Six Tips to Help Map Out Your Barcelona Vacation
By Jonathan Haeber
Once the home of Pablo Picasso, crossroads of Muslim, Judaic, and Christian traditions -- Barcelona is a city full of art and history. Home to 1.6 million, Barcelona is one of Spain's most bustling cities and hosts the country's second largest population. Within the city limits, you'll find 68 municipal parks, 5 botanical gardens, 45 urban parks, and 12 historic parks - among the most famous is Montjuïc. As a coastal city, Barcelona also has 2.8 miles of beaches and the Olympic Village site contains some of the best spots to relax on the beach.
In order to take advantage of this cultural mecca, your Barcelona tour itinerary should include the following list of sites. You can refer to the map of Barcelona below to locate some of the sites listed.
1. Walk The Antoní Gaudí Trail
Anotoní Gaudí permeates Barcelona's blocks; his buildings are such a cultural phenomenon that UNESCO named the Gaudí buildings in Barcelona World Heritage sites in 1984.
If you're running short on time, the 'can't miss' buildings include Casa Batlló, Palacio and Parque Güell, Casa Milà, and La Sagrada Familia. It's highly recommended to walk as much of the Gaudí trail as you can -- along the way, you'll have an opportunity to explore some interiors of this famous Spanish architect's most iconic designs.
http://gospain.about.com/od/gaudisbarcelona/ss/gauditour.htm
2. Experience Catalan Cuisine
Lonely Planet's Barcelona City Guide has all the information you need -- restaurants, Barcelona city maps, exchange rates, and their take on the best Barcelona accomodations. If you need online tips for classic Barcelona restaurants, visit Lonely Planet's Barcelona Eats guide.
http://www.lonelyplanet.com/worldguide/destinations/europe/spain/barcelona/eat
You can also check out Fodor's excellent descriptions of Barcelona's most famous restaurants, including the "Faded Glories" list, which contains once-distinguished restaurants that fell by the wayside.
http://www.fodors.com/news/story_1249.html
3. Tour Barcelona's Best Tapas
The world's first tapas were slices of bread that sherry drinkers in Andalusia used to cover glasses in between drinks to keep fruit flies out. Luckily for us, the tapas have come a long way from their humble beginnings. Though the region of Andalusia is most famous for its tapas, Barcelona hosts scores of bars, ranging from excellent to on-the-go. Find a list of favorites below:
http://www.10best.com/Barcelona/Restaurants/Tapas/index.html
4. Visit Montjuic and the Poble Espanyol
This museum and botanical garden complex contains some of the most-visted Barcelona tour destinations. Once a prison during Franco's rule during World War II, many of the old fort buildings and castles have been turned into world-class art and history museums.
http://www.poble-espanyol.com/pemsa/en.html
5. Tour Barcelona's Museu Picasso
Pablo Picasso spent a large portion of his life in Barcelona, and it served as a formative place in his younger years. The Picasso Museum is housed in a medieval palace complex in the middle Barri Gòtic ("Gothic Quarter") of Barcelona. The museum includes collections from every period in Picasso's life, up until 1957 -- including works from his time in Málaga, A Coruña, Madrid, and Paris.
http://www.museupicasso.bcn.es/eng/index_eng.htm
6. Brush Up On Some Common Catalan Phrases
Though most Barcelonans speak Spanish (and many also speak English), Barcelona is a major center of the Catalan language, and it is the co-official language of the Catalonia Region (in which Barcelona resides). If you're feeling extra ambitious, you can practice some common Catalan at the Wikitravel Catalan Phrasebook
http://wikitravel.org/en/Catalan_phrasebook
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