Curly Hair, Been There is a segment that explore the different places in the world I have been, and my experiences there.
Barcelona: Where to go
As part of my university course, I am required to do a year abroad, and studying French and Spanish, I had to split it between two countries. For my Spanish half of the year, I went to Barcelona. Even though I didn't have the best time of my life there, it had nothing to do with the city itself, which I loved.
Barcelona is a beautiful city, and there's so much to say about it, so over a series of posts I'll go over some of the different aspects of life there. In this post, I want to share some of the best places I have been there, and recommend, in ascending order, my top five places to go.
4. Parc Guëll
2. Castell de Montjuïc
I. Love. This. Park. It's number one on my list because I went there so often, everyone that came to see me, I took them here. It is beautiful. It's a huge park, a short walk from the beach, and there is so much in there. When you first walk in, it's not super impressive. There's a lot of stones for walkways and you get a lot of sand in your shoes. But, the further you walk, the more you'll fall in love with it. First off, there's a zoo. It is pretty pricey at 20€ a head, but there is some cool stuff to see in there and it's a fun couple of hours.
Walk a bit further to the centre of the park, where there's lots of green space, dogs, trees, birds, all round people having a good time. Walk a bit further to find the fountain, which is mad impressive. It's huge, it's gilded, it's gorgeous.
Walking round a bit, you'll find possibly my favourite part of the park: the lake. It's not huge, but it's lovely. Secluded, surrounded by trees with the most beautiful flowers, all sorts of ducks swimming around in there, and the rowboats. For only a few euros, you and your friends can make fools of yourselves trying to row around this lake, which is legitimately it is harder than it looks, but once you get yourself over to the flowers, just sit there and take hundreds of pictures like we did:
or have a romantic outing in the lovely scenery. After all this, go through and find the mammoth statue, which is a slightly confusing, but fun addition to this park.
Please go here, you won't regret it.
Barcelona: Where to go
As part of my university course, I am required to do a year abroad, and studying French and Spanish, I had to split it between two countries. For my Spanish half of the year, I went to Barcelona. Even though I didn't have the best time of my life there, it had nothing to do with the city itself, which I loved.
Barcelona is a beautiful city, and there's so much to say about it, so over a series of posts I'll go over some of the different aspects of life there. In this post, I want to share some of the best places I have been there, and recommend, in ascending order, my top five places to go.
5. Mount Tibidabo
Tibidabo is an amazing place. If you're wondering why it rings a bell, refer back to Joey's "magic" story in Friends. It can be seen from certain angles all around the city, the nicest of which being the marina, as it seems to be directly across the city from it. This view is lovely, especially in the evening, when the church is all lit up and you can see the top of it shining in the distance.
Going towards the mountain itself, it is a bit of a way out of the city centre, taking the metro on Line 8 all the way to the end. From here it's a walk up a hill, then either a hike up through the trees (which is lovely, you can stop at intervals and look at the increasingly wide view of the city) or take the funicular, which is 7,70€ for both ways, and is also a lot of fun. At the top, there is a restaurant, of course the beautiful church, and theme park. The park is pricey, at around 30€ a head, but you can go into the grounds of the park to observe the incredible view that you get over the entire city. The church has steps going round the back of it, so climbing up this little bit further gives you a wider, more impressive view of the city. And yes, you can see the Sagrada Familia from up there (you can see it from basically anywhere above ground level, it's pretty huge).
It is a gorgeous place, I would 100% recommend going there, and the hike is worth it, unless you do it in thirty degree heat and go the wrong way so it takes you an hour longer than it should have like I did the first time.
4. Parc Guëll
Parc Guëll is a pretty famous attraction in Barcelona, yes, but it is worth going out there at least once. If you book in advance online, it's not too expensive, and, like Tibidabo, while it is a bit of a journey out of the city, it is worth the long walk up all those stairs. The views are lovely, and it's nice to be able to admire some of Gaudi's famous work without paying extortionate prices (I'm looking at you, Sagrada Familia). The colours are beautiful, the art and the gardens and the views together make it a lovely place to go.
You can also go inside the house, which is converted into a museum, where you can learn all about Gaudi and his life. Fun fact about Gaudi, he died in 1926 after being hit by a tram, which I struggle to believe, because even now the trams don't go that fast, much less in the 1920s. Nonetheless, it is a very pretty place and it should be on your list of things to do in Barcelona.
3. Plaça d'Espanya
I've put the whole of this area on the list because I can't choose simply one thing that stands out. The Arenas de Barcelona, while just a mall, is built in an old bull-fighting ring (another good place that's not on this list is La Monumental, one of the biggest bull-fighting arenas that now hosts a slightly creepy museum) and it is magnificent. You can go in the lift to the very top of it, where you can dine or just simply look out over the city. Also in this area is the Font Magica de Montjuïc (the Magic Fountain):
which has a show on certain evenings, showing off its splendour to the classical piece entitled Barcelona, all taking place in front of one of the most impressive buildings I've ever seen, La Palau Nacional (National Palace), which is now the Museu Nacional d'Art de Catalunya (the National Art Museum of Catalonia):
This is a beautiful building and hosts some incredible views, and while I've not been inside, it is worth going up there.
2. Castell de Montjuïc
This could have gone under the previous section, however I give it its own since it is a bit of a way out and is more its own thing. To get there, first you take the Funicular de Montjuïc, then you can either walk up to the castle through the gardens, or take the cable car, which is very fun and only about 12€ for both ways.
At the top, when you reach the castle, you can look out across the city. It's not as wide a view as at Tibidabo but it's still very impressive. For another 4€ you can go inside the castle, see the fascinating things inside it and go on the top of it, for an even better view.
It's really pretty, the gardens are lovely and on top of all that there are some pretty neat cannons.
1. Parc de la Ciutadella
I know there are many points of interest I haven't mentioned, like the Arc de Triomf (actually this is only down the road from Ciutadella), the Sagrada Familia, la Pedrera, amongst others, but these five places are the ones I personally like most and are also slightly less commercial.
I will give you a bonus tip about the beach. While the most famous beach is la Barceloneta, with the view of the W Hotel and the city right behind, this is possibly the worst part of the beach. All tourists, all people trying to sell to tourists, and so, so crowded. In my opinion, the further away from the W you are, the better the beach is. Platja del Somorrostro, which is down from Ciutadella, or Platja de la Nova Icaria are, in my opinion, the best beaches, that aren't too difficult to get to.
I hope this advice is useful, and if there's anything you can think of that you want me to write about Barcelona, let me know!
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