Las Ramblas

Today was our first day of sightseeing in Barcelona.  We left the hotel at 8 AM and did not return until 6 PM!

Most of our time was spent on or near Barcelona's most famous boulevard, Las Ramblas.  Las Ramblas stretches three quarters of a mile from Barcelona's main square, La Plaza de Catalunya, to the waterfront.  In the center of the boulevard is a tree-lined pedestrian walkway.  This beautiful street is very popular with tourists.  As a result, it is very crowded, and unfortunately it is an area with more than its share of pickpockets and purse snatchers.  This is my fifth visit to Barcelona, and (knock on wood) neither I nor any of my traveling companions have ever had any problems.  However I do exercise caution and also keep an eye on those who are with me.

Our first stop along Las Ramblas was the Boquería Market, one of the largest and finest marketplaces in Europe.

 

We had a wonderful breakfast at one of the market restaurants.  It offered a variety of "tortillas".  In Spain "tortilla" has nothing to do with the flat, corn-flour bread of Mexico.  It is an egg dish similar to an Italian "frittata".  Generally they contain potatoes and onions, but here they also had zucchini, spinach and other "tortillas".

In addition to "tortilla", we ordered "txistora", a type of sausage known as "chistora" in Mexico, and "patatas bravas", fried potatoes in a spicy sauce.

(photo taken by our kind waiter)

Near the market, Las Ramblas is lined with beautiful flower stalls.

 

Farther down the boulevard sketch artists and painters are selling their works.

 

Las Ramblas is lined with some fascinating architecture.  One example is this building which once was an umbrella shop.  The facade is decorated with carvings of open umbrellas...

 

... and on the corner there is an oriental dragon holding an ornate street lamp.

 

 Just off of Las Ramblas is a pleasant square called "La Plaza Real" (The Royal Plaza). Today it is filled with sidewalk cafés and restaurants.

 

We had a good lunch at one of the more popular restaurants on the plaza..."Les Quinze Nits" (which in the Catalán language of this region means The Fifteen Nights).  Of course our lunch included a pitcher of "sangría".

 

The great Spanish poet Federico García Lorca once said that Las Ramblas "is the only street in the world that I wish would never end."  However, the wonderful boulevard does come to an end when it reaches the waterfront at the monument to Christopher Columbus.  The explorer returned in triumph from his first voyage sailing into Barcelona harbor.