The tainted city, watch your pockets!
| Holiday Ratings | |
| Recommended days | 3 |
| Budget | £ |
| Difficulty | Easy |
I have rated Barcelona £ for costs but, if you fall victim to mugging like I did then it’s probably ££. The city is tainted for me and I wouldn’t return. This Barcelona city break certainly covered a wider range of experiences than normal with a mugging and a few hours in a police station!
Our Accomodation
Well, we had a very rushed, but eventful, tour of Barcelona this weekend. We arrived early afternoon Saturday and, after checking in at the Hotel Indigo which was in a great location a few minutes walk from the Gothic Quarter. The rooms were lovely and quirky and the hotel was delightfully airy, with excellent breakfast options.
After dumping our bags and coats, we headed straight for the cathedral and Gothic Quarter. As usual, this was going to be a break with a lot of walking!
Cathedral
The cathedral was impressive and inside was surprisingly quiet. We were able to do a rooftop tour too which was excellent, although very windy! The gothic quarter was the expected maze of medieval buildings and streets and eventually this led on to the more modern commercial areas.
Montjuic
After a coffee stop we then walked towards Montjuic before getting the cable car to the top. We arrived too late to get the cable car back down and didn’t get a chance to explore the castle or other attractions on the hill but it was nice to have a wander and take in the views. The evening was rounded off with buffalo steak – a first!
The next morning I woke at stupid o’clock so I got up to take some sunrise pictures. I walked to the cathedral and managed some shots of that with no one around (but no tripod so I had to find somewhere to balance the camera).
Cathedral and Gothic Quarter
I then wandered through the Gothic Quarter, which was a bit more eventful than I’d have liked, and then on down to the port. I waited here for a while but wasn’t really in the mood to wait another hour for sunset so I headed back to the hotel, via the Gothic quarter again. It was quite amazing I managed to find the hotel considering my phone had been stolen and I had no other map.
After brekkie and an extended visit to the police station we then walked through the ‘modern’ part of the city, past several of Gaudi’s individual buildings and watched the runners at the Barcelona 10k. The police station was a waste of time as we were there over two hours and it wasn’t until we got back to the UK we realised that we had only completed a preliminary crime report, not the proper one with a reference number. I guess that’s how they keep crime figures lower.
Sagrada Familia
We continued on to the Sagrada Familia – quite a trek. The building is totally unique – one side looks like something from Metropolis, the other like a creation of HR Giger. Inside there is the most amazing display of light and colour I have ever seen. We also took a lift to the top of one of the towers so we could see the ongoing construction work and had an a fun climb down the spiral staircase.
I have to confess that this building did succeed in cheering me up. The entertainers in the park outside plus the sheer exuberance of the building were really awesome and it is a magnificent testament to faith.
Parc Guell
Our last visit was to Parc Guell, another Gaudi designed destination, this time a large public park with great views over the city. It was another long walk to get there but was certainly worth it. Other than the lack of cafes there! We made up for it with tapas in a nearby bar and some weird dark beer.
It is a shame that there are so many problems with petty crime in the city (and I use ‘petty’ in the legal sense – all crime has a profound and lasting effect on the victims). The buildings are beautiful, both medieval and modern, and the food is unique too. Our Barcelona city break did leave impressions and memories, but for the wrong reasons.
2016