Hotel 1898 is located on the vibrant “Las Ramblas” street which divides the boutiquey Raval district from the Barri Gòtic medieval heart of the city. With their nautical design theme, the accommodations feel like balcony staterooms with high ceilings, framed marine charts, and gleaming teak floors reminiscent of a ship’s hull.

The best part of the hotel is La Isabella Terrace and rooftop pool. What beats having breakfast while lounging on cushy striped deck furniture, enjoying the breeze under the shade of a canvas umbrella surrounded by panoramic rooftop views of the city?

The H1898 signature breakfast includes fresh slices of Iberico ham, Norwegian smoked salmon, tomato bread, a heaping platter of fresh fruit and a glass of rose cava. No breakfast is complete without a steaming cup of cafe negro to start the day.

After using my bird’s-eye view of cathedral spires and landmarks to get my bearings, I set out on a walking architour of the city’s most celebrated buildings. First stop was Gaudi’s Casa Batlló on the Passeig de Gràcia.

This 5-story Art Nouveau townhouse has nary a straight line in it. It twists and swoops and even seems to bubble and blister in places. I loved the tiles in the light well and on the undulating dragon-spine roofline. It is a bit of a tourist trap – the queue for 20€ tickets was a rather bothersome ordeal but I couldn’t miss the chance to see a page from my old architecture textbooks come to life.

Tapas are the world’s best food when you’re like me and prefer to try lots of little bites of different flavors rather than one big dish. They’re also great when you’re after some simple light fare, which I was following my tour of Casa Batlló. Just around the corner on Carrer de València is Cornelia & Co, the “daily picnic store.” The Barcelona equivalent of Dean & Deluca, it’s perfect for grab-and-go gourmet food and wine, where in spring a picnic is always a tempting lunchtime option. I had time to spare so decided to enjoy the service at one of the outside bistro tables.

Don’t be intimidated by the Barcelona Metro. It is clean, well-lit, and easy to navigate. If you’re travelling with a friend, I recommend is the T-10 card, which is a ticket loaded with 10 journeys to share – for just 9.80€. I wish other cities (hello, London!) would catch onto this.

If I had to name my architectural mecca, it would hands down be Ludwig Mies van der Rohe’s “Barcelona Pavilion.” Designed for the 1929 International Exposition, this minimalist masterpiece inspired the iconic Barcelona chair – and also a certain NYU undergraduate studying architecture back in the day. It has all the tranquility of a temple; one of  the most serene moments of my visit was watching the red drapes flutter softly in the balmy breeze wafting through the open space.

Had a charming wander through the leafy Pablo Sec neighborhood on the way back to the hotel.

To experience the luxurious side of the Catalan gastronomy scene, I tip my hat to Michelin-starred Cinc Sentits in the Eixample district. A truly intimate atmosphere – there are only ten tables in the earthy, wood panelled dining room.

Tapas

house-marinated gordal olive with orange peel

house version of the traditional pan con tomate

bacalao crisp with fresh mató cheese, parsley, and lemon

house-made cracker with romesco sauce

Oyster with seawater “air” and lemon

Caramelized foie gras “coca”

pastry crust | chive arrop | leeks

Razor clam

green bean | mini potato | traditional pil pil sauce

Wild Mediterranean skate

spring peas from Llavaneras | escabetx | chive flowers

Squab breast

croqueta | red wine poached pear | forest fruits

Suckling pig

eggplant | basil | wild mushrooms

Strawberries from the Maresme

blackberry cream | yogurt powder | celery ice

Banana

warm salted caramel | black beer ice cream | hazelnut crunch

“Tentacions”

orange-chocolate crisp with flors del remei liqueur | forest fruit mini muffin | mint-dark chocolate truffle | bunyol del cuaresma

A rarefied and truly authentic Catalonian experience!

And there we have it – how to fall in love with Barcelona in just one day.

Les lleis catalana i espanyola deixen un buit legal a la lliure interpretació sobre la obertura de comerços i genera dubtes entre els comerciants del Barri Gòtic de Barcelona. L’Associació de comerciants BarnaCentre, que acull els locals més cars de Barcelona, està d’acord a la lliure obertura dels comerços en diumenge, tot i que tem la abanderament conflictiu segons l’adhesió a alguna de les lleis.

Els botiguers del Barri Gòtic preveuen que, progressivament, els comerços de la zona s’aniran acollint a la normativa espanyola d’obertura de comerços per a poder obrir els diumenges al centre de Barcelona. BarnaCentre, una de les associacions de comerciants locals més importants del país, representa els comerciants del Barri Gòtic de Barcelona, on s’acullen els locals més cars de Catalunya. Cada vegada més associats a BarnaCentre intenten resoldre les seves incògnites sobre el plantejament d’obrir els diumenges, tal i com explica Javier Cottet, el president de l’associació comercial. Happy Books – La formiga d’or, és una d’aquestes botigues adherides a BarnaCentre que, aprofitant la data assenyalada de la cita literària de Sant Jordi, preveu obrir el diumenge abans del dia del llibre.

La llei catalana sobre la obertura dels comerços és més restrictiva que l’espanyola, ja que el govern espanyol va aprovar un decret liberalitzador on es permetia obrir tots els dies als comerços de menys de 300 metres quadrats, entre altres, el passat estiu. La Generalitat de Catalunya va veure en aquesta decisió una invasió de competències i va aprovar un contradecret que va ser jutjat al Tribunal Constitucional ja que no va agradar al govern espanyol. I els comerciants poden adherir-se a la situació que més benefici els aporti, ja que la situació actual d’aquesta llei deixa uns marges legals oberts a interpretacions jurídiques.

