Barcelona

Barcelona - Brussels, march 2019

Took a a flight on a very early Saturday morning a few weeks ago to fly into perfect summer-weather in Barcelona for 4 days. I went to a friend's event for an evening and got to stay at their place in quite central Barcelona after they left for a trip the next morning.

I love Spain and well everything Spanish - Latin-American you name it. Barcelona is probably one of my favorite cities in Europe. It's been 6 years since I was there the last time - so definitely about time for another visit.

Flew to El Prat airport in Barcelona. Instead of getting a bus or metro to tow, took a quick shuttle bus to terminal 2 and walked the bridge out of the terminal to Renfe train station, bought a T10 card and took a train straight to town. The T10 card costs 10,20 EUR and gives you 10 bus/train/metro tickets. Getting from the airport to Sans train station and changing for metro then counts as one ticket. Also I discovered later when going to Tibidabo, taking a metro, then funicular and then the minibus also counts as one. I highly recommend it! For comparison, a regular single ticket in Barcelona costs 2,20 EUR. 

At Las Ramblas.

Beautiful Antoni Gaudi architecture in Barcelona.

One can’t visit Barcelona without seeing Gaudi’s influence everywhere. He’s the city’s most famous architect who helped to shape the design of the city during its booming 19th and early 20th century. 

Gaudi died tragically in 1926 after being hit by a tram on his way to church. He was knocked unconscious and, because he didn’t have any identification on him, people assumed he was a beggar. He received basic care at the hospital, but died of his injuries shortly thereafter.

Casa Mila, also known as “La Pedrera” (the stone quarry).

Sagrada Familia!

Looked quite similar 6 years ago. 

Then:

And now:

During Gaudí's final years, he devoted himself entirely to working on Sagrada Família. Sadly the masterpiece is still unfinished. According to locals it's mainly because of money. As the building is becoming more and more popular and bringing in millions of tourists each year, the completion year is starting to become realistic.They're hoping to finish the whole church by 2026. 00 It would be at exactly 100 years after the death of architect Antoni Gaudi (1926). Also it will be 144 years after the first stone was laid.

La Barceloneta area.

There are always protests happening around Barcelona. Against politics or taxes, for equal rights, for independence..

The Mercat de Sant Josep de la Boqueria, or simply: La Boqueria. A large public market in the Ciudad Vieja, Barcelona. It's freshest, most lively and crowded in the morning. There are sometimes lunch specials at noon. Many things on discount at the end of the day. Tapas heaven. So many goodies!

The magic fountain of Montjuïc's - close to Plaça d'Espanya. It's a spectacular display of colour, light, motion, music and water acrobatics.

The operating hours of the fountain varies depending the time of the year, every evening from Thursday to Sunday from May to September and only Friday and Saturday from October to March. 

The show is so worth seeing, also the surroundings are beautiful, the national art museum (Museu Nacional d'Art de Catalunya), the stairs, cascades, and parks around the museum.

Palau de la Música Catalana - a concert hall in Barcelona, designed in the Catalan modernista style by the architect Lluís Domènech i Montaner. It's listed as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO, and is another example of Barcelonas wonderful architecture. It's also called the hidden music palace. 

Gothic Quarter (Barri Gotic). 

The Cathedral of Barcelona - one of the oldest and most beautiful districts in Barcelona. PS: so many lovely bars an cafeterias to visit! Fun fact: Picasso lived and worked in Barri Gòtic from 1895 to 1904.

Altho it was the end of March it was perfect beach weather, at least for someone from Estonia. No, but seriously. 22 degrees and sunshine, what else would one need. The beach was full of people, tourists were all red and sunbathing, locals were mainly playing volley or having picnics. 

It was quite interesting how mainly older local people were often wearing furry winter parkas, yet again younger people were genuinely shocked that a couple days ago they had to wear a jacket at daytime. It was still mutually agreed that it is not yet beach-season. Agree to disagree. 

Bunkers Del Carmel!

El Carmel is a working class neighbourhood up on the hills.

From metro station Alfons X, it's a lovely, quite easy hike up to the mountain Turó de la Rovira to the bunkers. It's such a lovely spot for chatting and taking in city views, for a picnic and card games, for enjoying sunset..

Bunkers del Carmel are a number of old underground military bunkers that nowadays offer one of the best views of the city. The bunkers were built during the Spanish Civil War in 1937, and were used as part of an anti-craft battery to defend against attacks from the fascists and housed a number of guns.

PAELLA!!

Parc Guell - also called the most creative park in the world. It's free to walk around in most parts but to visit Gaudi's famous balcony you'll have to get a ticket. I didn't as I have been there before. It was still free in 2013! But the view is definitely lovely!

Flashback:

If You walk past the balcony, and continue upwards, you'll reach this monument, and that is an extremely lovely spot for a sunset and view over the city. 

Bar l'Antic Théatre.

Quick visit to Sitges - a lovely coastal town less than an hour away from Barcelona. 

It's known for its Mediterranean beaches and seafront promenade lined with grand mansions. 

There's something very peaceful about that town, even off-season.. or maybe especially off-season. 

If I could just eat lunch from La Boqueria every day! 

En route de Tibidabo!

Tibidabo is a mountain overlooking Barcelona. At 512 metres, it's the tallest mountain in the Serra de Collserola. 

On top of the mountain there is the Temple Expiatori del Sagrat Cor (Temple of the Sacred Heart of Jesus) - a Roman Catholic church and basilica crowned by the statue of the christ. It's possible to enter the church and climb up to the top for the highest view. The neo-gothic church was built in 1806 and renovated in 1902.

Tibidabo amusement park was built in 1889 and opened to the public in 1905. It's the oldest amusement park in Spain and also one of the oldest in the world. It's a family park, altho most of the rides are for kids. 

Giradabo - the ferris wheel with its colourful cabins is on of the iconic rides of Tibidabo. It offers spectacular views, the ticket can be bought separate from the amusement park entrance and it costs 2 EUR. 

See you next time Barcelona! Off to a work event in Brussels.

Chez Léon -  c'est le restaurant moules et frites de Bruxelles! Absolutely delicious!

There was a strike at Brussels airport, so many flights were delayed or cancelled. Ours left 2,5 hours later, so we got to land in Tallinn at 2.30 am. Straight back to hectic schedule. Happy spring!