Barcelona
The drive from Barcelona’s airport is more than a taxi ride; it’s a trip through history. You sweep in past the port and the gleaming Mediterranean. Ahead and to the right there are the futuristic shiny steel towers of the Vila Olimpica, a legacy of the 1992 Olympics. There’s a spectacular two-mile stretch of sandy beach where once there were grubby warehouses and shunting yards, while up to the left, along the city’s most famous street, Las Ramblas, lies the Old Town with, at its heart, the Gothic cathedral. But even though its construction started in 1298 the cathedral is young by Barcelona standards.
Today’s Catalonian Parliament building on the Placa de Sant Jaume stands on the site of what was once the Roman forum. Just round the corner, you can still see columns and stones dating from that period. There is plenty of history between the two extremes.
This is the city made famous once again by Gaudi and his “Modernisme” movement. There are plenty of opportunities to explore his work, not least in La Sagrada Familia, which has become a symbol of this city.
You can feel the buzz and the dynamism of the place. The outdoor tables of the cafes in the Gothic part of town are filled with beautifully-dressed customers enjoying the sunshine; a market is in full swing with stalls selling a potent mixture of priceless antiques and worthless junk; there are wonderfully-old-fashioned shops with window displays of spectacular hams, cheeses and bowls of juicy ripe olives. For another glimpse into the future, cross the bridge which links the main part of Barcelona to Maremagnum, the new shopping and entertainment complex, with its cinemas, bars, restaurants and nightclubs. This is a very late-night part of the city where the action doesn’t really start until about 11pm.
Added 2008/02/11 @ 23:20:22
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