From modern Barcelona to an ancient Iberian village (Pueblo Iberico) - Part 1

Another of my other favorite day trips out of the city is to the archaeological remains of an ancient Iberian village, today called Puig Castellar, which sits atop Turó del Pollo, a hill overlooking one of Barcelona's neighboring cities: Santa Coloma de Gramenet.

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By simply hopping on the metro and taking a nice walking out of Santa Coloma towards the hills, within a couple of hours you can be walking around the ruins of a 4th Century BC village and taking in magnificent views of the Mediterranean, Santa Coloma, Badalona and Barcelona. Here's the first part of the route:

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An appropriate starting point is Barcelona's Plaza Urquinaona, since it lies at the foot of Via Laietana, the street that takes its name from the ancient Iberian people who inhabited this region thousands of years ago. From here take the Red line of the Metro to the Santa Coloma de Gramenet station. Take the Plaça Vila exit and you will be at the foot of one of the city's main squares, which holds the city hall building. (See photo above.) While none of the sidewalk cafes here are outstanding, most can be counted on to provide pleasant tapas, simple sandwiches and such. I suggest sitting here for a while to soak up the atmosphere and rest up before the next phase of the journey, which involves a walk through narrow neighborhood streets to a broad avenue several blocks away.
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Next head north along quaint little Sant Carles Street, which runs along the west side of the plaza. On this quiet street you can find a tiny art museum, a small park (which holds another sidewalk cafe) a Japanese/Chinese restaurant that seems to be pretty popular (although I've never tried it myself), a little bread shop and many typical residences. Sant Carles ends at Sant Jeroni Street, where you turn to your right, then take an immediate left to go down one block onto Dr. Ferran Street. This street will take you to Pallaresa Avenue, which has a good selection of sidewalk cafes and restaurants lining the southeast side. The avenue itself is so wide that a public park stretches out in between its lanes.

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Named Europa Park, this urban space opened in 1992, the year of the Barcelona Olympics. Extending from the Besos River to the hillsides, it consists of more than 59,000 square meters of greenery, walkways, sport zones and playgrounds. It's a place where people stroll, lie on the grass, do a little exercise or sit on a bench while enjoying the quiet that results from having contained the highway that runs through the neighborhood underground, rather than above ground. There are also some interesting sculptures in the park, including Olympia, a jumble of straight and curvilinear iron pieces, by a Swiss artist named Paul Suter.
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Eventually, you need to head over to the other side of the avenue, where Dr. Ferran Street becomes Puig Castellar Avenue, to begin the uphill walk into the neighborhood below Puig Castellar and the surrounding hills. But this is where I will leave you now and take up again in Part II of my description of this day trip.
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Hasta entonces amig@s,
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Carloz

An Introduction to the Barcelona City History Museum

For only 5 euros it is possible to visit the excellent Barcelona City History Museum (Museo de la Historia de la Ciudad / Museu d'Història de la Ciutat). In fact, the museum is actually six different museums, which makes the admission price an incredible bargain -- less than a euro a museum! The six museums that the one ticket admits you to are:

1. The Monumental Ensemble of King's Plaza (Conjunto Monumental de La Plaza del Rey / Conjunt Monumental de la Plaça del Rei), located in the Gothic quarter at the corner of Pl. del Rei and c/ del Verguer.

2. The Saint Catherine Archaeologiacal Interpretation Site (Espacio Arqueológico de Interpretación de Santa Caterina / Espai Arqueològic d'Interpretació de Santa Caterina), located in the Saint Catherine Public Market on Pl. Joan Capri, which is just a few blocks from Pl. del Rei.

3. Air Raid Shelter 307 - Historical Interpretation Center (Refugio Antiaéreo 307 - Centro de Interpretación Historico / Refugi Antiaeri 307 - Centre d'Interpretación Històrica), dating from the Spanish Civil War and located at Nou de las Ramblas 169 at the base of Montjuic Hill.

4. The Park Güell Interpretation Center (Centro de Interpretación del Parque Güell / Cebtre d'Interpretacío del Park Güell), located in a pavilion at the entrance to the Gaudí designed Park Güell on c/ Olot.

5. Museum-Monastery of Pedralbes (Museo-Monasterio de Pedralbes / Museu-Monestir de Pedralbes), located at Baixada del Monestir 9, in the Northwestern corner of the city.

6. The Verdaguer Museum-House (Museo-Casa Verdaguer / Museu-Casa Verdaguer), located at Carreterra de l'Església 104 in the Collserola Natural Woodland Park in the hills in the North of the city.

