Wandering Around Barcelona
A City Rich in Culture, Picasso, Dali and Cronuts!
Barcelona is a city rich in so much history, in art and architecture. From the works of Pablo Picasso to Antoni Gaudi, to the incredible food in the markets and on the streets. Any visit to Barcelona is sure to delight the biggest connoisseurs of cultured big city travel.
Barcelona Highlights
Barcelona was a spontaneous trip planned in the name of love. Travelling since early Christmas Day from Isla Mujeres, Mexico, exploration began Boxing Day 2016. I awoke early, excited to get out and explore the area that would be home for the next month. The apartment rented from AirBnB was located a few short blocks from Las Ramblas, called El Raval. What made it perfect was we were so close to everything we needed.
Right below us was our staple, a little bakery that had the best samosas and pakoras. Plus beautiful baguettes for only 0.33 Euros each. Every few mornings one of us would go downstairs for some bread and produce we could find on the street. If we could not find something on the street, a grocery store and the Mercat del la Boqueria was only a few blocks away. Like most major cities there was always something great within walking distance.
The Mercat de la Boqueria was one of the first places we walked to check out. The closest thing I have ever seen to anything like this was St Lawrence Market in Toronto. A park sized covered farmers market filled with everything from Jambon to pescado, baked goods, produce and so much more. At first it is a little overwhelming, so many of the merchants offering the same thing, eventually you just have to decide and buy or move on. I think my favourite thing was the stacks fo fresh made fruit and vegetable juices. There were just so many to choose from.
The same is true of olives. There were so many. Tara said she liked the saltier ones, you know the black wrinkly olives. I chose a simply plain traditional olive. Branching out into new things is part of the journey right? Either way, we returned often to this market area, often not to shop there but for what became one of our two biggest food obsessions in Barcelona. burgers (I will get into that later) and CHOC. OMG, this place was a little piece of pastry heaven. Seriously…
Assorted Choc Cronuts
Latte love!
All the Cronuts!
“You’d have a hard time finding anything better than Barcelona for food, as far as being a hub.”
The Streets of Barcelona are Rich in History
Once you have filled your belly with all the fine food Barcelona has on offer, well next up is the art and architecture. Barcelona is well known for some pretty famous artists. I mean it is after all the home of Pablo Picasso, as well as the two artists known as the “mad artists”, Salvador Dali (also my favorite artist) and Antoni Gaudi.
We spent several hours on multiple days exploring the works of Antoni Gaudi. The first was a walk from the neighbourhood where we were staying through the streets of Barcelona to the Sagrada Família. A fantastical looking Roman Catholic Church that reaches up high into the sky. The Basilica de la Sagrada Familia designed by Antoni Gaudi has been under construction since March 1882. It was 2018 and we were barely able to see much as it was covered by scaffolding and construction materials. We never went in for this reason. Apparently we missed out.
Another day we were off to Park Güell, a wonderful homage to the works fo Antoni Guadi. This was by far one of my favourite days out exploring. We wondered through the park for hours exploring all the different installations and pieces. In one section a band played, while a man danced. We stopped and watched for a time and then moved on, still listening to the music until we were out of earshot.
“There no reason to regre that I cannot finnish the church. I will grow old but others will come after me. What must always be conserved is the spirit of the work, but its life has to depend on the generations it is handed down to and with whom it lives and is incarnated.”
I discovered there was not just music in Parc Guell, music seemed to stream from all around Barcelona. Live intoxicating music from the streets, creeping in as you walked around your feet shuffling to the beats. Especially in parks on sunny Saturday afternoons. The day we wondered over to the area Pablo Picasso hung out in. In fact a friend sent me on a hunt for a store that was known for its cats in the exact area. Unfortunately the owner of the cat place was gone at the time.
I could feel the history coursing through the streets as we walked the same cobble stones, took in similar old building (not as old then) and talked about the beauty in the architecture. The courses I took in college on art history were nothing compared to being there, following the same roads greats like Picasso and Dali. First of all, the documented rivalry between the two that spanned decades and created some fo the most incredible pieces on the art we have. There are few artists who could complete with their influence on modern art. Well, maybe Van Gogh.
In a small art shop close to the area I purchased 2 SalvidoreDali prints and 2 Pablo Picasso prints. They were small so I could get them in my carryon. They were also pieces I was not overly familiar with. One currently hangs in the hall on the way to the bathroom.
LGBTQ Positive in Barcelona!
There is a thriving very liberal community in Barcelona. As a very queer looking person I totally felt comfortable. Not once did I get that feeling I am sure we all experience one and a while, of course this is not the mid West USA, this is Barcelona Spain where they even held a March against the US electing 45!
One thing I will say about Barcelona… We went to go to a club for NYE and well, we discovered that clubs don’t open until after the midnight hour. We missed out on that part. The evening ended with drinks in the apartment. Through the night we heard celebration until the early morning light. Next time I will be more prepared and have an afternoon nap!
The other thing I absolutely loved about Barcelona was the doors. I found myself taking so many pictures of architecturally beautiful doors, or secret tiny doors, or painted garage style doors. Eventually I had enough pictures for a whole gallery!
