|
|
Find here the best Barcelona accomodation and car hire online!
|
|
|
|
 |
 Places of interest II |
 |
The Pla Reial
Just off the left-hand side of the Rambla , after Carrer Ferran , there opens up the Pla Reial , one of the spaces with most tradition and interest in the city. This square is the meeting point for a very mixed public, which finds here a space to sit and have a drink in the open air at the terraced cafés situated under the welcoming porches.
|
|
Like many of the public spaces of the old town, the Pla Reial occupies the site of a monastery, in this case, of the Capuchin order. It was laid out in 1848 by the architect and town planner Francesc Daniel Molina . In the center of the square there is the 'Three Graces' fountain, with two lanterns designed by the young Antoni Gaudí .
|
|
The Grand Theatre of the Liceu
This was built at the initiative of the Liceu Filharm - Dram Barcelon . Joaquim de Gispert , a member and director of the institution, began construction of the theatre in 1844, under the direction of the architect Francesc d'Assís Soler, who was replaced a year later by Josep Oriol Mestres and Miquel Garriga i Roca .
The Gran Teatre del Liceu was inaugurated in 1848. In here, the most important works by Mozart, Rossini, Verdi, Wagner, Puccini, Strauss, etc. have been sung and many hearts have been moved and ears pleasured in this venue.
However, unfortunate time has also befallen the Liceu . As in 1861, it was set on fire for the first time, and only the foyer and the horseshoe arch remained intact. The regional governments and population at that time saw that there was a need to rebuild it on the same site as soon as possible. However, on January 31 st 1994, a fire once again engulfed the Grand Liceu theatre. It brought into ashes the great architecture achievement that has witnessed the greatest performance of the centuries. However, it did not burned down the spirit of those who are passionate for the beauty in the art form of theatre, such that the new theatre was successfully reopened in October 1999.
|
|
The National Theatre of Catalonia
The edifice of the National Theatre of Catalonia is owned by the Department of Culture of the Government of Catalonia with lands ceded by the Barcelona City Council. The Barcelona Auditorium is one of the large public projects conceived within the strategy of urbanistic reorganization of Barcelona in the second half of the 1980's.
The building of the National Theatre of Catalonia , designed by the architectural workshop of Ricard Bofill , has a floor area of 20,000 m2, covered by a double-slope metallic roof supported by a majestic 26 columns of 12 meters in height. The foyer - beneath which is the small hall, the main auditorium and the stagehouse, are the three principal spaces which form a single body.
|
|
Barrio Gótico
The Gothic Quarter is one of the oldest parts of Barcelona and is the nucleus of old Barcelona . It's a maze of interconnecting dark streets linking with squares, and abounding with plenty of cafés and bars, as well as the cheapest accommodation in town. The Barri Gotic contains a concentration of medieval Gothic buildings and is only a few blocks northeast of La Rambla . Most of the buildings date from the 14 th and 15 th century.
|
|
Around the Catedral, one of Spain's greatest Gothic buildings, you can still see part of the ancient walls incorporated. The quarter is centered around the Pla de Sant Jaume , a spacious square and the site of a busy market and one of the venues for the weekly dancing of the sardana. The square of Sant Jaume was Forum at the time of Romans, and there are many rests of old fortifications still to be seen, one of which is the portal of " Pla Nova. " In this square you will also find the Palacio de la Generalitat Photo and the Palacio del Ayuntamiento (town hall). In Calle Paradis , on top of the mountain Táber , you will find an old millstone. Here were living Iberian tribes long before the time of the Roman empire.
At Plaza del Rei there are the Palacio Real Mayor, Iglesia de Santa Agata and Palacio del Archiv/o de la Corona de Aragón , close to it the Gothic cathedral and the medieval palaces of Casa dels Canonges, Pia Almoina and Ardiaca . Two of the city's most significant buildings are here, the Ajuntament and the Palau de la Generalitat .
|
|
Pla Nova
Here lies the heart of the old city, with its many charming small squares such as Sant Josep Oriol , Sant Felip Neri, Sant Just, Pla del Pi and Pla del Rei . In its origins, the Pla Nova was one of the plains that formed outside the gates of the Roman city. The square was finished in April 1358, receiving the name that it still bears. In recent times it was opened up to communicate with the Avinguda de la Catedral . Today, it is a pleasant surprise to come across the broad modern space of the Pla Nova and the small square at the foot of the cathedral steps.
|
|
Pla de Sant Jaume
The Pla de Sant Jaume (St. James' Square) joins, via the streets Jaume I and Ferran , two avenues as important as the Via Laietana and the Rambla . It was originally the crossroads of the two thoroughfares ( Decumanus and Cardo Maximus ) which crossed the city from north to south (now the streets Llibreteria and Call ) and from west to east (now the streets Bisbe , Ciutat and Regomir ). The Pla de Sant Jaume , flanked by the Palace of the Generalitat and the City Hall, adopted its present structure in 1840, and was inaugurated with the name of Pla de la Constitució .
|
|
Montjuic
Montjuic, the hill overlooking the city center from the southwest, is home to some fine art galleries, leisure attractions, soothing parks and the main group of 1992 Olympic sites. On top of the mountain, surrounded by beautiful parks, there is a fortress from the 17 th century. The mountain of Montjuic was also the scenery of the World Exposition of 1929, for which was built the Pueblo Español . The buildings found here represent all the architectonic styles that are typical of Spain .
On the north side you'll find the Pla de Braus Les Arenes , a former bullring where the Beatles performed back in 1966. Behind it is the Parc Joan Miró , where stands Miro's interestingly phallic sculpture Dona i Ocell (Woman and Bird). Nearby, the Palau Nacional houses the Museu Nacional d'Art de Catalunya , which has an impressive collection of Romanesque art. Stretching up a succession of terraces below the Palau Nacional are lovely fountains, including La Font M which is the largest.
|
|
In the northwest of Montjuic is the 'Spanish Village,' Poble Espanyol . The Anella Olímpica (Olympic Ring) is the group of sports installations where the main events of the 1992 games were held. Downhill, witness masterpieces of another kind in the Fundacio Joan Miro , Barcelona 's gallery for the greatest Catalan artist of the 20 th century. This is the biggest single collection of his work.
|
|
|
|
|
