Barcelona? Why Not ?

One of the most beautiful cities in Europe

Barcelona Spain is one of the biggest influences that has ever been met, there is everything that you could desire there, from a walk to the park to the beaches to the night life the Music festivals, the Tapas, the coast and the shops, it is endless, Barcelona is a place of opportunity with its beautiful buildings and history, a short stay would never be enough to cover all there are numbers of attractions, The main street La Rambla is amazing with its flower stalls which give the la rambla a gorgeous array of color and .flavor There are pet stalls with baby rabbits, turtles , terrapins, birds and all childrens furry friends, with souvenir store's and high street shops on the road side restaurants are also on the la rambla where you can sit and watch all people from all walks of life explore this most famous area,there is always something going on in La rambla even on a Sunday the street will be very much alive, the street artists and entertainers make Barcelona a playground for all on your 1.2 kilometer walk on this famous street which is situated in the heart of the city,

Once you have got to the end of the La rambla you will stop at a place called Drassaness Line 3 Merto where you can sit and have a self portrait or watch the artist make something out of nothing as they dazzle you with there skills and oil paintings, a little further down from the artist there are some more home craft stalls of Beautiful crafted Jewelery clothes & bags,

The Mercat de San Josep is the fresh meat and fruit market in which fresh products are brought in daily, if you enjoy markets the sounds and sights will draw you in with the husltel and bustle of the daily market, there is a plentiful range here selling fruit fresh fish , meats and sweets there is enough to satisfy everyone its a nice atsmosphere in there so drop in and have a look,

Everybody loves a good market, the sights and sounds, the hustle and bustle, the thrill of bargaining, the objects you would never usually find, the smell of the freshest food. Luckily for you Barcelona markets offers a good range to please both the experienced and the novice market goer. This article will give you the top Barcelona markets, selling food to art, enough to satisfy anyone even if you want to buy or just look. Another good market for clothes, jewllery, shoes is the Mercat San Antoni, 10 Minutes by foot or the purple Line 2 from the red line 1 Universitat its only one stop so walking is pleasant as there are more uncovered shops, bars and restaurants, in the centre of the San Antoni market you will get your fresh meat and vegetables
Plaza Reial is a lovely victorian square where there are lots of restaurasnts and bars to choose from espacially if you want to sit in a more quiet location and have something to eat or drink, there is seating around the square if you wan tot soak up the sun and a water feasture in the middle if the square you can also sit around,in the night time there are lots of bars and discos you can head to in the square and around the square,

Once you get to the bottom of La Rambla you will get to Drassanes

Across the Road from drassaness Line 3 you will find the you will find the monument Colom The Christopher Columus Memorial , just across the road from that on your right you will find a small outdoor antique market which has all odds and sods for you to wade through,

You will also find on your at the bottom of the road past the colom as you cross all your boat and helicopter trip booths , So do it if you dare!! and fly high and see what Barcelona is really about, all the buildings are mostly built up in squares its so unique, you can also stop and feed the many fish there in the bay the tourists tend to through them bread

From the Monument Colom you can walk left and follow the road in which there are plenty of food and drink stops, whether you fancy eating at a bar or a quick grab booth you can get stuck into a fresh waffle or a hot dog, to find on your way more market stalls as you walk along and enjoy the beauty of the lines of yachts and some of them are monsters that line up all the way to Barceloneta the Beach area of Barcelona, and again you will be pulled in my the musicians that play along the walk from all over the world, Barcelona really is a experience, you will know when you get close to the beach because the restaurants will guide you all the way to the beach, smell of fantastic sea food being cooked just follow your nose and you will get there, and once you are there you will find the Barceloneta beach, the beach is always in good relaxed spirits and you can have a refreshing drink on the beach at one of the beach bars which are located a few hundred meters from each other, they offer a good menu, or you can drink the local drink in the shade and enjoy Sangria,there are also shops, bars and restaurants very close by,

To get to the beach area you can walk from Drassanes, Drassanes the green line 3 of the Metro stops the bottom of la ramblas, which a steady walk will take you 15 minutes unless you get a bike carrier which you can be pulled along by a cyclist this is approximately 6E and will seat 2 persons if you are tired and want to sit back! the Metro Stop for the Barceloneta beach is the Yellow line 4 the place you are heading for is called Barceloneta,Once you arrive at Barceloneta, make your way out of the entrance which in spain is called sortida, cross the road at the pedestrian crossing located on your left and walk straight ahead and you will be meet by a long row of delicious restaurants, that offer Paella, seafood dishes and a variety of foods to suit all.go to the end of this strip and you will find the opening of Barceloneta beach,If you feel like a good walk follow the beach all away along to the Mapfre towers these are skyscrapers that are owned by Mapfre insurance, look out for the big Gehry Fish Sculpture,

Again there are plenty of places to stop and eat , there are a lot of bike hire places on the beach look out for them if you feel like a ride along the beach, you can follow the beach all the way along, or you can even hire a scooter for a few days, further long you will find another harbor with sail boats and yachts

Dont Forget the Children

Cuitadella Villa Olympia ( L4 ) is a wonderful place that is very relaxing away from all the hustle and bustle of the traffic, Cuitadella park is of Barcelona favorite Parks this is a great place to chill and relax and if you have children then going to this park will be right up your street, there are playgrounds, and quite a few features to be found here you can also hire paddle boats that are on a small lake there kids love this,also if you or your children are animal lovers you will find Barcelona's Zoo situated in this park which is well kept and has a good mixture of animals, there are monkeys, lions tigers, zebras,tigers, snakes all different species from around the world, the Zoo is well kept and manicured, they even put on a very good dolphin show ,you can take a picnic lunch if you prefer as there as there are plenty of picnic areas around the zoo there is a souvenir shop and plenty of sit down and eat places where you can have a drink, sandwich or a burger

Gracia & Passeig De Gracia

Gracia is a lovely area to visit from Plaza Espanya you can catch the Green line 3 the metro stop is Fontana, Gracia has lots of pretty terraces that have a good selection of cafes and shops, Gracia is a good place to visit in the warmer months, its cool shady and breezy from the trees, there is a cross roads at the bottom of Gracia ajoining the Gran Via which is a very lond road again full of shops, cafes and businesses, the Gracia road can be walked too,, if you wan tto walk back to the centre,taking you through Passeig De Gracia on the way down, so its a good location to visit you fancy i nice pleasant walk back into town,

Gracia is a very warm neighbourhood and a close community resides there, some of the streets are really romantic,

Every year Gracia hold a number of festivals, one of the most popular is the street festival , where all the residentials there get together and create a marvel of decorations in each street, there is a prize for the best dressed street and the sights are fasinating and all made by the locals, its colourful bright and wanderous, it takes place the second week of August, there are childrens games, live music to get you dancing in the streets, and a giant carnival parade this parade starts at the Plaa Ruis I Taulet, also look out for the dressesd up devils and there fireworks, there is always something to look at and experience around every corner,this festival goes on for a few days so everyone will get a chance to visit Gracias entertainment