A Week Exploring Barcelona

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Monday, 26 April 2004 - Explored more of central Barcelona including the beautiful Santa Maria del Pi church with its Gothic architecture and rose window, wandered around Plaça Sant Josep Oriol with its shops and plazas, then took a fun excursion up to Montjuïc Castle overlooking the city and port for spectacular views. Visited the Olympic Stadium and nearby museums, strolled through Poble Espanyol saw artisans at work including glassblowing, enjoyed Sardana dancers in the botanical gardens, and finished the day with dinner near the hotel before heading home.

Barcelona 2004 — Santa Maria del Pi was begun in 1322 and completed in the 15th century. This is a fine example of Catalan Gothic architecture - fortress like on the exterior but open and warm on the inside.

Barcelona 2004 — The magnificent rose window of Santa Maria del Pi.

Barcelona 2004 — One of the several chapels in the church.

Barcelona 2004 — This pretty building is in the Placa Sant Josep Oriol just outside the Santa Maria del Pi. This plaza also has many shops several of which Virginia Ann visited. Up one of the streets Cal purchased a leather suede jacket - very Euro.

Barcelona 2004 — The Castle of Montjuic is perched on the high bluff overlooking the port city so there are great views. The fort is not a positive reminder for the Barcelona people. It was here that the president of the Generalitat, Lluis Companys, was executed in 1940 by Franco.

Barcelona 2004 — The castle was built in the 17th century by the central government to keep an eye on Barcelona and stifle citizen revolt. The conflict was between Catalonia and Spain's Felipe IV know as the "War of the Reapers". When Franco was in power hundreds were executed within the walls for political reasons.

Barcelona 2004 — Here you can see the commanding view the castle has of the Barcelona port and it's strategic value.

Barcelona 2004 — The castle houses a small museum which has a good collection of small arms but not much in the way of military history. There is a small room with two wars - but not much. I was hoping for a Spanish view of the Spanish - American war. This is a display of Spanish and Catalan flags. The Catalan flag is the yellow and red of the Spanish standard but with many more horizontal stripes.

Barcelona 2004 — The museum had no English descriptions for the displays - there is a military art section that would have benefited from some explanation of each of the paintings. This was a good sample of the artwork. Battle of Arlaban - 1888.

Barcelona 2004 — This is a statue in the front of the Castle.

Barcelona 2004 — Estadi Olimpic (Olympic Stadium) was built originally for the 1929 Universal Exposition. Extensive work for the 1992 Olympics involved lowering the arena by almost 40 feet creating extra seating for 55,000 spectators.

Barcelona 2004 — This is a view inside the Olympic Stadium looking toward the torch which held the flame. The opening and closing ceremonies were held here.

Barcelona 2004 — The Olympic Torch - pretty symbolic photo by Cal. At least I think so.

Barcelona 2004 — Outside the Olympic Stadium is the Olympic Terrace lined with pillars - you can see the white Torre de Calatrava communication tower at 616 feet. The tower was designed by Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava and was not appreciated by the rest of the Olympic architects - it is now widely seen as a good design and very elegant.

Barcelona 2004 — Since 1934 the Museu Nacional d'Art de Catalunya has housed the most important Romanesque art collection in the world, including murals peeled off the walls of tiny churches in the Pyrenees and brought down by donkey. There is also a good Gothic section and some Renaissance art.

Barcelona 2004 — Poble Espanyol (Spanish Village) is the worst 12 euros I spent the whole trip. Built for the 1929 Exposition it is just a tourist trap. Full of cafes and gift shops it is a good place for lunch and a couple of the stores have quality merchandise. Overall , however, it is a big gift shop.

Barcelona 2004 — This was interesting - a glassblowing shop. It was very fun to watch glass being made and then sold in a shop in front. There were other artisans in various shops.

Barcelona 2004 — These are Sardana dancers - traditional Catalan dance. The statue is in a park below the castle and overlooks the port. Across the street from this park is a botanical garden - Jardi Botanic.

Barcelona 2004 — There is a cable car from Montjuic to the beaches - it travels far over the port. Virginia Ann decided to opt out on the cable car ride.

Barcelona 2004 — A great shot looking down on Las Ramblas, in the foreground is the statue of Columbus. Behind it the green ribbon is the Ramblas winding up toward the Plaza Catulyna.

Barcelona 2004 — From the cable car the Tampas Maremagnum (with the yellow railing) looks very small - this is the restaurant where Cal and Virginia Ann had lunch on the second day.

Barcelona 2004 — The Barcelona beach looking toward the Olympic port. Cal and Virginia Ann had dinner the first night to the right of the two tall buildings in the distance.

Barcelona 2004 — After exiting the cable car you are on the beach. There were surfers riding surfboards with kites as power sources. One kite is very visible and several others are visible in the distance.

Barcelona 2004 — At the Olympic Port there is a large fish sculpture. The fish sits over several restaurants and a casino.

Barcelona 2004 — Next stop is Parc de la Ciutadella - a park made where the old citadel was built. After the fall of Barcelona in 1714, Felipe V ordered the destruction of 1262 buildings to create a fortress for 8000 troops. In 1869 the land was ceded to the city and a park was created. A young Antoni Gaudi helped design this fountain.

Barcelona 2004 — Also in the Citidel Park is the Zoo - Barcelona is known for the only albino gorilla in captivity. After an exhaustive search for the white gorilla, Cal asked a zoo employee where the gorilla was. Unfortunately the albino gorilla died in November 2003. This is one of the remaining gorillas.

Barcelona 2004 — Dinner was at a restaurant very close to the hotel. We were the first in the place at a very early 9:00 pm. By 11:00 the place was full. The food was very good - as was the wine. A great way to end the trip.

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