The museum was established in 1943. Originally it consisted mostly of the archaeological site at Pl. del Rei and a collection of items that had been displayed at the 1929 World's Fair City of Barcelona Pavilion. Over the years its collection has increased through donations, bequests, acquisitions and discoveries from various archaeological excavations. Today the collection is so large that it cannot be shown in its entirety. It is made up of items dating from from the Neolithic age to today and includes:

• gold and silver work, stone objects, glass objects, stone and marble sculptures, coins, buttons, medals, objects from trade guilds, cloth, fans, sculptures, carvings, educational objects, models, tools, weapons, municipal symbols, measuring devices, architectural material, furniture, small decorative and commemorative objects, etc. ;
• pottery (bowls, oil containers, jars, water jugs, pitchers, amphorae, etc.);
• Roman portraits, mosaics, tombstones, milestones, etc., mainly from excavations carried out in the Roman city walls;
• Roman and Hebrew epigraphs;
• Gothic altarpieces, paintings, wall-paintings, drawings, engravings, etc.
• books, documents, letters, etc., written in languages such as Latin, Hebrew, Arabic, Spanish and Catalan;

In the coming months, I will write posts about the museums in this amazing system that I have had the pleasure of visiting.

Hasta entonces amig@s,

Carloz

From the seaside to the hillside - Part 3 (Vallvidrera)

In my opinion, Vallvidrera, which is perched on the crest of the Collserola hills above Barcelona, is one of the city's loveliest neighborhoods. To get there, I usually take the FGC from Plaza Cataluña. (FGC stands for Ferrocarrils de la Generalitat de Catalunya, which is the name of the Catalonian government railway system. Within the city, FGC trains run underground, but outside the city they climb out into the light. Barcelona's transportation system is completely integrated as far as fares and tickets go. So, a pass for the metro is also a pass for the FGC.)
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Directly in front of Café Zurich are two entrances to the underground Metro and FGC stations. From either of these two entrances one can enter the FGC station. To get to Vallvidrera take any FGC train except the one to Av. Tibidabo. There are television screens throughout the station indicating when and from which track the next train leaves. Since there are trains leaving every few minutes, it's usually possible to hop on a train immediately. I've never had to wait more than about 5 minutes.
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After a short ride, it is necessary to get off the train at the Peu del Funicular station and transfer to the modern little funicular that goes up to Vallvidrera. This funicular station is located in an area known as Lower Vallvidrera (Vallvidrera Inferior). The transfer is easy and fast at this little open-air station; and the ride up the hill, in metal and glass cable cars manufactured in Switzerland, offers some excellent views of the city and sea below. The best views are from the seats in the back of the car.
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The funicular's hours are 4:30am to 12:15am weekdays and 5:30am to 12:45am weekends and public holidays. Cars run every 6 minutes on weekdays and every 10 to 15 minutes on weekends and public holidays.
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Although one wouldn't know it from the sleekly contemporary appearance of the Peu de Funicular station and cable cars, this line has been in operation since 1906, when the rail line was extended from Sarrià to Lower Vallvidrera. It wasn't until 1998 that the funicular was converted into the totally automated system it is today.
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There is only one stop between Lower and Upper Vallvidrera: the tiny Carretera de las Aguas (Water Road) station. At this stop it is common to see hikers and bicyclers getting out. However, I usually prefer to ride to the top and then walk down to the Carretera.
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Next comes Upper Vallvidrera and a fantastic remnant of the 1906 line -- the modernist art nouveau Vallvidrera Superior station. Walking around this little jewel of a station, with its voluptuously curved windows and entrance, is like stepping back in time to the era of Gaudi. Constructed in 1905, the station was designed by the architect Bonaventura Conill i Montobbio, who who designed a good number of the buildings in Vallvidrera. Make sure to visit the viewing platform at the back of the station's lobby.
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From here it is possible to take a city minibus (line 111) to the top of Mount Tibidabo, where a large church sits on top of an amusement park overlooking the city. Since Vallvidrera is actually surrounded by the protected Collserola Natural Park, it is also a great place to start off for a hike in the woody hills. Before doing anything else, however, get to know this quaint little neighborhood a bit.
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The earliest known reference to Vallvidrera appeared in 987, in a document referring to the church of Santa Maria de Vallvidrera and a Gothic style church by that name was built between 1540 and 1587, and is located in what today is the park of Collserola. In the 14th century the "parish" became a "civil jurisdiction." In 1892, what was then the town of Vallvidrera was annexed by the town of Sarrià, which was then annexed by Barcelona in 1921.
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Despite this long history, major urban development didn't begin in Vallvidrera until the second half of the 19th century, when the characteristics of the area a¡changed from that of a village to a location for summer homes of the increasingly prosperous citizens of Barcelona. A "modern" road was not built to link it with the city until 1888, when the Vallvidrera to Tibidabo roadway was constructed. In 1901 a tram was inaugurated to link Barcelona, Tibidabo and Vallvidrera. In 1906 the funicular connected the area with Sarria. At this time Vallvidrera became a popular summer residence for wealthy Barcelonans. Today it is a handsome residential neighborhood with the characteristics of a small, prosperous town.
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Directly across from the funicular station is Plaza Pep Ventura. Walking around the little square and the streets surrounding it, one is surrounded by superb views. Walk to one side of the plaza and gaze over the tiled roofs of lovely little houses out onto the green valley below and the Montserrat massif looming in the west. Most of the houses date to the early 1900s, as can be observed by the years inscriptions on the gables. (One house even has a Catalan poem inscribed on it!)
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Head to the the east along C/ de Queralt, which changes from a street to a series of pedestrian steps. Look between the houses to the left for some great vies of the city. At the foot of the steps you will find the main square of the neighborhood, Plaza de Vallvidrera. Stop in at for a coffee and a sandwich at Bar Josean, which has a back sitting room with an incredible view of Barcelona and the Mediterranean. Nearby, the Can Trampa restaurant doesn't offer much of a view but is a good little spot for lunch or dinner. The plaza also hosts a modernist style wine and cheese shop, as well as a bread shop and a convenience store. One block to the north is the Mercado del Vallvidrera at C/ dels Reis Catolics 2, which sadly is set to close.
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Walk back to Pl. Pep Ventura along C/ de les Alberes for more fantastic views of the valley leading to Montserrat. Once back at the Plaza, walk up the "street" stairs of C/ dels Algarves. More lovely houses, this time a mix of old and new, will lead you to the Hotel Vallvidrera, dating from the 1900s. Today it is a well maintained senior citizens' residence. It is easy to imagine what the place must have looked lime in its heyday.
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At this point C/ dels Algarves rejoins C/ de les Alberes. Continue east along Alberes a bit and on the right you will find a steep "stair street" called Escales del Font del Mont carved into the side of the hill. This is one of the ways to reach the Carretera de la Aguas (Water Road) below. At the bottom of the stairs take a right on Torrent de la font del Mont and walk down until it ends at the Carretera de las Aguas. Once you reach this gravel road, head to the left and walk for about 10 minutes to find yourself in a peaceful wooded area overlooking the panorama of the city and the sea. Breathe in the fresh air, have a seat on one of the benches built alongside the road, walk through the trees above the road -- in other words, relax.
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When you are ready to return to the buzz of the city below, head back in the direction you came, and after about a 5 minute walk beyond the entrance to Torrent de la Font del Mont, where you entered the road, you will find the Carretera de las Aguas (Water Road) funicular station. On the ride down you can enjoy one more glimpse of Barcelona stretching from the hillside to the seaside.
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Carloz

