Jardins de Mossèn Costa i Llobera, Montjuïc

You could spend a whole weekend walking around Montjuïc and not see everything there is to see. Of course there are the museums, the Olympic stadium and swimming pool, Montjuïc castle and the frankly underwhelming Poble Espanyol. But there are also a number of individual parks within Montjuïc itself that are all worth a visit. One that is tucked away on the eastern side facing the sea is the Jardins de Mossèn Costa i Llobera, named after the 19th century Catalan poet, Miguel Costa i Llobera, it is also known as the Cactus Park. This garden of succulents and semi-tropical plants perched on the steep side of Montjuïc below the Hotel Miramar, is a perfect place to escape the city, although you do get a certain degree of noise from the port and Ronda del Litoral below. Read the rest of this article…

“A perfect day in Barcelona for me would, without doubt, be spent during one of the sweltering, balmy days in mid-summer when your pace slows right down as the slightest movement results in beads of sweat trickling down your neck and back. At these times of year one of those fold-up fans that slips into your bag is indispensable, if you’ve not spent a summer in Barcelona then buy one in advance and be prepared. Fellas, you’ll have to make do with rolling up one of the free newspapers given out at metro stops until someone comes up with a male styled version.

D. Tomás Sirvent Planelles’ original 1920 premises near Santa Caterina market

So, to start my day. Seeing as it’s summer and my usual healthy appetite isn’t quite what it normally is, I might forgo a regular breakfast and just head straight to Sirvent off of Ronda de Sant Pau to pick up a large granizado de limon, a sweet yet tart crushed ice drink. The ice cream at Sirvent is also wonderful but I think it’s a bit early for a tub of that just yet. Read the rest of this article…