la barceloneta beach

a view of barceloneta beach from one of the cube-rock jetties

c/ ferran

c/ ferran is another of barcelona's busy and touristy streets, though not as well known as its neighbors las ramblas or passeig de gracia. ferran connects las ramblas at metro liceu with laietana at metro jaume i. if you have to make the connection from the green to yellow metro lines, i recommend skipping the long hot underground switch at passeig de gracia (if you have an unlimited pass) and just taking a leisurely stroll from liceu to jaume i.

ferran is lined with shops, restaurants, and an entrance to plaça reial. there is a leather shop that always has very nice wares on display in the window and even a pet store with puppies! my favorite gelato shop in the whole world is also on this street, and you can get absolutely delicious gelato for much cheaper than some of the other nearby shops, despite the convenient location. it's called lato gelato. try the rich rich rich chocolate and the wonderful banana. i wanted to link to another online review, but there is absolutely nothing online, so you'll have to find it on your own as i don't remember the address. it's on the north (as in the side farthest from the sea) side of ferran near las ramblas!

also, if you are on an extreme budget and/or a vegetarian and cannot cook for yourself, you can get a falafel at pita inn (right near lato gelato) on this street for 1.99. i know a lot of people are loyal to maoz, a hipper and flashier shop on las ramblas, but pita inn serves up nearly the same product for half the price (though it completely lacks the atmosphere and...cleanliness). as an added incentive, pita inn often lacks the late night, well, questionable clientele that maoz seemed to attract around closing, due to its location near the dark alleys around la boqueria. not a threatening crowd, but you'll see what i mean if you find yourself there past 1am.

if you're in barcelona for a short while and are looking for a good walk through the city, I'd recommend starting at plaça catalunya, walking down las ramblas, taking a left on ferran, crossing laeitana and making a slight left onto c/ de l'argenteria, passing the church of santa maria del mar and making a u-turn at the end of passeig del born, you'll have a nice little intro to some of barcelona's big stops! even better, keep this route as your base route, and wander off course if you can amongst the streets of the ciutat vella. as long as you can find the big streets, you'll never be too far from the metro. in the next post i'll go over some must-do's, must-tastes, and must buys along the rough route just mentioned.

restaurant set portes

this restaurant is well-known among locals and tourists alike for its catalan cuisine and its famous clientele. in the past, celebrities and political figures such as che guevara, errol flynn, joan miró, pele, loud reed, pablo picasso, and salvador dalí have dined beneath the restaurant's frilly peach lampshades. now very popular with tourists, the restaurant serves up paellas and other classic spanish fare, often with waits out the door. i don't like paella, it's generally too salty for my taste with too many little mysterious fish-related pieces in it, but set portes has a "paella parellada" which has all the meat and seafood deboned and shelled, which is convenient for those people who are creeped out by antennae and shell bits. i still was not too much of a fan (take that with a grain of salt as i rarely am when it comes to paella), but what i did love were the seafood canelons (canelloni) and the "espinacs amb panses i pinyons
a la catalana," catalan style spinach with pine nuts and sultanas (turkish white raisins). they were both delightful, and were much less expensive than a large paella. the restaurant is open from 13:00 to 1:00 without interruption (that's 1pm to 1am) and does have a line out the door during peak hours. definitely not my favorite restaurant in all of barcelona, but if you are looking for an old time catalan experience in a slightly frilly environment, i would call this the place.

la barceloneta

rebecca horn's "homentage a la barceloneta" on the beach in la barceloneta

la mercé

a tiny picture from la mercé

sagrada familia

some more windows, seen from inside sagrada familia

montserrat

a viewpoint at montserrat, near the tables of sweets and nuts for sale. pick up some delicious candied almonds if you have a chance.

c/ de guillem tell

a residential street in the eastern side of gracia

a little castellera

the top-tier, or enxaneta, of one of the la merce castelles, climbing back down to the ground. Here are some more facts on the tower arrangement.

creatures

more animals for sale on las ramblas

un perrito

a cute little dog standing guard in front of the wine shop near the entrance to la boqueria.

three little boats

some little pink sailboats at the beach at tossa de mar.

la pedrera

a barcelona classic, right on passeig de gracia. these are some of the sculptured chimneys on top of the roof. much of the building, including the attic and roof, are accessible, and a lot of the pretty rooms are filled with period furniture as it would have been seen in its time. there's a fee to get in, but if the sky is blue, it's worth it for the rooftop photo ops alone. too cheap? the awesome bookstore downstairs is free for all to access, but you should really head over to vinçon, a greeeaaattt store right nearby. the second story, which houses their furniture department, is in an old beautiful house with windows, ceilings, and stellar fireplaces all intact. even if you do make it into la pedrera (also known as casa mila), you should stop here after for a look around and a souvenir. their kitchen wares department is awesome. i came home with a pair of chick-shaped salt and pepper shakers, though the house-shaped incense burner they keep near the register was my favorite item in the place.

barceloneta beach

a typical day on the beach in barceloneta, late summer 2006. note the varying degrees of undress present. it can be a little shocking for visitors from the u.s. and other countries not accustomed to toplessness. the sand is coarse in a good way, the kind with grains big enough to brush off yourself and your stuff easily, but not so big to classify them as pebbles, not even close. but it will stain your towel if it's damp. the water is warm and the surf is small. it's all around delightful.

cava factory

the bottling portion of the freixenet cava tour.

sitges

a quiet little street in the gay-friendly beach resort town of sitges. you can get there in less than an hour from plaça catalunya on a train, and it's a nice little change of pace during the summer. they also have a horror film fest in october, and a fun looking carnaval. here's a little video.

the funicular to tibidabo

view up the tracks to tibidabo from the funicular station

montserrat

another nice view from montserrat.

palau nacional

now home of museu nacional d'art de catalunya, this impressive castle sits up on a hill overlooking placa espanya and the font magica.

una ventana

an apartmnet window on c/ cervantes near plaça sant jaume, seen from hostal sol y k.