Portal de l’Àngel amb molta afluència de gent.
Font: http://www.loquehayqueverenbarcelona.es

“Els comerciants petits i els independents seran els que s’apuntaran més a obrir a mesura vagin disminuint les vendes” interpreta Cottet, “no veurem grans cadenes”, tal i com afirma al diari Ara. Però malgrat tenir certes llibertats d’interpretació legal, la por a quedar “etiquetat” continua present, tal i com es mostra en l’expressió del president de l’associació “no volem agafar cap bandera, només ens basem en criteris econòmics, deixant al marge la política”. BarnaCentre és una de les associacions de comerciants més importants de Catalunya però també és una de les poques que ha defensat la creació d’una zona amb llibertat horària del comerç.

Aquesta posició de BarnaCentre és distanciada de la d’altres grans organitzacions de comerciants, com ara la Confederació de Comerç de Catalunya. El secretari general, Miquel Àngel Fraile, creu que no és la millor decisió per part dels comerciants que s’ho proposen, ja que, “si algú pot funcionar sense obrir els diumenges en el context econòmic actual són ells”.

Per tant, el debat queda enmig de les lleis espanyoles i les catalanes i el buit legal que enmig s’hi genera. El cas curiós és que, Happy Books – La formiga d’or, es situa en un establiment de més de 1000 metres quadrats i per tant, la llei no l’empara per obrir els diumenges.

We sleep late, as apparently everyone does here in Barcelona, at least on Sunday. We head to the big wide boulevards to find a cup of coffee and a brioche. We thought the price of dinner last night, amazingly reasonable, was an anomaly: We confirm this morning that eating out in Spain is more reasonable than anywhere we’ve been in Western Europe.

After cafés con leche and xuxus, we head to La Rambla, the long avenue that makes its way from the Placa de Catalunya to the harbour. Down we walk, moving with the crowds, first through the bird market, then through the living statues, then the flower market. A perfect way to spend a Sunday afternoon, until we come across a newsstand where we learn, days after the event began, of the atrocity in Beslan. We read in shock and sorrow the story, not wanting to believe.

From left: Placa de Catalunya; La Rambla

We finally pull ourselves away from the news, and continue our walk. The street takes us past some wonderful buildings, but most of the crowd seems oblivious to them, focusing on the sea of humanity that surrounds them. We arrive at the harbour, with its huge statue of Columbus. Long neglected, but rediscovered as the city prepared for the 1992 Olympics, it reminds us of Montreal’s Vieux Port or Chicago’s Navy Pier.

From Top: Columbus “discovers” America; the harbour

From the harbour, we head into the Barri Gotic, Barcelona’s medieval city. We are expecting something much bigger than it is: Barcelona was not a big city during the Middle Ages. We wander with the crowds, heading up to the Placa de Sant Jaume (Santiago in Spanish and St. James in English) and the Cathedral to find it clothed in renovation finery, hiding it’s splendid façade. We also discover that Sant Jordi (St. George) is Catalunya’s patron saint, and he is visible killing his dragon in a number of locations in the Barri. We’re a bit surprised to see him, we’ve now seen him in almost every country we’ve visited in Western Europe, and he is a hero in each of them.

From Top: the Barri Gotic; Sant Jordi gets his dragon

Our feet are tired and we ramble back to the hotel for naps. The hotel has proven disappointing, and when we get back we advise them we are going to leave on Monday, and not Tuesday as arranged. They tell us they will not refund our final night’s payment, and we tell them that we are leaving nonetheless.

We walk over to La Rambla de Catalunya, the continuation of La Rambla in l‘Eixample on the other side of the Placa de Catalunya, and sit outside in a tapas restaurant on the boulevard for an early dinner. The place is full, despite the hour. We chat with our waitress, an Italian from Rome who tells us that “Barcelona is easy to live in, Rome isn’t ” And then we head home to bed, despite the early hour, as apparently everyone does here in Barcelona, at least on Sunday.

1. Rambla de Raval / 2. inside the train station / 3. on the Rambla / 4. in Raval / 5. on the Rambla / 6. & 7.  Placa Reial / 8. in Barri Gotic / 9. a cafe near the train station / 10. & 11. in Barri Gotic / 12. in Parc de la Ciutadella

I’ve been sitting on this image since the early summer, when I first started taking these pictures, and it remains one of the most popular on my instagram feed. In reality, it’s quite small, a sticker probably about the size of my palm slapped on some overscrawled surface in the Gothic quarter. I’ve since seen a few duplicates, but I think whoever produced it only made a small batch. I’d be interested to see some other organ-animal fusions in the future.

Roman ruins under Plaça del Rei. Photo by Richard Varr

I walk on raised platforms above the subterranean ruins – crumbling walls, sections of chipped stone columns and carefully-laid mosaic floors amidst rugged walkways and alleys.  Historically speaking, however, the ancient stone chambers, streets and squares within Barcelona’s Musea d’História de la Ciutat (City History Museum) are often described as the most extensive and comprehensive underground Roman ruins in the world.

Gaudí’s masterpiece, Casa Milà. Photo by Richard Varr

In the city best known for the genius of Antoni Gaudí’s Modernisme architectural style – undulating walls, colorful chimneys and eye-catching building facades designed with nature’s image in mind – it’s often easy to overlook the City History Museum’s fascinating glimpse of Barcelona’s past in what was once the old Roman city known as Barcino.

Plaça del Rei, where it is believed Columbus was received by royalty upon returning from the New World. Photo by Richard Varr

Located in the central Barri Gòtic or Gothic Quarter, the museum sits adjacent to the 13^th and 14^th century Royal Palace where, in its medieval courtyard known as the Plaça del Rei, it is believed King Fernando II and Queen Isabel welcomed Christopher Columbus upon his return from the New World.  And it’s under this courtyard where the museum’s vast underground ruins lie.

