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INTRODUCTION
| WHAT TO SEE | WHEN TO GO
(Art Nouveau) buildings that stud the city’s streets and avenues. Antoni
Gaudí is the most famous of those who have left their mark on Barcelona in
this way: his Sagrada Família church is rightly revered, but just as fascinating
are the (literally) fantastic houses, apartment buildings and parks that he
and his contemporaries designed. The city also boasts a stupendous artistic
legacy, from national (ie Catalan) collections of Romanesque, Gothic and
contemporary art to major
galleries containing the
life’s work of the Catalan
artists Joan Miró and Antoni
Tàpies (not to mention a
celebrated showcase of the
work of Pablo Picasso). Add
a medieval old town – full of pivotal buildings from an earlier age of expan-
sion – a welter of churches and markets, and an encircling belt of parks and
green spaces, and Barcelona demands as much time as you can spare.
For all its go-ahead feel, though, Barcelona does have its problems, not
least a high petty crime rate. However, there’s no need to be unduly
paranoid and it would be a shame to stick solely to the main tourist sights,
since you’ll miss so much. Tapas bars hidden down alleys little changed
for a century or two, designer boutiques in gentrified old town quarters,
street opera singers belting out an aria, bargain lunches in workers’ taverns,
neighbourhood funicular rides, unmarked gourmet restaurants, craft outlets
and workshops,
fin-de-siècle
cafés, restored medieval palaces, suburban walks
and specialist galleries – all are just as much Barcelona as the Ramblas or
Gaudí’s Sagrada Família.
Parc de la Ciutadella
Much of what you’ll want to see in the
city centre – Gothic cathedral, Picasso
museum, Gaudí buildings and art
galleries – can be reached on foot from
the central Plaça Catalunya.