My first look at Barcelona was not exactly a great one. We arrived in Barcelona early on a rainy afternoon, having flown from Atlanta overnight with a change of planes in Amsterdam. A huge crowd of striking/picketing airport workers greeted all arriving passengers with angry signs and lots of noise! Not exactly a peaceful first impression, but it was exciting for the taxi drivers to have to wend their way out of the airport area. Glad I wasn't driving.
Barcelona is the capital of the Catalunya (Catalonia) area of Spain, and Catalan is the predominant language. It is Latin-based, and seemed to have many elements of both Spanish and French. This region is the richest in Spain, and the history of the city and its relationship to the rest of Spain is both interesting and stormy.
Our Intercontinental Princessa Sofia hotel was in the Les Corts area of the city, a modern shopping/business district near the end of Avinguda Diagonal. Although it was not in the historic area, (about a 15 minute subway ride downtown) the hotel was only a couple of blocks from the Maria Christina Metro (subway) station, and the sidewalk to the station was lined with aromatic orange trees. We arrived at the hotel and got checked in with no problem, even though it was in the early afternoon.
We were unpacked and out for a walk by 2:00 pm. This time is critical, because we quickly found that all banks in Barcelona close at 2:00. We had just missed the closing! Therefore, we had to find an alternate source for exchanging some money. We found an ATM in the El Corte Ingles (a major department store) across the street from the Metro station. It worked just like at home, except giving me Euros, which of course is what we needed. We bought a tarjeta multiviaj (a ticket that allowed for 10 trips) for the metro. It was much cheaper than buying individual tickets, and we shared the one tarjeta, passing it back and forth as we went through the turnstiles. We hopped on the Metro and rode downtown to Las Rambla, the number one tourist area of Barcelona, exiting at the Drassanes stop. (Metro Green line L3 from Maria Christina to Drassanes)
The Drassanes stop put us right at the Columbus Monument that overlooks the harbor at Barcelona. Behind the Monument is Las Rambla, a one-mile long, tree-lined avenue. Along the avenue is a hodge-podge of street vendors selling flowers, birds, coffee and everything in between. We found the atmosphere invigorating. We strolled up the street to the Placa de Catalunya, a large plaza with fountains, at the opposite end. Although we had read about the great restaurants in the city, we suddenly found ourselves not particularly hungry. (Guess it was jetlag, because I am ALWAYS ready to eat!) So, we stopped at a tapas bar on the Passeig de Gracia, about three blocks from the Placa de Catalunya for an early, light dinner. This little bar had dozens of delectable little appetizers to select from, and good beer to wash it down. Needless to say, the jetlag really set in after the food and beer, so we called it a night and caught the metro back to the hotel.
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