I've just got back - completely exhausted after 5 days of exploring the city with Maryon. There is so much to see & do we tended to keep going & mealtimes moved to Spanish time straight away. There is an excellent transport system, but you still do a lot of walking. Getting a taxi to & from the airport was worth it though.
We were based in an apartment in the Barri Gotic which was just off Las Ramblas, so very convenient. Once we dumped our stuff we were off straight away to the Gothic cathedral La Seu & the Museo Picasso. I have seen too many Spanish churches & cathedrals, both in Spain & South America. Picasso is mostly known for his later work, so it was interesting to see how talented he was at a young age & how his very individual style developed.
My bag was stolen the first night from under a table in a restaurant between my leg & a wall. I still cannot comprehend how they did it, but they must have been very quick & skilled. The theft itself is a pain, but the hoops you have to go through afterwards to report it & get a "denuncia" for insurance wastes a lot of time. I lost, keys, money, debit & credit cards, my E111, a new camera & phone......I couldn't get into my suitcase because it was padlocked. So I had to go to an ironmongers on Tuesday & they kindly broke open the padlock.
All of this pales into insignificance compared to sorting out the Nationwide holiday insurance afterwards. I am really disgusted. They say I have to produce receipts for everything, which I don't necessarily have. They also say I wouldn't get the actual value of anything, only what the items are worth now. I really feel that I have been robbed twice. I will have to replace everything I lost which will cost a lot more than the insurers will pay & of course there is the excess. What is the point?
After spending Tuesday morning in the police station we took a bus to Parc Guell, Gaudi's fantasy park in the North of the city. On the way to the station we saw the outside of Palau Guell a mansion designed by Gaudi. It was a lovely day so the views from the park were good. We also took the metro to visit La Pedrera, his apartment building which is a work of art. Most of Gaudi's buildings are now World Heritage sites with very good reason - they are all stunning.
Wednesday we took the Montjuic funicular & the teleferic to the Castell de Montjuic which gave brilliant views over the city. Then we went down to the Fundacio Joan Miro. I have to say that I loved the building designed by Josep - Luis Sert but don't really "get" Miro. We managed to get to the main market, La Boqueria, before it closed. The range & quality of the food is amazing. Everything is displayed very artistically so you want to buy.
Thursday was the Sagrada Familiar which we reached by metro. You can't help be impressed by the vision of the Sagrada. Parts of it, such as the columns like a canopy of Plane trees, are stunning. I personally didn't particularly like the Cubist Passion facade with it's many "Darth Veda" statues. The Nativity facade is less stark. I loved the spires & the coloured baubles on top. The fact that work is still going on after Gaudi's early death in 1927, & will do for years to come, is quite amazing. Unfortunately we couldn't go up the tower to see the view, probably because of the weather which was windy & wet. The other treat on Thursday was Casa Batllo. Gaudi's extraordinary apartment building on the Passeig de Gracia. Gaudi took a dull building and gave it a sinuous face lift.
Friday was our last day & we had to be out of the apartment by 11. We took the cases to Locker Barcelona & made our way to the Museo de la Musica Catalana. Unfortunately we couldn't get in, you have to pre book, because it is another stunning building. I am glad we got to see the outside & a bit of the interior.
On each day we managed to wander the streets & do some shopping. Barcelona is a really good place to shop - shoes, bags, clothes & lots of small individual & interesting shops to browse. On Friday there were several small & interesting markets all over the city. We ended up at the seaside at the Mirador de Colon where we got a taxi to the airport. It really is a great city break & I feel we only scratched the surface.
We were based in an apartment in the Barri Gotic which was just off Las Ramblas, so very convenient. Once we dumped our stuff we were off straight away to the Gothic cathedral La Seu & the Museo Picasso. I have seen too many Spanish churches & cathedrals, both in Spain & South America. Picasso is mostly known for his later work, so it was interesting to see how talented he was at a young age & how his very individual style developed.
My bag was stolen the first night from under a table in a restaurant between my leg & a wall. I still cannot comprehend how they did it, but they must have been very quick & skilled. The theft itself is a pain, but the hoops you have to go through afterwards to report it & get a "denuncia" for insurance wastes a lot of time. I lost, keys, money, debit & credit cards, my E111, a new camera & phone......I couldn't get into my suitcase because it was padlocked. So I had to go to an ironmongers on Tuesday & they kindly broke open the padlock.
All of this pales into insignificance compared to sorting out the Nationwide holiday insurance afterwards. I am really disgusted. They say I have to produce receipts for everything, which I don't necessarily have. They also say I wouldn't get the actual value of anything, only what the items are worth now. I really feel that I have been robbed twice. I will have to replace everything I lost which will cost a lot more than the insurers will pay & of course there is the excess. What is the point?
After spending Tuesday morning in the police station we took a bus to Parc Guell, Gaudi's fantasy park in the North of the city. On the way to the station we saw the outside of Palau Guell a mansion designed by Gaudi. It was a lovely day so the views from the park were good. We also took the metro to visit La Pedrera, his apartment building which is a work of art. Most of Gaudi's buildings are now World Heritage sites with very good reason - they are all stunning.
Wednesday we took the Montjuic funicular & the teleferic to the Castell de Montjuic which gave brilliant views over the city. Then we went down to the Fundacio Joan Miro. I have to say that I loved the building designed by Josep - Luis Sert but don't really "get" Miro. We managed to get to the main market, La Boqueria, before it closed. The range & quality of the food is amazing. Everything is displayed very artistically so you want to buy.
Thursday was the Sagrada Familiar which we reached by metro. You can't help be impressed by the vision of the Sagrada. Parts of it, such as the columns like a canopy of Plane trees, are stunning. I personally didn't particularly like the Cubist Passion facade with it's many "Darth Veda" statues. The Nativity facade is less stark. I loved the spires & the coloured baubles on top. The fact that work is still going on after Gaudi's early death in 1927, & will do for years to come, is quite amazing. Unfortunately we couldn't go up the tower to see the view, probably because of the weather which was windy & wet. The other treat on Thursday was Casa Batllo. Gaudi's extraordinary apartment building on the Passeig de Gracia. Gaudi took a dull building and gave it a sinuous face lift.
Friday was our last day & we had to be out of the apartment by 11. We took the cases to Locker Barcelona & made our way to the Museo de la Musica Catalana. Unfortunately we couldn't get in, you have to pre book, because it is another stunning building. I am glad we got to see the outside & a bit of the interior.
On each day we managed to wander the streets & do some shopping. Barcelona is a really good place to shop - shoes, bags, clothes & lots of small individual & interesting shops to browse. On Friday there were several small & interesting markets all over the city. We ended up at the seaside at the Mirador de Colon where we got a taxi to the airport. It really is a great city break & I feel we only scratched the surface.
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