Giant urns used for salting fish. Photo by Richard Varr

Dating back to between the 1^st and 6^th centuries AD, the ruins were once buildings housing aspects of the Romans’ everyday life.   They include a factory where fish was chopped and salted, and a wine-making facility where grapes were pressed and wine fermented in open vats.  Hot and cold baths refreshed Roman citizens.  Well-defined pits once served as dyeing and laundering centers.

Overlooking the ruins. Photo by Richard Varr

Another important Roman site not particularly obvious to those strolling through the old town are four grand columns that were once part of the landmark Barcino Temple, the dominant structure in the Roman forum, the lively public city square.  “This is the most ancient part of Barcelona – the very origin of the city or Barcino,” says tour guide Artur Costa.   “The temple was constructed over a hill and was in the center of the forum.”

Four surviving Roman columns from Barcino Temple. Photo by Richard Varr

The columns are housed in a museum of sorts known as the “Temple Roma D’August, Local Dei Centre Excursionista de Catalunya,” standing tall – although chipped and eroded – within an internal courtyard of a medieval mansion.  They once supported the back end of Barcino Temple, built in the late first century BC and presiding over the city’s forum for more than four centuries.  With the dawn of Christianity in the 5^th century AD, the temple lost its importance and its columns were used in the construction of new buildings and palaces.

Richard atop Gaudí’s Casa Batlló with its mosaic chimneys.

La Rambla also contains the Boqueria market. You can buy spices, ham, cheese, candy, fruit, veggies, and all sorts of goodies at the market. I loved all of the wild mushrooms that were in season when we were visiting.

Also, nearby is Barri Gotic, which is the gothic neighborhood. Although I read that Barcelona recently built its gothic neighborhood for the tourists, it is still nice to walk around.

Finally, we visited the Santa Maria del Mar in the gothic neighborhood. Construction began on the church in 1329, so at least the church is authentic.

In the next post, I’ll go over a cooking class we took while in Barcelona.

After Casa Batllo we headed down to the Barrí Gòtic for a bite to eat (and sangrias) then, with a little bit of difficulty, found our way through the back streets to the Dali exhibition of the Real Círculo Artístico museum (Carrer Arcs, 5).

The museum holds about 40 of his ‘lost wax’ sculptures as well as about 900 or so drawings, watercolours and lithographs. The skill of these creations is always impressive, although unlike other artists you never see Dali’s work progress in a linear fashion, instead there’s just a regular tidal movement of recurring themes.

I don’t know if you’ll be able to find the museum these days, apparently the museum owners lost out in a legal tussle with the Dali Gala foundation. If it is still open, you’ll find it just off Cathedral square.

Like Andy Warhol, Dali was the master self promoter and shameless huckster, with a result that the Dali artwork market is just slightly, well, dodgy… So do enjoy the exhibits for what they are but don’t worry to much about the provenance. Anyway who could pass up the odd lobster phone or grumpy rhinoceros!

Then something happened when I signed up for the Picasso tour…

Ángel, the best tour guide in Barcelona, started us off in the Barri Gotic, at 4Gats, the cafe where a young Pablo and his fellow artists liked to get together. At 17, it was where he held his first art exhibition along with other emerging artists. Walking through the café, which first opened its doors in 1897, I felt like Owen Wilson’s character in the Woody Allen movie ‘Midnight in Paris’, stepping back in time and falling hopelessly in love with the years that have been. My initial intimidation was already fading into awe, and I could hardly believe how effortless it felt.

When the founders of 4Gats wanted to open a cafe that would attract artists to bring more cultural awareness to the city, they decided they didn’t care if the idea was popular or not. Even if no one but four cats attended, it was worthwhile simply because they were passionate about the arts. 4Gats flourished and is still a busy cafe today.


As the tour continued, we walked to the art school where Pablo’s father was a teacher and where he attended as a student. The building today is the Barcelona Stock Exchange, but what really got me excited was that the Picasso family lived in a flat across the street on Pg Isabel II, which is the building I go to every day for yoga! Ashtanga Yoga BCN is in the same building Picasso lived in for a short while. That is too cool.


The Picasso family lived here (above) before Ashtanga Yoga BCN

We then walked along a narrow street known for it’s delicious chocolate. If Picasso liked chocolate as much as I do, we may be soul mates.


Towards the end of our tour, we found ourselves on a street I have memorized to get myself to one of my favourite, tucked away restaurants. I regularly walk on Carrer d’Avinyo (and thought I knew it well) as it leads me to my favourite food places. I have since learnt that Avinyo was famous for much more than that over one hundred years ago thanks to Ángel. This was the street that was lined with many brothels and pharmacies to service the sailors who arrived at the port of Barcelona. Picasso’s tribute to this street is a famous piece known as ‘Les Desmoiselles d’Avignon’. The Desmoiselles are currently hanging at MoMa in NYC.

I am completely in love with Pablo Picasso and we may even possibly be soul mates (pending fact check on Pablo and chocolate). As the tour came to an end, I couldn’t help but feel lucky to have gotten the chance to so unassumingly trace Picasso’s footsteps. There is no knowing too little or too much, and there is no proper level of appreciation; his work and legacy are simply to be enjoyed.

Next stop: Picasso Art Museum.

BARCELONA—When you finally know nothing in this fabled Mediterranean seaport city of five million, that is when you know everything.

Welcome to Barcelona.

Our guide through the vagaries and paradoxes of the world’s smallest big city— and the biggest small city—is José A. Peral Mondaza, intellect, historian, linguist, and all-round charmer.

