Over the holidays my friends and I were discussing where we had been in Europe and what places were still on our bucket list of places to see and explore. As it turns out none of us had ever been to Barcelona, mainly due to the press and it’s reporting of how along with Venice and Dubrovnik the city was just overrun with tourists.

After having looked into it in more detail it turns out that the overcrowding is due to the massive cruise ships that pull into port during the summer months and unload their thousands of passengers onto Barcelona’s streets for a day of sightseeing.

Having decided that this should not be a problem in the middle of May, my friends and I decided that Barcelona would be a great place to go for a short trip.

With our tickets in hand, we left work early on Friday and headed straight to Luton Airport for our 17:05 easyJet flight to the Catalonian capital.

OD Hotel Barcelona

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Playa de la Mar Bella

“Barcelona… the city that Anthony Bourdain of No Reservations described as “the most exciting place to eat in the Western world”.

The perfect day in Barcelona would fall in late September, when the stinging heat gives way to long barmy nights. Barcelona is the only global city with access to incredible beaches via public transport (Sydney and Rio de Janeiro also come to mind), so a morning swim at Playa de la Mar Bella is obligatory.

Breakfast in Spain does not hold the same status as it does in the UK (Full English) or Latin America (Calentado), but a slice of melon draped with jamon, some fresh mato cheese with honey and the caffeine kick of a cortado is a nice way to start the day.

Shops and galleries begin opening at 10am in Barcelona so a visit to the Picasso Museum, the Ferran Adrià & El Bulli exhibition and Roca Gallery will easily fill a few hours and have you thinking about lunch. Read the rest of this article…

Casa Batlló

“I have to thank Rob for letting me share on his blog one of the routes I’ve done on more than one occasion when I go to Barcelona. We usually go alone my Nikon camera and I, from now on I will have the feeling that you’re all accompanying me, it will be a pleasure.

I have the great fortune to live 30 km from this fantastic city, which allows me to get there any day of the week. I don’t know why, but I usually choose Wednesdays. I suppose that even though the city is always crowded with tourists and local people, you can still breathe the calm of the beginning of the week.

First of all a good breakfast and if it can be Pa amb tomaquet i pernil (Bread with tomato and ham) all the better. I know! It is very typical, but… the roots are the roots. Once I have the batteries fully charged I start the route. I advise that if you want to follow me you’d better wear comfortable shoes, because the whole journey is by foot. Read the rest of this article…