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Barcelona Attractions

Barcelona Cathedral
Plaça de la Seu

Work began on this Gothic cathedral in 1298, but wasn’t completed till late 19th century. The main façade was finished in 1889, while the central spire concluded the building in 1913. The current cathedral is the third church to stand on this site, and parts of the original church can be seen in the Museu d’Història de la Cuitat. Highlights in the cathedral include the 15th century choir stalls which feature the coats of arms of the 12 knights of the Order of Toisón del Oro, which were the Barcelona chapter of the Order of the Golden Fleece. The patron saint of Barcelona, Santa Eulàlia is buried in the crypt, and in the cloister can be found 13 geese which are reputed to represent the age of Eulàlia at her martyrdom.

 

La Sagrada Família
Carrer de Mallorca 401

The famous architect Gaudí started on the project of building a Neo-Gothic church in 1883, a year after it had started. Over 100 years later, the building hasn’t finished with the planned highest tower designed to be half as tall again as the towers already in place. The most visited monument in Spain, la Sagrada Família became Gaudí’s personal passion for which he contributed his own funds and helped seek donors to the cause. The Nativity Façade is the most complete part, finished in 1904 and involving two doorways featuring Faith, Hope and Charity. In 1936, much of the church and many of the plans, models and workshops, were destroyed by anarchists. Work began again in 1952 after the Civil War, and continues today funded by the public.
 

Museu Picasso
Carrer de Montcada 15-23

Opened in 1963, the museum has extended and now incorporates five medieval mansions. Two of these are dedicated to temporary exhibitions, while the permanent collection contains over 3000 pieces and focuses on Picasso’s formative years. These include paintings from when Picasso was only 15 or 16, such as The First Communion 1896 and Science and Charity 1897. The most famous pieces are the series of 58 paintings based on Velázquez’s Las Meninias. The museum was founded after Picasso’s friend Jaume Sabartés donated his collection, and Picasso himself donated many pieces after Sabartés’ death.
 

La Rambla

The mile long, pedestranised boulevard leads down to the sea front and is probably one of the most famous avenues in the world. It follows the course of a dried-up seasonal river that ran along side the 13th century city wall. On the other bank, churches, convents and the university were built, which have given their names to sections of the road. It is often known as Les Rambles because of the way the five differently named sections make up the avenue. Nowadays it is a lively, bustling place with many cafes, restaurants and kiosks enticing passer-bys, while there is often entertainment by living statues, pavement and mime artists. Buildings of interest include the Gran Teatre del Liceu, which is the opera house that has had to be restored twice after fires in 1861 and 1994.
 

Park Güell
Carrer d’Olot 7

Another project of Gaudí’s, this one involved him turning to landscape gardening. Count Eusabi Güell commissioned Gaudí to create a garden city in which plots of land could be sold to the wealthy, with the potential for 60 houses. It was a commercial failure, but the park became public in 1922. Since then it has been awarded UNESCO World Heritage Site status, and is an impressive display of Gaudí’s imagination. The Room of a Hundred Columns is actually held up by 84 pillars and was intended to be the market area. Near here, is the iconic mosaic model of a lizard/dragon, of which souvenir replicas can be bought throughout the city.
 

Olympic Stadium
Avinguda de l’Estadi

Part of the Anella Olímpica (Olympic Ring) which are the buildings put in place for the Olympics held by Barcelona in 1992, the Estadi Olímpic is the result of a renovation of a stadium opened in 1929. The city’s second football team Espanyol had their home here until they moved to Cornellà in 2006. At the south side of the stadium, can be found the Galería Olímpica where there is an exhibition on the 1992 games. To the west of the stadium is Palau Sant Jordi indoor arena which was designed by Arata Isozaki, and has a capacity of 17,000.
 

Museu Nacional d’Art de Catalunya
Parc de Montjuïc, Palau Nacional

The Palau Nacional was built for the 1929 World Exhibition, has housed art galleries since 1934. Restored in 2005, there is an impressive collection of mainly Catalan art ranging from the early Middle Ages to the 20th century. The display of Romanesque art is probably one of the greatest in the world, and centres around 12th century frescoes taken from Catalan Pyrenean churches.
 

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