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General Info

Barcelona is the capital of Catalonia. The city, Spain's second largest, has a wealth of unique historic architecture and has emerged as one of the most popular tourist destinations in Europe during the 1990s. There are two official languages spoken in Barcelona: Catalan and Castillian. Barcelona is unequivocally a Mediterranean city, not only because of its geographic location but also and above all because of its history, tradition and cultural influences. The documented history of the city dates back to the founding of a Roman colony on its soil in the second century B.C. Modern Barcelona experienced spectacular growth and economic revival at the onset of industrialization during the second half of the 19th century. Barcelona, more than just a single city, is really a collection of multi-faceted and diverse cities. The visitor unfamiliar with its history might be surprised that such a modern and enterprising city preserves its historic Gothic center almost intact, or by the curious contrast between the maze of narrow streets and the grid-like layout of the Eixample, the urban planning "Enlargement" project of the end of the 19th century.

• Mayor of Barcelona: http://www.bcn.es/

Transports

Many companies fly to Barcelona Airport, El Prat, which is connected regularly to the city by a bus and a train service. El Prat is about 15 minutes by train to Sants train station. The Bus Turístic links all of the Barcelona tourist sites you could possibly want to visit. It has three routes, including a northbound and a southbound line which leave from opposite sides of the Plaça de Catalunya. The metro can take you to many places.

• Barcelona's Public Transports: http://www.tmb.net/
• Port of Barcelona: http://www.apb.es/

Main Sights

One of the most popular tourist activities in Barcelona is a stroll along La Rambla, Barcelona’s best known street. La Rambla is a wide, tree-lined boulevard, about 2 kms long, extending from the Plaça de Catalunya down to the port of Barcelona. With only one narrow lane of traffic in each direction, the avenue is mostly a pedestrian walkway. Stop to drink at the Font de les Canaletes: legend says that whoever drinks from this fountain will always return to Barcelona. The best part is La Rambla de les Flors, where you can find the colourful La Boqueria market, the oldest in Barcelona and well worth a visit just to see the tempting array of fruits, vegetables, pastries, breads and other foodstuffs, all at a reasonable price. It is situated in an arcaded square known as the Plaça de la Boqueria, which was, once upon a time, the centre of the city. In the square you’ll also find another La Rambla landmark, right under your feet — the famous Miro mosaic. Visitors should note that the southern end of La Rambla, doubles as the city’s red light district after dark, when the ladies of the night come out to ply their trade. Even so, it’s still perfectly safe during the day and a slightly seedy reputation is no barrier to enjoying the colour and curiosity of Barcelona’s most popular attraction. Barcelona Cathedral (Cathedral La Seu): Its golden sandstone walls towering above the old city walls, this Gothic structure as the seat of the archdiocese. You can also see the remains of roman Walls at the Placa de la Seu outside the cathedral. Montjuic Hill: is a nice area for a stroll above the city. It includes the Castell de Montjuic, the Olympic village and the Archeological Museum. The funicular and cable car ride to the top of Montjuic is a great way to see the whole city. A trip to Barcelona is not complete without taking in some of the magical and intriguing works of Antonio Gaudi. Most famous is the Sagrada Familia, an astonishingly ornate unfinished cathedral (Gaudi was a very devout Catholic). There are also fine examples of houses that he was commissioned to design throughout Barca. One of the most striking is Casa Mila with its roof with strange human-like chimney stacks. If you like Gaudi's buildings, be sure to stop by the Park Guell, also designed by this talented architect in the early 20th century.

• Sagrada Familia: http://www.sagradafamilia.org/

Eat

Catalunya has a reputation for producing some of Spain's finest cuisine. Catalunya is geographically diverse and enjoys a variety of fresh, high-quality seafood, meat, poultry, game, fruit and vegetables. These can come in unusual and delicious combinations: meat and seafood (a genre known as mar i muntanya - 'sea and mountain'), poultry and fruit, fish and nuts. The essence of Catalan food lies in its sauces for meat and fish. There are five main types: sofregit (fried onion, tomato and garlic); samfaina or chanfaina (sofregit plus red pepper and aubergine or courgette); picada (based on ground almonds, usually with garlic, parsley, pine or hazel nuts, and sometimes breadcrumbs); allioli (pounded garlic with olive oil, often with egg yolk added to make more of a mayonnaise); and romesco (an almond, tomato, olive oil, garlic and vinegar sauce, also used as a salad dressing). Catalans find it hard to understand why other people put butter on bread when pa amb tomaquet - bread sliced, then rubbed with tomato, olive oil, garlic and salt - is so easy.

Museums

Barcelona has a magnificent selection of museums and complexes, including probably some of the best historic collections in Spain: - National Art Museum of Catalunya (Museu Nacional d'Art de Catalunya): The city's foremost cultural storehouse is a showcase for every form of artwork native to the Catalonian region. - Picasso Museum (Museu Picasso): appropriately placed in the city where the 20th Century's most famous artist practiced his craft as a young man, this museum a major collection of Picasso's, including some of his famous works. - Museu d'Història de Catalunya (Catalonia's Museum of History): a must in order to understand the troubled (and sad) history of the Catalans. - Fundació Miró: the Miró Foundation was a gift from the artist Joan Miró to his native city and is one of Barcelona's most exciting showcases of contemporary art. - Gaudí Casa-Museu: Gaudí lived with his niece from 1906 to 1926 in this pink, Alice-in-Wonderland house, now a house-museum. Exhibits include Gaudí designed furniture, decorations, drawings, and portraits and busts of the architect. - Joan Miró Museum: this museum is on the Montjuïc accessible by the metro (L3 Paral·lel and then the funicular). The gallery is home to the largest single collection of Miró's work in the world, including paintings, sculptures, engravings, lithographs and ceramics.

• Fundació Miró: http://www.bcn.fjmiro.es/
• Picasso Museum: http://www.museupicasso.bcn.es/
• Museu d'Art Contemporani de Barcelona: http://www.macba.es/
• Gaudí Casa-Museu: http://www.casamuseugaudi.org/

Business

Fira de Barcelona is a powerful platform of activity and economic promotion at the service of companies and their international projection, which generates wealth in Barcelona, Catalonia and Spain. It carries on a tradition of more than 100 years, which began with the World’s Fair of 1888. Fira de Barcelona holds 80 trade fairs with 30,000 exhibitors.

• Barcelona Fair: http://www.firabcn.es/