From the seaside to the hillside - Part 2 (Plaza Cataluña)

Once at Plaza Urquinaona, the center of Barcelona, Plaza Cataluña, is only a block away. And it is from here that the trip from the seaside to the hillside continues.

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Plaza Cataluña (or Plaça Catalunya in Catalan; Catalonia Square in English) covers 50,000 square meters (162,500 square feet) and dates from the end of the 19th century, when the medieval wall surrounding the old city was torn down. Since then it has been the site of everything from a circus at the turn of the century, to gun battles during the Spanish civil war, to political gatherings during the democratic transition, to crowds of tourists in recent years. Along with people from all over the world, it is usually packed with pigeons, sight seeing buses, city buses and taxis. There are also plenty of motor scooters and bicycles parked all around the square. During Barcelona's many fiestas there are often live musical performances held in the plaza, with the square jam packed with revelers. Unfortunately, purse snatchers and pick pockets are often around also.

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People walk through or sit on one of the many benches in and around the square or even lie down on the grass under the fountain and sunbathe! There are only about four sidewalk cafes / restaurants (e.g., Cafe Zurich, Cafe Catalunya, Hard Rock Cafe's terrace and Farggi Ice Cream) and none of them would I recommend for much besides the people watching.

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However, I understand that before the civil war Plaza Cataluña was quite a hotbed of theater and cafe life. No theaters have survived and the only cafe that remains from those days is the Cafe Zurich. It is still a popular meeting spot, but don't go there hoping to glimpse a bit of history, as it has been completely rebuilt to suit the El Triangle shopping center that was built around it.

