Touristy Barcelona!!!!

4.05 Euros is all that it took for a bus ride from the Barcelona International Airport to the city centre (Plaça de Catalunya). Unfortunately, the wait for this 35 minute bus ride is nearly 45 mintues. Reason? Well people, welcome to Barcelona, the Touristy place of Europe.

I got this word from my friend Gautam and was quite amused by the sound of it. I have caught on to this word eversince. Having known him for nearly 10 years now (Jeezz!!), he hasn't changed a bit. He still studies in a school(MBA at the IESE) and never fails to get inventive and slam dunk all my ideas. he is 8 inches taller than me, so height is not on my side too.

My first impression of Barca, as soon as I stepped out of the Aeropuerto was that this place is meant for tourists. I hate to be called a tourist. Unfortunately, my attire for the day had all the necessary ingrediants for the making of a tourist to Barca. A floral patterned summer shirt, Reebok sneakers, a half-jacket from Peter England, and a pair of Levis. Not to forget my cap and my backpack. Oops, and yes, the EOS 400D, that was hanging around my neck throughout this trip.


I got to stand in the Blue bus. The blonde tourist who was standing ahead of me at the bus stop queue also got to stand. The journey in the jampacked bus was throwing both of us all over the place. I was feeling uncomfortable. It was because of that large device around my neck.

Immediately on alighting from the bus, I began to feast on the Granny Smith which I carried from Arlanda. I was hungry.


The city centre is a crowded place. I saw only tourists. Everywhere.



Oh Oh!! Where have I come??


Without wasting much time, I headed to the Las Ramblas (or les Rambles as the Catalans call it).

I was only curious to know why this 1 km-odd stretch has gained such an conic status (err iconic status) amongst the travellers around the globe. I decided to unravel the mystery.

Its a touristy place.


There are street performers, florists, petty shops, streets-side bars, shops selling souvenir, short eats (tapas), bird shops, jewellery shops, etc, etc. Beggary was prominent in Barca, but , this was noticeably missing at the Ramblas.

Having lived in India for most parts his life, I was not too excited to see the crowd around this place. Somewhere half-way down the Ramblas, I turned right to enter the Merkat Boqueria (St. Josep). It claims to be the only marketplace to have a website of its own for buyers. I wasn't sure of that, but wanted to go in for the experience.



My verdict: Its good. Nobody here asks you to buy anything from them. From Strawberries to Octopuses, you will find 'em all here.


On the Ramblas, one can find many Student hostels lined up one after the other. I was told that anything on sale or for rent at Ramblas is very very expensive. Its like finding an apartment at the Wall Street. Crazy.


Heading further down, I reached the end of the Ramblas and hit the Port Vell, the Barcelona harbour. Before the Barcelona Olympics in 1992, the Port Vell, the city's old obsolete harbor was only a run down area with empty warehouses, industrial buildings, refuse dumps and railroad yards. In one of the most drastic urban renewal projects, the area was transformed into a yacht basin and entertainment center, opening the city up to the sea. A coastal road was moved underground and a pedestrian street now stretches from the Columbus monument to the Barceloneta neighborhood. A wooden pedestrian bridge takes one from the Rambla to the Maremàgnum, a complex with restaurants, cinemas, shopping centre and a large Aquarium.



This is a huge complex. I had my lunch here.



It was around 4 in the afternoon and it was time to meet Gautam. He had informed me earlier that he finishes his classes for the day around the said time. He wanted me to come to the Zurich Cafe, a well-known meeting place for the Catalunyan amigos. But I asked him to meet up in front of Hard Rock Cafe, a well-known meeting place for Earthlings and hard-rockers alike. It basically meant that I had another 30 minutes to walk back through the Rambla and hit the city centre. Its not easy walking against the ever increasing tide of crowd on that street.


I met Gautam after nearly 9 months.
Gautam never ceased to pull my leg on how touristy I looked that day. I was feeling embarrassed. I wanted to strip.


After the usual exchange of pleasantaries which largely comprised of enquiring about our mothers and sisters from imaginary world in the least derogatory manner(or was it?), we decided to head to Barri Gothic, which was not far away.

An Impressive Cathedral. Looked like a couple of hundred years old. A large renovation activity seemed to be under progress. All tightly protected by large sheets of polymer with Telefonica written all over it.


