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Barcelona, the capital of Catalonia is one of the most popular weekend destinations in Europe. My itinerary is not perfect for all, but may serve as an inspiration for some.
Places to see
The tree-lined pedestrian street of La Rambla is easily the most visited and recognizable street in Barcelona. It stretches 1.2 kilometres from Plaça de Catalunya in the centre down to the sea. It is often called by its plural name of Las Ramblas as it is a series of smaller streets in a straight line. In fact there are also other Ramblas in Barcelona, like Rambla del Raval running parallel to the main one.
Anyway, the street life on La Rambla is definitely a highlight, day and night, and so are the sights at the harbour end. There we find the Mare Magnum shopping and entertainment mall and the aquarium. The beach is next to it (some would say it is the best city beach in the world) and the Zoo (especially nice to visit if you have children with you).
A sightseeing walk in Barcelona certainly involves the side streets to La Rambla as well. Facing the sea we found the left (east) side most intriguing. Indeed, so do most visitors. This area of squares and narrow streets is called Barri Gòtic in Catalan (The Gothic Quarter) and is the old part of Barcelona.
In the early morning we had a great experience in the fresh food market of Mercat de la Boqueria. This is not to be missed.
It you’re not so interested in food or street life Barcelona must be heaven for architecture buffs. I found some interesting objects just by walking the streets, as is shown in my photo album.
Looking for Antoni Gaudí architecture
And then there’s Gaudí of course.
Ten works of Antoni Gaudí are World Heritage Sites by UNESCO. We took a closer look at four of them: La Sagrada Familia, Parc Güell, Casa Batlló and Casa Mila, all pictured below.
Yes, football!
Finally, our weekend visit to Barcelona would not be complete without a match at the Camp Nou, home field of football (més que un) club Barcelona. And of course they won the match.
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I used this guidebook:
I made these videos:
I took these pictures:
