Friday 8 May 2015

Barcelona: Up on Montjuïc

 Hola!


 The last day of my unexpected trip to Barcelona culminated in my catching the tour bus which would take me up the mountain of Montjuïc to see the Olympic Park, the Magic Fountain and more.

 We set off uphill, watching beautiful greenery speed by in the afternoon sunlight.





I couldn't remember what this was called so I googled "W Hotel, Barcelona." And guess what it's called? Yes, the W Hotel.




Amazing views of the city.


 We drove under a gorgeous canopy of leaves and light.









 We passed the Olympic Cauldron. I found it disappointing until I learnt how it was lit from a flaming arrow shot by an archer. How's that for an impressive display?








 We also saw one of the two main masts that serve Barclona.










 We passed the Spanish Village - Poble Espanyol - which features buildings from the different regions of Spain. The entry gate/castle has some groovy steps!








 Finally we arrived at the Catalan National Palace! It contains the National Art Museum of Catalonia. I see many parallels between Barcelona and Glasgow and in this respect I see this building as the equivalent of the Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum.

 It also boasts the famous Magic Fountain of Montjuïc. The fountain is always impressive but on certain nights it is lit while music plays - it sounds sublime. I would love to see it some day. 

 There are also the replica Four Columns, a Catalan icon. The originals were ripped down by Primo de Rivera's dictatorship in 1928. They represent the four red stripes of the Catalan flag.




 We headed down the mountain towards the Sants train station, from which I would leave. We passed through the two huge Venetian Towers. I hadn't really grasped how massively tall they would be - I was awestruck. According to Wikipedia they are 47 metres tall. It was amazing.







An ex-bullring which is now a shopping centre







 My Barclona odyssey was finally at an end. I caught my train and settled down to the ride back to Perpignan, enjoying the beautiful scenery and even seeing a rainbow

 Many thanks to Liam whose mad idea it was for me to go to Barcelona to see him with only a couple of days' notice - it was a brilliant experience; an integral part of my year in Perpignan; and I can't imagine not having gone.


 Moltes gràcies!




It looks like a guitar!


It looks like a road in the sky!

 Thanks for reading!

 Liz x

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