From our entire cruise, Barcelona was probably the most activity filled stop (excluding Rome where we started).
Fresh from Palma the day before; we docked at Barcelona port quite early that Sunday. And due to it being a Sunday, there were less taxi drivers at the port than anticipated. Unlike some of the other stops, Barcelona port was approximately an hours walk to the centre; which was not ideal – and we had too many activities to squeeze in to worry about walking (and we squeezed in plenty within a 4 hour window – including 2 beer breaks)
Plus, we had plans to meet up with our friends Jack and Ashleigh who were living in Barcelona at this stage.
First on our list was La Rambla, the famous pedestrian street. We were dropped off at the Christopher Columbus statue, and irrespective of Tony Soprano’s feelings towards him, I must say, I’m not a fan. But here’s a photograph of the monument anyway, we walked from here to one of the underground stations on La Rambla to journey to Camp Nou.
The stadium does not feel like the Behemoth you see on TV as you walk towards it. It like a smaller university sized stadium, that is until you get into the complex around the stadium, and realise, it’s not a small stadium, it’s an entire village containing fan bars, restaurants, merchandise stands, and gift shops.
So we embraced the fan culture and decided to spend a little in the gift shop/bar area (FC Barcelona’s financial issues were well document circa 2022 for those of you reading in the future).
After finishing our drinks, we embarked on the next leg of our whirlwind tour through Barcelona; La Sagrada Família. Designed by Gaudí, the famed Catalan architect, this cathedral is still under construction, whilst ground broke there in 1882.
After taking in the enormity of La Sagrada and its’ interesting architecture, we embarked towards the Arc De Triumf, which was built to host the world fair in 1888. Whilst not as dominant as the Arc in Paris, Barcelona’s Arc de Triumf is impressive anyway.
After seeing the Arc, we ventured to a nearby vegan sushi restaurant to meet our friends Jack and Ashleigh. And whilst Vegan sushi may not sound the most appealing dish, Roots and Rolls was phenomenal. It would be one of my first stops if I ever travelled back to Barcelona.
We caught up over some seaweed based delicacies and a few beers before parting ways to return to our cruise.
Barcelona is a city with so many quirky streets, and I probably could have stayed in Barcelona for 4/5 days, just wandering around them.
I’d love to explore more of Gaudí’s architectural style, find a spot overlooking the city to see the Barcelona skyline, explore more eateries and bars, check out the Gothic District, explore some of the city’s many beautiful parks, and hopefully one day, I’ll be back to catch a game at Camp Nou.
