Barcelona is one of Europe’s coolest
cities. It offers sun, sea and sand,
and has always been on the cutting
edge of fashion and design. The
modern Catalan architect, Antoni
Gaudí, gave the metropolis its
incredibly distinct look. Thanks to
Gaudí, the structures, surfaces and
buildings of Barcelona glitter with
dazzling ceramic mosaics.
CHIP OFF THE OLD BLOCK
Barcelonians have always made handsome, handmade pottery and
ceramics. Today shoppers love to wander the city’s markets and back
alleys on the hunt for traditional artisan workshops. The first important
building Gaudí designed in Barcelona was for a rich ceramic factory
owner. Casa Vicens is covered in colourful mosaics
called trencadis
, made from pieces of broken
tile. Almost all of Casa Batlló, a house Gaudí
remodelled in 1904, is mosaic-covered, too. The
eye-catching building is said
to resemble the humped
back of a dragon
or dinosaur!
PARK GÜELL
The prize for the most enchanting (and most photographed) outdoor space in Barcelona has to
go to Park Güell. The mosaicked steps, zigzag paths and quirky buildings are the result of a posh
development project gone wrong. Count Eusebi Güell first bought the tree-covered hillside in
1900. He asked Gaudí to create a mini city with landscaped grounds on it for rich Barcelonians. The
ambitious project was later ditched, but not before Gaudí had created roads and walkways, a plaza
and two gatehouses in his own unique style.
LA RAMBLA
No boulevard in Spain is more
talked about than La Rambla!
Barcelona’s famous main street
is crammed with flower stands,
souvenir sellers, bars and a
constantly revolving parade of
people from all corners of the
globe. Not many realise however
that La Rambla is actually made
up of five streets all joined
together. This is why it is also
called the plural – Las Ramblas.
In the early evening half the
city emerges to stroll,
eat and hang out
on the tree-
lined strip.
OLYMPIC CHANGE
Barcelona’s golden beachfront is world famous, but it has
only been around since 1992! The city used to have its
back turned towards the sea, lining its coast with industrial
buildings and factories instead. When Barcelona won its bid
to host the Olympic Games, organisers decided to transform
the entire area. The old buildings were knocked down, two
beaches were improved and five brand new ones were
created. Now the seaside is an essential part of Barcelona
life – a place to play, swim and while away the weekends.
WORK IN PROGRESS
La Sagrada Familia is a gigantic stone church, rising
from the ground like a cluster of colossal stalagmites.
The pillars propping up the vast interior resemble
trees and the church will eventually have 18 spires.
Currently however, it only has eight. Although the first
brick was laid in 1882, Gaudí never got to see his vision
completed. Over a century later, La Sagrada Familia is
still under construction. Given that the Great Pyramid of
Giza in Egypt only took 20 years to build using ancient
tools, this is quite a delay!
HUMAN CASTLES
The Catalan people can’t get
enough of beautiful architecture. In
fact, they even like to build towers
or castells
(Catalonian for ‘castles’)
out of human beings! The sport
is called castellars
and Barcelona
has its own club. Huge crowds
gather to watch it performed on
Plaça de Sant Jaume to celebrate
La Mercè, a festival held towards
the end of September, honouring
the city’s patron saint. People
stand, carefully balancing on top
of each other, creating a tower that
can reach up to ten storeys high.
Grown-ups are too heavy
for the higher levels, so
children, clad
in crash
helmets,
teeter at
the top.