José, fortyish, handsome in a bookish and bespectacled early Peter O’Toole sort of way (the non-blond O’Toole), is married to a Montreal teacher and therefore has spent time in Canada. He steers us through the medieval streets of Barri Gòtic, the gentrified pleasures of el Born (the new old city, where we have rented an apartment), the wide boulevards of the Eixample, the quiet neighborhoods of Gràcia. At the same time, he also eloquently articulates how the tangle of history, politics, and religion still complicates life here.

The politics are present in the Catalan flags draped from seemingly every balcony. You soon learn that you are not in the Spain you imagined before arriving here, but in Catalonia, the semi-autonomous state within Spain that many Catalans believe is not nearly autonomous enough.

This is a region that very much wants to be on its own, that feels betrayed by history, by the dictator Franco (who banned the Catalan language, one of many oppressors who tried to do that), and by the current Castilian-dominated Spanish government, that, according to many here, continues to go out of its way to alienate Catalans.

The long-running ill-will is exacerbated by a Nov. 25 state election, which almost certainly will lead to an independence referendum, and an economic crisis roiling the country leaving twenty-five per cent of the work force unemployed—an astonishing sixty-five per cent of young people are said to be without work.

José isn’t sure how everyone keeps going. He is as amazed as anyone that even at this non-tourist time of the year, the restaurants and cafes continue to fill with patrons tasting delicious tapas, and the throngs at noontime crowding La Rambla, the historic pedestrian mall, are as thick as ever. He believes disaster is coming, but there is no sign of it in the windows of the smart shops on the Passeig de Gràcia, the wide thoroughfare that reminds you so much of Paris. You can barely squeeze into Apple’s vast store for the crowds anxious to check out the new iPad mini.

At seven thirty, just before Cal Pep throws open its doors, the line of hopeful diners snakes across the square waiting to get into this popular tapas restaurant. Inside, a long counter seats twenty patrons at a time. The rest of us line up behind them against the wall, waiting for the next available stool. After an hour, we finally are ushered to a small table in a rear room. The tapas is great but not beyond anything available elsewhere in Barcelona without the wait.

To be sure, the situation is slightly less dire here where the Catalans have a reputation for industriousness—the rest of the country views them as the Germans of Spain. Catalonia’s outsider status is such that it is considered too far south to be north, too far north to be south. The locals grumble that the region annually sends sixteen billion Euros to the government in Madrid but doesn’t get nearly as much back.

Religion is everywhere, reminding the visitor of the grip God used to have on this country. It is most obviously represented here by the Sagrada Família, Holy Family, the magnificent cathedral that is to Barcelona what the Eiffel Tower is to Paris.

Even if you have seen photographs, nothing prepares for you for the electric jolt provided by the first sight of Sagrada Família’s incredible edifice. It is not only Barcelona’s but possibly the world’s, most dramatic and original testament to God, created by the Catalan architect Antoni Gaudi, who devoted forty-three years to the cathedral (even now, it is not finished).

A deeply conservative and religious Catholic (he attended mass every day), Gaudi’s God was always present between the lines of his whimsical creations that appear to have tumbled out of a slightly cockeyed fairy tale—dreams in stone, the art critic Robert Hughes once called them.

Thus, with the aid of the insightful José, it is possible to get a deeper, more spiritual view of Gaudi’s Casa Batlló, the block of apartments dominating a corner of the Passeig de Gràcia.  The bone-like columns supporting the lower stories are Gaudi’s assertion that life is fragile and comes to an end. All that keeps us going is the pleasure represented by the balconies in the shape of carnival masks.

But pleasure, Gaudi’s façade tells us, is not enough. (“Man is free to do evil,” he once said. “But he pays the price of his sins”). Pleasure leaves you finally alone as represented by a single upper window, and haunted by monsters—the scaled, undulating roof in the shape of a dragon. Finally, there is only God who can redeem the lost, lonely soul, therefore the cross rising triumphantly from the rooftop.

The architect’s employers, unable to see the God in Gaudi, were furious when they saw what his genius had wrought—begging the question of what they were doing while construction was underway. Up the street a few blocks, Senora Milà was equally unhappy when she saw what Gaudi had produced after he was hired to design an apartment complex. It was supposed to be called Casa Milà. Instead, the locals derisively nick-named it La Pedrera, the stone quarry. “I ordered a palace,” groaned Senora Milà. “Instead, I got a prison.”

Even in these extravagant times, modern architecture seldom allows for Gaudi’s delightful excesses. Standing on the sidewalk before Casa Batlló, it is difficult to imagine how such a deeply conservative man could ever have created these fantastical works of unbridled imagination—works, incidentally, that remain fascinating but unsettling (even Gaudi’s architecture school teachers were uncertain whether they had graduated a genius  or a madman).

So the crowds gather daily to gawk and to wonder. Meanwhile, not far to the north, amid the descending evening calm of the Gràcia quarter, José finishes his day with us, worrying that the Madrid government might one day act as intelligently where Catalonia is concerned as the government in Canada has acted with Quebec. “If that ever happened, the separatist movement here would fall apart,” he says. His wife, he says, used to be a Quebec sovereignist; no more. However, she is very much in favor of Catalan independence.

But then such are the contractions rampant in this fascinating old city. I realize after a few days here that while I understand nothing, I still don’t know much of anything, which means that although I can be a happy visitor here, I can never be a Catalan.

Welcome to Barcelona.

Ron Base’s new novel, Another Sanibel Sunset Detective, is now available. Check it out HERE.

This is my first piece sharing great memories and sights in BCN!

It’s strange…come to think about it that after years living in London and traveling around the world, I have never set foot on Spanish soil.

And without knowing much of Barcelona’s history or culture, I felt in love with the city the day I landed.