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For a great aerial view of the plaza, go to the restaurant at the top of El Corte Inglés department store. Food and drinks are not too pricey and if you manage to get a window seat the views are unequaled.

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There is a large ceramic star embedded in the center of the square, which is supposed to mark the center of Barcelona. There is also a large water fountain, some neo-classical sculptures and the ugly, indeed almost scary-looking, monument to former regional president Francesc Macia. (The top of this sculpture looks like it might topple over onto the bust of Macia at any moment. The creator of this modern monstrosity is Subirachs.)

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Sitting in the reflecting pool behind the monument is a statue with an interesting history. It is “La Diosa” (La Deessa in Catalan, The Goddess in English), which was sculpted by Josep Clara (1878-1958) between 1908 and 1910. It depicts a nude woman bathing herself. In the early 20th century it was deemed obscene by the then dictator Primo de Rivera and therefore was removed during his rule. (I'm sure he must be spinning in his grave at how much Spain has changed -- now real women and men bathe nude at beaches!)

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In the plaza there is also an attractive little statue by Pablo Gargallo (1881-1934) -- El Pastor de La Flauta (Shepherd with Flute). This is actually a reproduction of the original, which stood here from 1927 to 1986. The original is now in the Pablo Gargallo museum in Zaragoza to protect it from environmental damage.

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Another statue overlooks the square from on high, this one from the face of the building at number 21. (The Hard Rock Cafe is in the same building.) I do not know the history of this statue, but like to think of him as the legendary medieval knight Roland. (Rolando in Spanish, Rotllà in Catalan.) Roland's legend, so significant throughout Europe that most cities have a statue of him, is given a unique twist in Cataluña, where he is often portrayed as a giant in local fiestas.

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Some of the more notable architecture includes the Banco Español de Credito from 1941, the Telefonica building, from 1928, and the Banco de España building from 1948. Walk along the Northeastern side of this building and you can look up to find a guardian angel looking down on you. Sculpted by Madrid artist Angel Ferrant y Vazquez (1890-1961), it commemorates the legend that an angel appeared to Saint Vincent Ferrer (1350-1419) as he stood near this spot outside one of the ancient city gates and reassured him that Barcelona would always be protected by God.

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While you're there, you must stop in next door at one of the best -- and best priced -- ice cream parlors / sweet shops in town, Planelles - Donat. Aside from incredibly delicious ice cream, shakes, chilled drinks and hot drinks, this gourmet shop, which has been in business since the end of the 19th century, also makes and sells its own brand of two very popular Spanish treats -- horchata and turrón. Horchata is a creamy cold drink made from tiger nuts. Turrón is a chunky candy bar filled with nougat and nuts.

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Back at Plaza Cataluña, two of the most prominent edifices are modern buildings -- the El Triangle shopping center and the large El Corte Inglés department store. El Triangle houses various stores, including the large FNAC book/music/electronics store and the aforementioned Zurich Cafe. El Corte Inglés is similar to Macy's, except that like other European department stores, it has a supermarket in the basement. Since it bought out the Spanish division of Marks and Spencer, El Corte Inglés is just about the only department store chain in Spain.

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Protruding from the stark Southeastern side of El Corte Inglés is the ornate remnant of a window from the building that once stood there. The intricate facade depicts several women playing musical instruments, including a drum, an accordion and a flute. I suppose it was just to pretty to demolish along with the rest of the building and, so, it hangs there, "en memoriam."

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To me, the most captivating structure on the square is the one I have not been able to discover much about: the Catalana Occidental Insurance building on the corner of Paseo de Gracia and Ronda San Pedro. This castle like structure dates from the end of the 19th century and today houses offices and apartments. I have learned that it was financed by banker and politician Manuel Girona Agrafel (1818-1905) and was originally called "La Sud America." (If anyone knows anything about the history of this building, please leave a comment.)

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Several important commercial streets converge on Plaza Cataluña: Rambla Cataluña, Las Ramblas, Paseo de Gracia, Puerta del Angel, Ronda San Pedro, Ronda Universidad and Calle Pelayo. (In Catalan, these are all: Rambla Catalunya, Las Ramblas, Passeig de Gracia, Portal de l'Angel, Ronda Sant Pere, Ronda Universitat and Carrer Pelai.) All of these streets make the area a shopper's paradise.

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In addition, there is a lot of life under the plaza, including the main City of Barcelona Tourist Information Center, two metro lines (the Green and Red lines), a Spanish rail (Renfe) station, a Catalan rail (Ferrocarril) station and a few little cafes, shops and newsstands accompanying them.