A party seemed to be on in front of the Cathedral. Old couples dancing.



Enterprising Gautam gladly took my backpack. But he continued to pull my leg.


I was sweating for the first time this year due to the prevailing humidity. We then got to see a large crowd awaiting for the bride and bridegroom to come out of the main entrance of the City Hall, next to the Cathedral. The lady in red impressed Gautam very much. He was disappointed with my camera's zoom capability though.

We then headed to the narrow streets in and around the Barri Gothic area. Very captivating. Some musicians were playing gothic music in front of the old town entrance. They will sing for money. I still looked touristy.


We decided to take a break. Gautam ordered some beer (Made in Egypt) served by an Indian. I learnt that Gautam's Spanish was as good as his Kannada.


We then decided to head towards Monjuic. In the process, I bought a T10 ticket at the Metro station. It costs 7.20 Euros and gives you ten rides.




At Montjuic, we were greeted by two towers. Gautam calls it Twin Towers. The Palau Nacional was about 600 metres behind and it looked majestic. We reached this place at around 6.30 pm and were overwhelmed by the mammoth structure. Directly below and opposite the Palau Nacional was the Font Magica fountains. I was told that the fountain display begins at 9 pm.


We reached the top of Montjuic and Gautam began complaining about the excessive walking that he had to do. I was complaining about the escalators made available at every 30 metres or so. Gautam was more than happy to make use of them.


The view from the top was not disappointing. I would have loved to see lesser habitation in Barcelona.


We then decided to walk towards the Olympic Stadium, which was closeby. I've never been to Athens, and have seen Mt.Olympia only over the television, four years ago. But viewing the modern structure of Olympic stadium in Barcelona is no different from the one in Athens. Superb!!


The majestic Telefonica Olympic Telecommunication tower greets you at the entrance.


We went around this place. The natural lights were beginning to fade. Artificial lights began to take over. Gautam continued to crib about the excessive walking. Now, his bladder was exerting tremendous pressure too.


So we walked some more. At one of the gates (where we were not allowed to enter), Gautam made friends with the Pakistani Security guard. On enquiring about the whereabouts of the nearest rest room, we were sent on a wild goose chase. We gave up.


We then headed back to the Magic Fountain region below. It was crowded. Like crazy. While I was trying to figure out which would be the best spot to sit and watch, Gautam continued his quest for the elusive rest room. Finally, we both found our spaces, not very far away from each other.


We both had vertigo, but somehow managed to overcome it and sit on top of a 20 feet wall, directly overseeing the spectacle that was about to flow. Balcony seats.


At the strike of 9 pm, the water begins to flow. After a while, the lights begin to glow. And finally the music. Mesmerising. Captivating. Stunning. I stopped clicking after my arms began to ache.



We were on top of the wall for about 90 minutes and then decided to head down close to the fountains and take some touristy snaps. Souvenirs from Barca.


We decided to go have some dinner. A place on the streets of Rambla, well-known for the Falafels. I was having this Middle-east delicacy for the first time. The funda at this place was very simple. Some 4.20 Euros for a Falafel (included 30 cents for extra chutney) and you have infinite servings of toppings. The choice for toppings included, some salad, olives, carrots in olives, mushrooms, chilli sauce, cauliflowers(reminded me of gobi manchurian), Gautam's favourite Channa and half a dozen more varieties. I feasted on it like a barbarian. Mayo was all over my face and my bag and my jacket. At some point of time, I realised I was supposed to have the Falafel too, which was yet to be annexed and was looking distant away with every topping I did. After about 35 minutes of struggle, I gave up and had to give up my throne. This should be the best Vegeterian dish I've ever had ever since I moved to Europe.

I owe Gautam big time for this.


We then decided to head back home with nothing much to do. Destination: Les Tres Torres.




Day2 was a Saturday, a day normally best spent by Gautam in the bed. I had some other plans for him. Unfortunately, he was successful in wasting half a day of mine. We got out around noon with an intent to go to the Sagrada Familia.


It began to rain. We headed back home from the bus stop and took umbrellas along. We were not sure how to get there. After a combination of a bus and a taxi ride, we reached this place called Sagrada Familia, a church considered to have sown seeds for the Modernist architecture of Europe. Say hello to Gaudi.