It started with a welcoming smile and wink from the handsome man at Customs putting a stamp on my passport…LOL

The first hotel I stayed at is on Portal de l’Àngel (Eixample district), this street is known as one of the city’s busiest streets and right next to Plaça de Catalunya – the square located in the heart of Barcelona.

What I always like to do on my first day in a new place, is just to walk around. GET LOST!

And I have to say, there’s no other city like Barcelona when it comes to wandering around.

The journey starts here, follow my photographs and experience BCN in a different way…through my eyes.

To be continued…

我剛剛結束了一次難忘的西班牙巴塞隆那（感謝 Stradivarius 的邀請）和阿聯酋迪拜之旅，回到香港。這是我第一篇分享巴塞隆那所見所聞的博文。

想想其實有些怪，住在英國那麼多年，旅遊出行走過那麼多國家，卻一直沒有踏入西班牙的國土。而在對巴塞隆那並沒有那麼多瞭解的情況下，我竟然在到達的第一天就感覺愛上了這個城市！

一切是從那個帥氣的西班牙帥哥海關對我的歡迎微笑和機靈眨眼開始的吧。。。

我入住的第一間酒店在天使門 Portal de l’Àngel (擴展區 Eixample 區)，這條街道是全市最熱鬧繁忙的街道之一，據說也是商店租金最昂貴的一條商業街。連接這條街道的就是著名的市中心地標：加泰羅尼亞廣場 Plaça de Catalunya。

每次我抵達一個嶄新的地方，我都喜歡從隨便走走、逛逛開始。這次也不例外！從“走失”開始探險。

必須說，世界上可能沒有第二個城市好似巴塞隆那這樣，那麼的有“迷失”樂趣。

和我一起踏上這次旅程吧！跟隨我的照片、腳步，讓我們一起進行一次西班牙巴塞隆那之旅。

未完待續。。。

Barcelona – taken from telefericos de Barcelona

Visiting Barcelona has been a great experience. Exploring tiny streets, tasting tapas, amazing sights, from Joan Miro Foundation to swinging 100′s of feet high above Barcelona from the telefericos, camera in one hand and holding on VERY tightly with the other …

It is worth visiting  Barcelona during March, April or May, when low-cost airlines have excellent ticket prices and the weather is not too hot! We flew from Bristol Airport with Easy Jet, and after a couple of hours flying we landed at Barcelona’s airport. The airport is the second largest in Spain, and handles around 30 million passengers each year. Easy Jet fly in to their own terminal in Barcelona, light, spacious, clean and the duty-free shops and staff are a vision in orange!

It was a brisk walk to the Aerobus stop, where we purchased our tickets at just over 5 Euros for a single ticket to Placa de Catalunya, the hub of the city’s transport system and a place where people meet at popular restaurants and cafés.

Aerobus – Barcelona airport to Barcelona Centre (and return!)

View from roof top terrace Hotel Duquesa De Cardona

Barcelona is the capital of the Catalonian region, as well as the province of Barcelona. Although Spanish is the official language in Spain, in the Catalonian region Catalan is also recognized as the co-official language.  Barcelona is the 4th most visited city in Europe (after Paris, London, and Rome). It is the most popular tourist destination in Spain with millions of tourists every year.

As well as being a major tourist destination, Barcelona has a rich cultural heritage.  Architectural works of Antoni Gaudí and Lluís Domènech i Montaner have been designated UNESCO World Heritage Sites and of course Barcelona is well-known for the 1992 Summer Olympics – the stadium is worth a visit.

World Trade Centre – from Telefericos de Barcelona

The weather was great when visiting during March/April temperatures ranging from 15-22 deg C. However, like many Spanish cities, July and August tend to be the hottest months, with temperatures soaring into the mid 30s. Barcelona revels in its 4.5 km of coastline, with seven beaches and with these high temperatures they quickly become very busy!

Fab colourful sweet stall – La Boqueria

Casa Mila Architect A. Gaudi

Having arrived safely at Placa de Catalunya the warmth of the Spring sunshine encourages people to stroll and sit around the fountain, pigeons being fed, students chatting, and generally it is a hive of activity. We headed toward Las Ramblas, the most famous walkway in Spain. Here there was a flurry of activity from flower stalls Rambla de les Flors, the bird-cages of Rambla dels Ocells, artists, students, buskers, and street performers, every step a changing scene. At the end of Las Ramblas is a 50m high monument of Christopher Columbus. There is a lift you can take to the top where you have incredible views of the harbour.

Sculptures by Miro

Here we turned left and headed towards our hotel Hotel Duquesa de Cardona The hotel is extremely well situated at the harbour front along Passeig de Colom, and close to Passeig del Born and the Basilica de Santa Maria del Mar. The hotel has a beautiful roof-top terrace overlooking the harbour. A peaceful and relaxing place for an evening cocktail or maybe a glass of sangria, whilst watching the cruise ships come and go.

Vibrant colours – La Boqueria

Le Swing Vintage shop Barcelona

La Botifarreria De Santa Maria

Super tapas at Taller de Tapas Barcelona http://www.tallerdetapas.com

Out and about

There are so many museums, monuments, cathedrals, shops and places to visit, it can be overwhelming at first to decide where to go and what to see. For me wandering around Barri Gotic, La Ribera along Passeig del Born, exploring the vast array of tapas bars, stylish restaurants, jewellers, music bars, sweet shops, vintage shops, boutiques and wine bars was a pleasurable experience.

Just studying….MACBA

For the more adventurous the Telefericos cable car from Montjuic gives a bird’s eye view of Barcelona, the World Trade Centre and Harbour…  and yes I did go across!! It was stunning, amazing and VERY scary!

View from Telefericos de Barcelona

Taller de Tapas by Santa Maria del Mar was our favourite place to eat. Local fresh produce, cooked and served quickly by professional and welcoming staff. I particularly enjoyed the lively and life affirming atmosphere.