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To get to our hillside destination, we will head under Plaza Catalunya to take the Ferrocarril. More to come in Part 3.

From the seaside to the hillside - Part 1 (Via Laietana)

Some of my favorite routes to follow in Barcelona extend from the seafront, where I live, to the hills that surround the city. There are several to choose from, but today I will write about the beginning of a journey I regularly take, and in fact took this past weekend, with a friend: from Barceloneta up to the hills and back.
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The first part of the journey goes from Barceloneta to Plaza Cataluña, and includes one of my favorite inner-city trajectories – traveling up Via Laietana. I initially started going this way to bypass the throngs of tourists that normally clog Las Ramblas. However, I quickly came to appreciate it for other reasons.
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Named after the Bronze age Laietani tribes that inhabited the region, Via Laietana is a straight road that was built in 1907 to cut through the old town and link the city's seaside with the growing neighborhood called the Extension (Ensanche in Spanish; Eixample in Catalan) dating from the latter half of the previous century.
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It is usually a very busy street, but with it's wide sidewalks, four lanes and proximity to so much history, it is a good one for a stroll or a bicycle ride. Via Laietnana is also anchored by two rather nice urban plazas: the airy Pl. Antonio Lopez at the end nearest the sea and the tree-lined Pl. Urquinaona near the city center.
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Pl. Antonio Lopez is across from what was once the city's port and is now a yacht basin. Here you will find the striking “Correos” building – Barcelona's main post office, which was erected in 1926/27. (On one side of this building is Que Bo, the great little sandwich shop I wrote of previously.)
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By simply walking around this square that stretches over two blocks, you can glimpse the medieval edges of the old town, structures from the 18th century, buildings from the years just before the Spanish civil war and one very bright spot from the late 20th century – Roy Liechtenstein's comic book colored “Barcelona Head” statue.
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On the other hand, Pl. Urquinaona is a more closed-in square with many shade trees, quite a few comfortable park benches and bordered by shops, cafes, restaurants as well as by multiple Metro station entrances. (The Metro station is also known as Urquinaona. The unusual sounding name is from an Andalusian who was bishop of Barcelona in the 1800s.)
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One of the interesting aspects of Via Laietana is its collection of early 20th century architecture -- mostly banks, government offices, guilds and other institutional buildings. The street offers a mix of styles: Art Nouveau / Modernist, Neo-Gothic, Rationalist, etc. This line up occasionally breaks open to reveal a little of Barcelona's Roman, Gothic and Medieval history just a few feet behind it.
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At least one pre-20th century building can be found on the avenue itself. This is “Casa de Veler” at number 50, which dates from 1758. Today it is the home of the Federación Nacional de Empresarios Textiles Sederos. (National Federation of Silk Textile Employers.)
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Right next to it, but not actually on Via Laietana, is the much more well known Palau de la Musica an incredible Art Nouveau structure dating from 1905. Today it is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, a very popular tourist attraction and an actual concert hall.
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Back on Via Laietana, this time at number 80, you will find the impressive Caja de Pensiones building (pictured above), constructed in 1917. It looks rather cathedral-like, with it's white Neo-Gothic facade, but it is in fact home to Spain's most popular savings bank, La Caixa. A few other sites along the avenue include:

• Pl. Antoni Maura, located at about numbers 37 and 42, is where Av. De la Catedral and Av. Francesc Cambo face each other. Despite being called “Avenues” these are actually two very spacious plazas. Av de la Catedral is the square where Barcelona's Cathedral stands; whereas Av. Francesc Cambo is a square holding a colorful and recently renovated public market, Santa Caterina;


• Pl. Ramon Berenguer, at about number 29, has a recessed green area with a few benches tucked beneath a remnant of Barcelona's Roman wall;


• Pl. del Angel, at about number 25, borders an ancient little street named Llibreteria, which was at one time the road that connected Barcelona and Rome.

Really, there is tons more to see on, and around, Via Laietana, so it is a great place to invest time in. Aside from all the sites and activities, it is also such a wide open street that it is a good vantage point to observe that Barcelona rises from the sea to the hills. The breadth, width and incline of the avenue combine with the grand looking architecture to provide pleasing views during a walk or a bike ride – whether it's just passing through, as I do when I head out on one of my jaunts up the into the hills, or for a more leisurely look at the obvious and not so obvious treasures along the way.
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Well, I haven't gotten very far -- not even past the city center! -- but soon I'll tell you about the rest of one of my favorite routes to the hills.