Destinations

BARCELONA IS FOR lovers … lovers of music, architecture, art, food,fashion and an exquisite display of treasures from the past.

I stayed at the Casanova Hotel, which put me in the mood for love from day one. Day two, three and beyond did nothing but improve my mood. The hotel is centrally located within walking distance of the Plaza Catalunia. Barcelona is a heaven for the lovers of great food at reasonable prices. This city has one of my favorite restaurants in the entire world, Los Caracoles. It’s reputation was started by serving heaping platefuls of snails. I remember eating them there 50 years ago,costing 20 cents for a full plate. It costs a lot more now and the Los Caracoles menu has expanded to include exquisite continental food of every description.

For lovers of bike riding, Barcelona is one of the greatest cities to visit on two wheels. A program of hop-on-hop-off bicycles is a recent innovation. The city is blanketed with bike racks filled with bikes for the taking. It’s called bike sharing. For the cost of what you’d pay to ride a bus, you can get an electronic card that entitles you to help yourself to any available bike at the computerized bike stands. The bright red almost new bikes are kept in top condition for maneuvering the mostly flat streets.

For those who would just as soon not pedal around the city, Barcelona’s metro subway system is easy to negotiate, even if you don’t speak Spanish.  This city has become the playground for the British, so English is widely spoken. For those who would rather take a taxi, you can get to almost any point in the central district for about $6.

Lovers of architecture can find examples scattered throughout the city. Look for the charming structures of Barcelona’s prince of building design, Antoni Gaudi. He was the flag bearer of the late 9th-century Modernista movement, so beloved that he was made a saint. His 10 structures, with their sense of tremendous exuberance and playfulness,is led by Gaudi’s Sagrada Familia Church. Gaudi’s work easily is one of the city’s top tourist attractions. Seeing this church of dripping concrete is a must.

This is a great time to visit. Barcelona is the financial capital of Spain but its economy is in the doldrums. It is experiencing the same crisis that happened in America. Housing was greatly overbuilt and the bubble burst. Dried-up credit has the Catalans wincing. Unemployment is running in the double digits. And Americans with dollars see welcome signs everywhere in the form of bargains.

Those who love the distinctive music and dance of the Catalans, don’t fail to enjoy the free show and concert put on every Sunday in front of Barcelona’s Cathedral. The locals come out in their Sunday finery to hold hands in a circle as they wait for the mainly flute and woodwind music to begin. What follows is a joy to watch.

Those who love people watching, the pedestrian mall is a primo attraction. Las Ramblas extends from the Plaza Catalunia for a half mile to the Mediterranean water’s edge. The wide street of Las Ramblas is lined with restaurants, flower stalls and shops. What has to be the biggest collection of Mimes, some in the most elaborate and even outlandish outfits, are scattered all along Las Ramblas. It’s a photo opportunity that is unique.

Barcelona is the gateway to the Mediterranean and Norwegian Cruise line has established it as its home port. Other cruise lines also operate from the city’s new cruise terminal, making the city a wonderful starting and ending point for a Mediterranean cruise. For design and convenience, this cruise terminal ranks among the world’s best.

It’s easy to fall in love with this town. It captures the flavor of Spain more so than any of the country’s other cities. And, it’s a great location to enjoy following a cruise on the Mediterranean.

Ed Arnow writes travel columns for the Contra Costa Times, the Oakland Tribune and three other San Francisco East Bay daily newspapers. He can be reached at Brentwoodbuzz@aol.com

2 Responses to “BARCELONA IS FOR lovers …”

1. Hoffmann Says:
   January 24th, 2010 at 11:07 am

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2. marie Demmel Says:
   February 13th, 2010 at 6:10 am

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