The MACBA –  Barcelona Museum of Contemporary Art holds works of art and sculpture dating from the 17th century until today, and there are exhibitions, film specials, seminars and concerts in the museum. The MACBA change their collections, ranging from Fortuny, Picasso, Susana Solano, Sunyer, Alexander Calder, and Paul Klee. Sadly the collection was rather disappointing the day we visited.

Further attractions worth visiting are Museu Picasso, La Sagrada Familia- Antoni Gaudi’s unfinished cathedral, who latterly dedicated himself to his great vision for Europe’s biggest cathedral, The Catedral in Barri Gotic – the entrance is in Placa de la Seu, but sadly both these cathedrals are shrouded by large cranes, renovations and building works in progress.  One of the best ways to see these many attractions is to take a Barcelona City Tour bus. There are different routes, and you can hop on and off  the stops of your choice all day.

Saggrada Familia Barcelona

Miro Foundation Parc de Montjuc -

The Joan Miro Foundation houses an extensive collection of Miro’s works. The building itself is very pleasing and modern, with white walls and skylights designed by Josep Lluis Sert.  Once inside a vibrant large tapestry dominates the room, typically of red blue and yellow. There are sketches from his notebooks, garden sculptures outside, where you can admire his work together with some superb views of Barcelona, a library, auditorium, there are also regular guest exhibitions and performances.

St Josep Boqueria Market -

Heading down Las Ramblas, towards the sea, on the right hand side is the famous St Josep Boqueria Market. The vibrant and colourful array of ingredients for sale is extraordinary!  The market is covered which is a welcome area of shade. The market is open daily, except Sundays.  Visiting Barcelona has been great fun.  This lively and colourful city is certainly worth a visit.

Papabubble http://www.papabubble.com Barcelona

Musica Barcelona

Le Boqueria

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Terrifying find in a narrow alleyway in the Barri Gotic (Gothic Quarter) of Barcelona. They specialize in “giant mannequins” and have shelves lined with giant heads. I was following a group and couldn’t stop, but I am dying to go back and be too scared to actually go in and ask them what they do/ take better pictures. 

Lord Ganesha on La Rambla

The last thing I expected to see on the La Rambla in Barcelona was Lord Ganesha in all his resplendent glory. But lo and behold, there he was magically levitating, smiling benignly and blessing wonder-struck folks, gawking at him. Lord Ganesha was dishing out blessings and had a queue of ‘devotees’, keen on a picture with him. Abhishek who is a colleague of mine based in Mumbai and who was exploring Rambla and the old parts of Barcelona with me, were completely taken aback at this sight. A levitating, life-like Lord Ganesha on a street in Barcelona was too big an opportunity to miss. We had a few pictures taken and I decided to invite the Lord to Mumbai. We felt the stirrings of a possible scam in our bones. Imagine taking this guy to Mumbai and presenting him as the Lord incarnate to the believers, we may end up making a few millions !!! I picked up courage and had a chat with Ganesha and asked him if he was open to traveling with us to Mumbai. Talking with the Lord seemed weird but there it was. The guy turned out to be an Argentinean tourist spending a summer in Barcelona and having a ball posing as Lord Ganesha. He loved the crowds and the tips added up to a neat sum. Unfortunately he was not inclined to travel to Mumbai (there went our scam!!!), had no idea what crowds in Mumbai may mean and of course had no clue about the money he may end up making as ‘sakshat’ Lord Ganesha giving divine darshan to the masses in Mumbai.

Barcelona

I was in Barcelona on a 4 day trip as part of a large group consisting of a bunch of colleagues, who were being rewarded for superlative performance. The choice of Barcelona as our destination was a fortuitous one. The travel company making our travel arrangements suggested it as a destination, the spanish hangover emanating from the successful run of  the Bollywood movie ‘Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara’ played its part in influencing our choice and one fine day last week, we found ourselves in Barcelona.

The tour arrangements were flexible, allowing all of us to do our own thing in this great city. Many of us went exploring the old city with its wonderful architecture, cobble-stoned streets and an old world charm that is hard to beat.

We went to La Rambla, a 1.2 km, tree-lined street running from the Catalunya Square to the Monument a Colom (the massive monument to Colombus) to the south.

La Rambla is lined with all manner of stalls, street cafe, food joints and street performers. The street is full of tourists from all parts of the world, cameras slung around their necks, clicking pictures of the stalls selling souvenirs and knick-knacks, nice shaded cafes, sketch artists and magazine and newspaper vendors busily trading Barcelona city maps.

Spanish poet Federico Garcia Lorca once said that La Rambla was ‘the only street in the world which I wish would never end’. I can’t agree with him more.

Columbus in Barcelona

We soon reached the Monument a Colum, a massive column with a statue of Christopher Colombus mounted at the apex. The monument was built for the Universal Exhibition, which was held in Barcelona in 1888. It is said that the monument stands at the site, where Columbus arrived in 1493 after his voyages to the New World. The 197 ft high  monument was designed by the Catalan architect Gaietà Buigas i Monravà in 1882 and it was opened for public in 1888 just before the commencement of the Universal Exhibition. Today, the Cast Iron monument, stands tall and erect, proudly commemorating the discovery of the Americas and celebrating the wanderlust of Christopher Columbus.

The maze of streets leading off from La Rambla forced us to buy a detailed map of the area. We wanted to explore some of these streets and with the map in hand and with no fixed destination in mind, we set off in the direction of the famous Picasso’s Museum in the La Ribara district of the old city. We roamed around the streets in the district of Barri Gotic, the original old quarter of the city. The area is characterized by nice narrow lanes, large squares many with small fountains and beautiful cafes on the sidewalks. The streets are lined with quaint stores, eateries, souvenir shops, local art shops and ice cream parlours.

