Reviews of Spain

I visited Barcelona recently as part of a school business studies trip. This is not to say that I did not see a lot of the attractions the city has to offer as I had a good seven hours to explore as well as additional trips. This is going to be my account of Barcelona as I saw it. I will split the opinion down into different categories, as I can see that each person would be more interested in the different parts of the city.

ATTRACTIONS:

Temple de la Sagrada Famila: If you visit Barcelona, you have no choice but to see this stunning piece of architecture. It is a great unfinished cathedral that Antoni Gaudi, a great Spanish architect worked on for forty years of his life. It has 12 bell towers that are 100 metres high that are dedicated to numerous religious figures like the eight apostles, and the Virgin Mary. Although it is unfinished to this day, with workers still clambering all over lovely (not that I am overly sarcastic) BRIGHT ORANGE scaffolding all day long. It is clear that it is far from finished, and it has to be said that the scaffolding (can't be helped) and the very bizarre stone pieces of fruit (?) go towards making the parts that are very new look a little Gaudy. At this point I would like to mention that I wanted to do a single op on this with the title 'Gaudy Gaudi's?but there is no category. Anyway, you can go inside the temple by paying 850 potatoes, sorry pesetas which equates to about £3.25, which I am sure you will agree is quite reasonable. Inside, you can walk or get on the lift to the top where you have the most incredible view of the city imaginable. Although it is not finished, this attraction has a certain amount of magic about it. You must therefore make a visit if you visit the city.

Nou Camp: Every football fan will want to visit this. It is the home of FC Barcelona, a team that has a lot of history as they have been very successful (unlike Spurs, grrr). This is probably why they felt that a museum should be erected with all the replica trophies of the ones they have actually won, like the European Cup inside. These go with pictures of individual players like Ronaldo and Johan Cruyff, signed footballs, pictures of the teams from above, and other footballing memorabilia. There is also some memorabilia that is part of the FC Barcelona handball team who still are one of the top teams in Europe.

There is also the stadium itself. It is a massive venue holding 120,000 within its walls. It has three tiers of seats, and I found that the angle of the stands means that you get a fairly decent view wherever you sit. When it isn't match day, you can buy a ticket to get into the stadium (and the museum). You then get to see just how big the stadium and actual pitch is, as the stadium is practically empty. Let me tell you that you feel really small when you are sat in that stadium! The stadium is also very easy to find and in turn, get to. The metro makes it a cheap and short trip to the universateria area where the stadium is situated, which is just outside the main centre. The Nou Camp should definitely be on your visit list if you visit Barcelona.

Las Ramblas: We have now reached tourist central! This is the main Tourist Street in the city. Think of it as a tacky Oxford Street if you will. The shops along here are full of typical tourist souvenirs, like fake football shirts, and various items involving sex and nudity. You can also have fun with these shops in some cases, as it appears the shopkeepers don’t want their merchandise, so will haggle with you. A friend of mine got a shopkeeper down to 1000 pesetas (£4) for a football shirt after starting at 10000 pesetas (£40). However, the tacky shops of Las Ramblas are not the main attraction. At night you get a flurry of activity, with a number of street acts taking place to part the tourists from their money. Some of these are quite interesting, so if you are not interested in the really quite crap shops, you really should at least go and have a look at the street if not for the shows that take place.

If you cannot find this part of Barcelona, you are in trouble, as it is situated next to the largest square in the city at one end, and the much visited harbour area at the other. It is also in the centre of the city, and obviously has metro links near it, so you should have no trouble getting there. A word of warning though, pickpockets are active in this area, so make sure that you keep hold of your money, without waving it about in the open.

Olympic complex: In the north westerly part of the city is the stadium, and other sporting arenas that were used to host the Olympic games in 1992. The Olympic stadium itself is a vast stadium that you can get into for free. This is all very nice, but you can only look at the track and the field, and are not even allowed down into the stands. I found this quite strange, as this is the home of Espanyol FC, and as you are allowed into the stands of the Nou camp, you would expect a little more freedom to look around in this stadium. Still, it is good for a quick look, as it does boast amazing architecture, and also a lovely stand that sells delightful waffles!

There is also the Olympic swimming pool, which is absolutely massive! However, you have to take a special route to see this it seems. Travel up the nearby hill and you will find a cable car station. Pay 350 pesetas (£1.75) and you can (on a clear day of course) get a view over Barcelona that rivals that given by Gaudi's cathedral. The cable car also takes you over the swimming pool, so you can see for yourself just how big the pool is, and just how high the diving board is.

There are many other attractions like the harbour area and also Gaudi's house, which is simply incredible, as it has no; I repeat no square edges on it. This is the most incredible piece of architecture that I have ever seen. You may wish to visit these, and there are obviously other attractions like the museum of modern art, but these ones are the ones that I got the best view of.

SHOPPING: Harbour/aquarium area: This area is right next to the picturesque harbour area. The whole complex has an IMAX cinema, the much-touted Aquarium and more importantly for shopaholic dooyooers, a sizeable shopping complex. It is cheaper than England and has the same amount of choice. In this shopping area is an electrical shop, ideal for people hoping to pick up some cheap DVD's. Just don't hold out for good CD's though if you listen to anything other than pop music. There is also a very good skate/surf shop. Well to be honest, it is only good for what it stocks, with brands like O Neil and Quicksilver. However, unless you are a regular fat cat Mohammed Al Fayed a like, be careful of the prices, as I feel that £40 (can you believe it?) for a T-shirt is rather extortionate to say the least. There also some very nice ladies clothing shops, which I am told, was quite reasonable and some decent stuff in them. Obviously this is purely hearsay, as I didn't go into these shops, (honest). There is also an arcade for the kids to spend your change in whilst you undoubtedly spend the real money in the shops!

