I took a long snooze this morning and following the nice hotel breakfast buffet, took the tram to the conference, where I heard a few good talks. Just after lunch I joined my Notre Dame colleague Prof. Karel Matous, for a nice long tour of Barcelona. We took the subway to the heart of old Barcelona, and commenced at the statue of Christobal Colon. Apparently upon his first return from Hispaniola, Isabella and Fernando had set up court in Barcelona, and he paid his respects here. Here is a statue of CC:
Following this we rambled up La Rambla, which I remember featured in Orwell's "Homage to Catalonia." Here's Karel and me not rambling on La Rambla.
La Rambla is very busy with pedestrians, urchins, and people selling noisemakers. From there we turned right into Barcelona's old city. It sits on the outlines of the Roman city which stood here, and retains its medieval street pattern. This means narrow and winding. Fortunately, the medieval smells and annoyances are no longer with us, but it is easy to get lost. Pictured below is La Catedral, built between 1298 and 1460.
Following more exploring, we found the Placa Reial, which in the 1960s was mainly populated by unfortunate people. Today's occupants seem more optimistic, and it houses a photogenic set of buildings and cafes. We retreated to one and enjoyed sangria and tapas (squid). Here is a photo in the Placa.
The ensuing walk burned off the sangria and brought us to many places including the church of St. Maria del Mar, whose interior is pictured below.
Close by is the Arc de Triomf, shown below.
We then made our way to Antoni Gaudi's Templo Expiatorio de la Sagrada Familia, which I visited Sunday, and for which another shot is featured below.
We then took the subway back to the hotel and had a fine fish dinner nearby. I learned the Barclonians like to rub Garlic, tomato, and olive oil on their robust bread, and we were given lessons on its proper application. The cold melon soup with cold thin bacon was a special treat. I can recommend.
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