Old Barcelona

We gradually wound our way through Barri Gotic to Picasso’s Museum in the La Ribera district. Picasso’s Museum is housed in 5 adjacent mansions and contains a treasure trove of his works, largely bequeathed by him and his life long friend Jaume Sabartés y Gual to the city of Barcelona. Picasso moved to Barcelona in 1895, when his father landed a teaching job in the fine arts academy of the city. Picasso lived in Barcelona off and on till the outbreak of the civil war, when he left Spain. Picasso loved Barcelona and many of his early paintings depict the streets and the more bohemian side of the city. The paintings are arranged in a chronological order and as one moves along, one can see his evolution as an artist. The museum also contains many sketches, portraits, engravings and lithographs all done in

Picasso Museum

his characteristic style, signed off with his well-known flourish.

Cathedral of Barcelona

Roaming around in the old quarters, we also found the magnificent Cathedral of Barcelona also known as the Cathedral of the Holy Cross and Saint Eulalia. The cathedral is the seat of the Archbishop of Barcelona and was mostly built-in the 14th century, while the neo gothic facade of the church was completed in the 19th century. The cathedral is dedicated to the patron saint of Barcelona St. Eulalia, a young virgin who suffered martyrdom at the hands of the Roman kings. St. Eulalia’s body is entombed in the Cathedral’s crypt.

Tired of our perambulations in the streets of old Barcelona we rested on the stairs in front of this monumental edifice. As the shadows lengthened and the day wound to a close, we felt a wonderful peace descend upon us.It has been a great day of discovery and wonder, in this great city. In the gathering dusk, we walked back to the Catalunya Square, where we caught our bus, had a quick dinner and returned to the hotel, tired yet exhilarated.

To be continued

All pics by the author

And thus my course was set and signed. Someone in the control booth turned the dial to farce, and the clown car pulled up. My fate and I gladly climbed in, and the door was sealed shut behind us.

Our Tuesday evening view from the Barcelona Harbor docks. Who wouldn’t want to ride the funicular? I mean, it’s got the word “fun” in it.

But since my post yesterday was a little bit of a downer, let me skip ahead to the good part now.

Both hell and high water came, but we got on that damn funicular, and the view was f-ing awesome. (Please pardon my French; since we were there, I must have picked up a bad word or two.)

A new view: On Thursday, we gaze down from the cable car on the spot (near the pointed tip of the closest dock) where we gazed up at the cable car on Tuesday.

The high way: Barcelona Harbor from the Transbordador Aeri del Port funicular; Collserola mountains in the background.

One last shot of the beach from the cable car destination station taken right before the elevator doors chime and open to take us back to earth.

Imbued with new city euphoria Tuesday night, Tate and I were both filled with certainlies and of courses. Anything seemed possible in this fresh place. So we agreed we’d ride the cable car at some point during our stay here. That point was supposed to be today, and it looked easy enough. Quick subway ride with one switch to Paral.lel station, then a short walk from there to the harbor funicular on Montjuic Hill.

When we arrive, there is a funicular in the Metro (subway) station heading up, but Google Maps on my iPhone tells me our particular funicular leaves from elsewhere, so I convince Tate to pass that by and follow me. Well, it turns out Google maps is what they use in the clown car.

Into the hot Barcelona sun we go–and up a steep hill. Two or three city blocks of uphill climbing give way to more climbing around the hill on what appears to be a service road. This is never a good sign, but we’re so close, so close–according to Google Maps.

We persevere and round the last corner, where, instead of beholding the gleaming funicular tower, we see a big, closed gate with graffiti all over it. We’re in the vicinity, but we need to be about 40 feet higher, where we can see happy tourists peering down at us. The distance is too steep to climb from where we are, but I had seen a trail leading upward about 50 feet back.

Do you hear that revving sound? It’s the clown car.

I’m not sure why Tate follows me onto the trail, because I don’t think I’d follow myself at this point. The sweat starts to roll down my forehead into my eyes, and I can taste it on my lips. Aside from the heat, we’re pressing onward through overgrown brush and swatting away flies and other insects. The trail arcs around the hill a ways, but never really turns upward. So, we turn around and head back to the subway station. I have feeling that Metro funicular is the only way up.

After paying our fare–again–we are shortly en route up Montjuic Hill. This is it. We’re making progress. Fate corrected.

When we reach the top, there is indeed another funicular heading up. But it’s not the particular funicular we’re looking for. The harbor funicular embarks from a station 10 minutes away. OK–not so bad, and a pretty good view of Barcelona along the path:

Barcelona Harbor View from Montjuic Hill.

Finally, in sight is the funicular ticket window, inside of which a dour, adult reader of comic-books looking guy is all too happy to tell us the ride costs 20 euros for both of us. And they don’t take credit cards. And of course, we have about 17 euros in cash between us.

Ready to cry yet? Just you wait. Now I’m dead set on riding this damn thing–because clearly the universe doesn’t want me to. I leave my bag with Tate and take a set of treacherous-looking stone steps down the hill to find an ATM. “It’ll only be 10 minutes,” I promise.

Knowing that we’re going to the beach later, I’m wearing boat-type shoes with no socks, and my feet are killing me at this point. But I make it down the mountain (it’s no longer a hill now; it’s a mountain) and into the adjacent side streets. I search for banks on Google maps. The first one isn’t there. Two more blocks and another one happily accepts my card, but can’t make withdrawals at this time. But it is pleased to help me with other things. Yeah, well, unless you moonlight as a funicular, I ain’t interested.

Finally, one last ATM–and success. I’m so close to the original Metro station that I enter again and ride the Metro funicular up yet again, and walk the 10 minutes to the harbor funicular once more.