This area is hard to miss, as you can just walk down Las Ramblas or the road that runs parallel with it until you walk straight into the complex (face first) or the sea (head first). I am not sure about the metro links with it, but I know that there is ample parking if you have hired a car or are going on a coach, like I did. Another warning again though. Some of the less, shall we say, hospitable Catalonians hang around here at night, so again, keep hold of your money. One of the lads on my school trip got held up my some person wanting his money, and using fingers in the back to get it, so be warned!

Las Ramblas: Okay, I did say it was tacky. However, some people may want pornographic cards or fake football shirts, so this is the place to come! However, if you don’t want to be a sheep who follows the tourist trail try walking down one of the side streets. It can get very interesting down these, as you find shops that are not meant for tourists. You can therefore pick up some very interesting clothes, souvenirs and other stuff.

Another thing about Las Ramblas is that it has a number of markets coming of it. Here you can pick up all sorts of foodstuffs including interesting types of meat, supersized vegetables and other stuff that you may or may not want to eat. This street is the most bizarre place I visited. It just felt a little eerie that you could go from tourist central to the back of beyond just by walking down a side street. As I have already said, you cannot avoid this street if you are visiting the city. After all, it doesn't cost anything to look!

The street that runs parallel with Las Ramblas: Okay, you may laugh at my ineptitude at remembering street names, but the shops on this street are quite decent. You will find a seemingly simple CD store (sorry forgot the name) on this street, which is in actual fact a six storey department store with everything you could ever want in inside it seems! A lot of it is cheaper than England, especially the CD's and DVD's, so this is well worth a look. There is also a Macdonalds, which is always nice and also a Lacoste shop, which had prices that could be described as laughable, i.e. £60 for a shirt. The best thing about this street though is that it eventually leads on to Las Ramblas. You can get to it two different ways though. The quick way or the long way. The long way is a must. Down here, I found an assortment of shops selling nice labelled clothes to nicer (my opinion) skate clothes. There is also shoe shops and ice cream shops and, and, I could go on. This was the best shopping place that I saw, although it may have just suited my taste. All the same, if you visit the city, take a look for yourself.

Again, there are shops situated all over the city. These are the best areas that I visited. If you are into sports clothing, perhaps the massive Nike store under FC Barcelona’s stadium may interest you. All the same, it is all about exploration, so you will find some little gems as well.

EATING: Various Tapas Bars: Tapas bars are snack bars where you order a variety of dishes between a group of people or just yourself. The one I visited was right in the centre of the city on the main square near Las Ramblas. It is quite weird at first, as you order a dish that looks good, and it comes in the smallest bowl and portion possible. However, it gives you a great chance to try various delicacies and also some of the famous Piella (probably not spelt correctly). You should certainly eat at a Tapas bar when you visit, as you will not find anything that much better to eat anyway (more later).

Hard Rock Cafe: You probably haven't come to Spain to eat in a global franchised restaurant. However, if you have not been to Hard Rock before, now is the time to start. Not only is there a load of very interesting rock memorabilia, but there is also good food at surprisingly cheap prices. The menu has Hamburgers, but there is some chicken and other meat dishes that taste great (unlike the one served up in my hotel, which I can only imagine was horse). The service is also acceptable. I would have said it was excellent, but we visited it on two occasions. The service on the first night was superb, but on the second night was actually woeful. Still it is worth a visit, as it is right in the centre of the city facing the massive square, making it easy to get to by metro.

Obviously these are not the only places to eat, but I only went for four days and was very limited for time. I am sure that there are many other fine eateries. Just make sure that you don't have any of the tap water (comes with free dysentery) any of the milk (probably from the chef's wife) or any of the Spanish beer as it is the most disgusting thing of have tasted in my life.

TRANSPORT LINKS: Metro: The metro is an excellent service. Exactly the same as the London underground it can transport you all over the city in a small amount of time. It is also incredibly cheap, maybe about £2 for a ticket that takes you anywhere. You can get to all the main attractions that I have mentioned on it, and is therefore a valuable service to any tourist who wants to go further afield than B****y Las Ramblas.

Moped: You can hire a Moped without having to wear a crash helmet for about a tenner a day. They are also quite a bit quicker than those in Britain and so appear quite dangerous indeed. However, the amount of Mopedders that I saw means that it is quite acceptable for a Moped to cut up a car. Probably great fun, although slightly dangerous.

Finally there is the airport. Just outside the city is the airport, which has Easyjet flying to it for £28.50 return and also other flight companies. You can then get into the city in one of the taxi's that buzz in and around the city. Just thought I'd clear that up, as people are obviously not going to walk to Barcelona.

Yes indeed, this city is incredible. It has it all. Great transport links, incredible architecture, decent shopping facilities, great weather most of the time, clean air, loads of things to visit, I could go on for ever. Apart from the slightly dodgy food and the pickpockets you really have to visit the city NOW. After all, you could eat Macdonalds and chain your wallet to your belt!