Barcelona
EXPLORE Neighborhoods of Gothic Quarter, El Raval, El Poble Sec
christina
A truly cosmopolitan, diverse and exciting city full of magical corners that inspire and touch the senses, Barcelona is as if southern California and NYC had a baby in the rich historical tradition of Catalan Spain. Very livable, remarkably less expensive than cities of the same caliber in the US, Barcelona is truly an artist’s city – full of inspiration and infrastructure. The city, I can only imagine, is a public space planner’s dream. You can walk from the medieval town full of twisting and turning alleys right onto the modern seaside replete with swimmable beaches, a long boardwalk, an active surf scene and a Frank Gehry sculpture.
Though we were amazed by the internationalism of the city, it is worth noting that the Catalans are currently embroiled in a struggle for independence since 2010. Catalonia has its own language, and as the center of tourism is making the most money for Madrid. Much like their neighbors to the north, the Basque, they have been fighting with the center for years about taxes and benefits to their quality of life and the independence spirit is fierce here. The history is fascinating and had me digging deep on the history of Spain as a unified country. The impact of Franco, the regional identities and cultures and the return to democracy as late as 1978 were all interesting pieces to the puzzle.
We were blown away by the Sagrada Familia and the impact of Gaudi on the city of Barcelona. The architecture of the space is truly mind blowing and invoked a huge sense of spirit and potential that I've never witnessed before. I was completely moved by the fact that this great cathedral was dreamed up more than 100 years ago and yet seems perfectly seamless in today's reality. It was almost certainly made for these times... and this in itself is a testament to the power of spirit - not just the space but the foresight of genius. Truly incredible.
This is just the beginning of this new country but I can already see Julio’s roots – the resemblance to the people is the first thing that caught me. It will be interesting to see what comes of this trip and to see the other side of this identity trip now that we are a couple and live our lives as such.
JULIO
Arriving to Barcelona from Greece was quite a shock. The general modernity and stylishness of everything was more than a slight change from Greece that we had gotten used to. I was definitely feeling some anxiety to have to communicate in Spanish, which is my first language, but feeling a bit out of practice I was nervous I wouldn’t be able to cut the mustard. We easily de-planed and made our way to the shuttle to head towards our Airbnb which was in the Montjuic district. It was very rainy and we were let off in Placa de Espana from where we marched off rolling our bags through the streets. A scene which gets repeated many times through trips like these: coming to a new place and rolling your bags through some unfamiliar streets to a place you don’t know and taking it all in...
We had read so much awful stuff about pick-pockets and bag theft on the bus and metro in the city but we found no sketchy vibes. Perhaps because we were cautious and most likely ready for a fight due to what we had heard. We enjoyed settling into our apartment in Montjuic and then decided to head out and explore the city. It began pouring, which added to the overall moodiness and romance of the old quarters of the city. We shuffled off to the Picasso Museum, which features many of his early works and got lost in the Barri Gotik, El Born and Las Ramblas until we returned to Las Arenas to eat and return home for a rest.
Here we started to notice the distinct differences between the different autonomous regions in Spain. Barcelona is in Catalonia which has its own language, food and politics. It is not the technicolor Spain of bullfights and flamenco, it is distinctly Catalan and not to be confused. This was further reflected in the next day's holiday which happened to be a Spanish Federal Day of Remembrance, which the younger, proud Catalans did not seem particularly willing to celebrate with Spanish Flags and hoopla like some of the older residents in the city. There was tension in the streets and you could feel that there will soon be a strong move towards Catalan independence.
Barcelona is international, cosmopolitan, chic, and colorful yet relaxed all in the same breath. The beach area of Barceloneta gives it a super sophisticated Southern California feel, while one could get lost for days wandering the romantic streets of The Bari Gotic, El Born and the old city. We also loved Eixample, el Raval and our homebase of Montjuic.
I had been to Cordoba as a child and on this recent trip had repeatedly heard of the beauty of the Moorish Alcazar and so Andalusia became our next destination.
Barcelona’s Plaça Reial
Relaxing in the park.
Getting ready to enjoy the famous egg masterpieces at El Qim de La Boqueria
Chipping it up with the locals and the eggs were superb
Jamon for days
Eggs!
We enjoyed a Spanish guitar concert at The Palau de la Música Catalana. Check out the cieling
Plaça d'Espanya on a cloudy night. This is the area we stayed in