At this point, my feet are literally bleeding, my throat is parched, and I’m a sweaty mess. I want to bury this funicular now, but finally, finally we have tickets in hand.

But let’s fast forward again, because this story has a happy ending. As you saw at the beginning of this post, the ride was great. And even better, the elevator down from the cable car tower drops us at the doorstep of the beach, and the fine Mediterranean breeze just takes the edge off an otherwise potentially stifling afternoon.

We liberally smear on the sunscreen (and I mean “liberally”–Colgate has a darker tan than I do), and head across the warm sands to stake out a place. This date with destiny was a grand one. Vendors wind through the sunbathers hawking cool beverages: “Coke, Fanta, Cerveza, Beer! Coke, Fanta, Cerveza, Beer!” Others offer henna tattoos or massages, and others still had mixed drinks on a serving tray in one hand with a bottle of rum in the other. We’ll take a pass on those, thanks very much.

As Tate frolics in the water, I lie on my back, looking at the sky. It’s deep blueness is like a wonderful sigh of relief. The fates are back in their place, and the clown car’s taillights are fading toward the horizon. Somewhere, I know a clown nose is honking for someone. But right now, it does not honk for me.

Tate at Barcelona beach.

The water was warm and the waves were substantial on Barcelona beach.

Post beach, we take a stroll back through the medieval Barri Gòtic part of town for another visit to Alsur Cafe, the place where we whiled away a good deal of time Tuesday afternoon.

Fist stop, Sitges

We started our Barcelona segment with a stop in the lovely Sitges, a fisherman’s village dated back in the 10th century, is now a hip, friendly, neutrally gay and family oriented seaside paradise.  Budget friendly to almost anyone.  From the reasonable beachfront hotel rooms to ultra deluxe villas, you get a true sense of harmony here under the golden sun.  Our first order of business was to enjoy a small feast of fresh catch tapas with an ice-cold lemon flavored beer from the beachside cafe.  It tasted like a dream.

The picturesque 17th century church Sant Bartomeu i Santa Tecla perched at the highest point of this shoreline, served to divide the tiny village into two section. Facing the landmark church on your left, is the town center densely populated with countless high end and low budget boutique stores, restaurants, bakeries, delis and bars.  Walking down the center of this part of town at night, it feels like we are in the movie set of Saturday Night Fever, with loud disco music blasting, disco lights flashing from the bars and restaurants on both sides; then it all mysteriously quiet down around mid-night. On the right side is the modestly plush and upscale part of town-quieter, more residential and wealthy-which you can tell by the way people dress and act.

Local sand sculpture artists started sculpting their daily display in the morning, usually a mythical sea creature or a castle; on one end they’ll light up a candle, using the heat to push water out from the small hole on the other end, all disguised within the element of the sculpture.  A small bin collects donations from the marveling passerby.  We spent an afternoon at the beach, under a rented cabana, lounging along the locals.  The water was lovely, just enough waves to play in without the messy undertow.

Barri Gòtic 

Here as in Paris, we choose an apartment located in the center of the historic Barri Gòtic. We had an elevator and a balcony!  Two must and can haves in Barcelona.  Right behind our flat stood the ancient Roman Walls, some dated as far back as the 4th Century AD; traversing down it’s cobble stoned paths and discovering small galleries, antique stores, independent designer stores was a lot of fun.  Street musicians take full advantage of the natural acoustic effects these ancient stone walls provides, I hear a different instrument play out each time I turned the corner.

Here one can fully immersed in Barcelona’s layer of histories and take in its friendly and unpretentious manners. Talking to the local designers, I was impressed by these young artists are quite committed to their work, and they loved to discuss about their creative vision and style. I enjoyed these spontaneous artsy conversation immensely.

Gaudi’s Park Guëll

On our 3rd day in Barcelona, which is a Sunday; we checked out Park Guëll as our way to pay homage to the beloved architect Gaudi.  We followed the guidebook’s recommendation to start from the top entrance, to experience the panoramic view of Barcelona from atop.  Be warned of the long walk and steep climb in order to reach this entrance, take comfort in the knowledge that there are two outdoor elevators along the steep hill to help.  For such a popular World Heritage site, I was surprised at the lack of signage and ground staff to help visitors navigate; but half of the fun is in getting lost in this natural amusement park, provided you have packed enough snack, water and sun screen.

It is hard not to love the super efficient infrastructure, and the generous, beautiful and thoughtful public spaces; which compliments the Catalonian’s hospitable nature beautifully.  Even the ride on the subway was pleasurable.  It is the relaxing, easy going, considerate and respecting each other’s space kind of pleasure.  Adds great food, art and creative energy, you get Barcelona.

If you happen to be in town before September 24th, there is a fantastic retrospective Picasso exhibition at the Museu Picasso.  The Picasso Museum in Paris was closed for restoration, and we made it up multiple times in Barcelona.  This wonderfully curated show traced from his teenage years through his blossoming in Paris, his transition from realism to cubism to abstract; also included are his pottery pieces.  I have learned a great deal about this master and felt so enriched.

Please don’t be shy with comments or questions about this posting.  I love hearing from you.

One of the most picturesque square in the Barri Gòtic, Plaça del Rei is traditionally thought to be where Ferdinand and Isabella received Columbus on his return from his first voyage to the new world. The Palau Reial Major was also the first royal residence of Barcelona, up until the Inquisition.

Wandering around Barri Gòtic, it was quite some time before I realized that the complex looming over me was the posterior facade of the Barcelona Cathedral. The tiered structure, multi-textured bricks and perching gargoyles made quite a sight against the sky that day, never mind that the view was courtesy of us retracing our route through the serpentine alleys, hopelessly lost but nevertheless charmed.