you’re ask the locals).