I was on holiday last year with my partner in the Costa Dorada, Spain. One of the reasons I chose to go there was so I could have an opportunity to visit Barcelona, the second largest city in Spain. I had heard and read so much about it, and it definately was a place I longed to visit.

We were taken to Port Vell, which is the old port, not far from The Ramblas. Our guide on the coach journey was very informative and gave us a lot of information about Spain's culture, and pointed out various landmarks and places on the way.
She was very knowledgeable and quite humorous, and although Spanish, she had spent some time in London, and made comparisons between the two countries. She pointed out how the Spanish cannot understand why we put vinegar on our chips, and explained how shocked she was to discover this, as the thought of it was repulsive!

Next to the Aquarium is The Imax Movie Theatre, where you can watch 3D movies. Again we didn't visit this as there was so much we wanted to see, and it would take too much of our precious time.

We then crossed the wooden pier bridge, on our way for a stroll up The Ramblas. Before reaching the Ramblas there is a very high column, a statue of Christopher Columbus presides on the top with his arm out-stretched, pointing to what many believe is directly to the America. In fact, if you followed the direction of his arm it would be necessary to completely go round the earth to arrive in America!
An elevator takes you to a viewpoint under the feet of the statue, and provides you with an impressive view of the port and city.

There were also a lot of 'living statues' which I found very entertaining. How they stand still like that for so long I don't know! One of them, an Indian Chief suddenly reached down and pulled me up onto the platform he was standing on, whilst I had been taking a photograph! I got quite a shock and everyone found this very funny, including my partner who was snapping away whilst I aimed a bow and arrow alongside the Indian!

My only disappointment was that I did not get the chance to visit the unfinished church. It was one of the main reasons I wished to visit Barcelona, but it was quite a walk away from The Ramblas, and as my feet were swelling with the heat, and my partner had blisters, we didn't think it a good idea to walk much further! I love visiting cathedrals and churches, and am quite a fan of Antonio Gaudi's work, so I was really disappointed not to be able to visit the church. Also we were due back at the coach, to be taken to the second part of our trip - The Magic Fountain Show!

On arriving at the Palace, I was amazed to see just how many people turn up for the nightly fountain show which was due to begin at 9pm. There were thousands of people gathered on the steps and gardens around the palace and fountains. The palace itself was very impressive, and at night 9 beams of light are cast to the sky - the same number of letters in the word Barcelona. This combines with the colours and forms of the Magic Fountain.
We found a place to sit at the bottom of the steps near to the fountain and waited for the show to begin. Our guide had told us that if we were lucky they might play 'Barcelona' the 1992 Olympic song featuring Freddie Mercury. She said that whenever it was played at the fountain show, it made the hairs on the back of her neck stand on end, and was truly a moving and awesome experience.

We headed back to the coach tired, but happy to have visited this beautiful city. There is just so much to see that we are going to visit again this year. I hope next time to be able to visit the unfinished church, and other Gaudi buildings and places such as Parque Guell.