Día 6 · lunes

Wandering and Wondering

Mike booked us a food tour for our first full day in Barça. We met María in La Rambla, the wide boulevard that connects the oldest and more modern parts of the city. I remember it from long ago, but there’s so much construction happening that it’s impossible to pinpoint any specific place. She takes us for churros and chocolate at Granja M. Viader, just off the main drag. The churros are great, but the coffee cup of thick, hot chocolate on the side is amazing. We will definitely be fueled for this walk. Maria grew up in the suburbs and has lived here her whole life. She trained as a journalist but transitioned to tourism for the flexibility and work life balance. Well done!

She tells us the history of Catalonia and Barcelona as we walk through different neighborhoods. In la Ravel, we stop at O’Toxo 3 Hermanos for tapas. Originally opened by three siblings decades ago, still family run and one of the brothers is still working today. Maria is well known here and I love the feeling of being with a friend at their favorite place rather than a tourist. We try vermouth, sangria, and tapas including pan con tomate, patatas bravas, and some kind of mild, grilled peppers that were delightful. We move along into Poblé Sec. Maria tells us how this has long been the poorest neighborhood with many immigrants and of course, some of the best food. She tells us about pinchos, a Basque Country appetizer of the amazing bread topped with all sorts of different stuff and skewered with a toothpick. PinchoJ reminds us of a conveyor belt sushi restaurant. All the pinchos are in a cold case, but there are so many colors and combinations of ingredients, they seem to be moving around. The skewers are different colors and designs. You grab whatever you like from the case and pay by the skewers at the end. Fresh seafood, vegetables, pork, there is no lack of options here. And that bread is still amazing.

Maria leaves us in Poblé Sec. she agrees to meet us again tomorrow for a tour of the Gothic and Born neighborhoods. She tells us to walk to the National Museum of Art from where we are and sends us her food guide for dining later.

The museum is closed on Monday’s but is still teeming with tourists. It’s up on a hill with a National Mall style boulevard of fountains, sculptures, and views cascading from it back into the city. Maria had explained that Catalonia outlawed bullfighting about twenty years ago. The closest now defunct stadium has been turned into a mall with restaurants and panoramic vistas on the top level.

We head that way and find CaixaForum, the cultural arts center open along the way. This is the first full sun day we’ve seen in a while and an air conditioned building is truly welcomed at the moment. There’s an exhibition of the Flemish painter Reubens that was worth the stop on its own.

A few steps away is the Plaça d’Espanya. We take the fancy viewing elevator to the top and find a place on the shady side for beers and olives. The city goes on and on in every direction. Looking at the map, it doesn’t seem that expansive, but from here the rooftops extend for days. We are both exhausted from travel and walking today. We start to head back to the apartment. We figure it will take an hour but we’ll see some interesting items. Well, Barça is mostly gridded but the way the crosswalks come together makes it easy to get off track.

We definitely zigged when we should have zagged, but eventually we come to the apartment building designed by Gaudí, La Pedrera - Casa Milà. I love how wild these buildings look. You definitely feel like you’re in a Doctor Seuss book looking up at them. There’s a cafe inside that is air conditioned and we take advantage. There’s another apartment building designed by him just a few blocks down. It’s in a section of other very interesting apartments as well. The architecture is very cool.

We finally make our towards home stopping for some interesting public art along the way. A pizza at the house and we are done for the night. Mot tours and walking tomorrow!

Step count: 20741