I took a 8 Euro entry while my school friend flashed his ID and saved 3 Euros on it. Another marriage gathering in the church. Well, how many more will I have to see?

The jaw drops in awe looking at this phenomenon. It was massive. Gautam is 6 feet 6 inches tall and even he was overshadowed by this towering structure. The towers, the sculptures, façade , the symmetrical patterns, the complexity and the associated history. Well, I was never an architecture guy, but this structure sure can incite some thoughts in you. The geometry is simply superb.

The interior of the church looked like a large construction site. Similar to the ones we used to see during the HAL Airport-flyover construction in Bangalore. I do not think they will ever complete this church. The construction is on for well over 120 years now and going by the pictures in the museum below, I do no think it will ever be completed atleast not in my lifetime.

The overall experience at Sagrada Familia was below my expectations.

We then headed to a nearby coffee shop, where Gautam had his snack and tagged it as lunch. I was hungry and I wanted to see much more than that Spanish dosa he had.

We then headed to Parc Guell, another of Gaudi's work. Initially, I couldn't understand why Gaudi built a house all the way up on top of a hill? To worsen, he had this nearly 18 hectare park built all around it and expected people to climb up there to do what? I went on top to find out. I got my answer and it was satisfactory.

I think I was able to see the entire Barcelona city from there, shored at the Mediterranean. Nice view. I once again wished Barcelona was not inhabited by so many people.

This was a very touristy place. I was still on a look out for the real experience.

We were done and out of this place in no time. I had my share of Churros on the way back to the metro station. Gautam confirmed the Beach party at the Barceloneta, and I was invited.

We hit the Ramblas again and enquired for the 10 pm Camp Nou game between Barcelona FC and a grade 4 team. We did not get the tickets. It was disappointing.

We walked couple of kilometers and reached the campsite-the rusted iron sculpture at Barceloneta. Our host for the evening was Felix and he was celebrating his birthday.

Now the commercial break begins and ends next day morning.

Day3 in Catalunya was meant for annexing Montserrat.

It was interesting to note that our trip to reach the summit included a metro journey, a cable car journey and a fernacular ride before embarking on the the medium difficulty-level trek. Its about 7 kms in all starting from the monastery, the base camp.

Gautam and his roomies (well the girl is not really "his" roomie and she would return to her home in Lithuania soon) encountered atleast 2 other groups of familiar people. One was a group of seniors from IESE. One of them was relocating to Stockholm and he enquired why is it so difficult to find a place to stay there?

Yeah right!! tell me about it.

The other group consisted of a manager (and his wife) who had interviewed Gautam and had offered him a position for summer intern. Gautam had rejected that offer.

Throughout the journey, we get to see some breathtaking views. Rocky mountains everywhere. We were greeted by Holas everywhere. I burnt every calorie that I had gained the previous night.

We finished the climb in about an hour. We took a break at the summit. I had an apple that was offered to me.

We took a different route on our way back to the Montserrat. This time it was through the thick forest. Slippery rocks are not easy to handle. Its even more challenging when you have a device around your neck.

In the process of this trekking expedition, I discovered a new mathematical equation: Trek to summit Sant Jeroni = hangover recovery from 9 cans of beer+2 glasses of Cava+4 large Whiskeys(not Chivas or JWB but some Spanish $%@&)

This trek was the highlight of my Spanish expedition. Attending one of the IESE lectures on Entrepreneurship with Gautam would have been a perfect icing on this cake, but he told me that the class is on a Tuesday morning unlike the earlier assumption of Monday morning.

The biggest disappointment was my inability to attend the Barca game at Camp Nou. It only means I have another reason to come back to Barca.

Looking forward to Prague in June. Behold Ethan Hunt and XXX!! Here I come.

PS: Some of the picture postcards from Barca can be found on my Picasa website.

Visit to the City Hall

Its been over 4 months since I arrived at the Capital of Scandinavia but have never got a chance to see the World famous City Hall at Stadshuset until yesterday. I got an invite from the Stockholm Business Region Development team for a Networking session. I was not going to miss this. This was probably the best place to shake hands.

Overseeing the lake Mälaren, the view from the courtyard of the City Hall was breathtaking.

I was awestruck by the green lawns, the grill work emanating from the Renaissance period and the magnificent fountains.

All in all, 8 million red bricks, all hand made were used to build this giant structure and it took about 10 years for completion (largely due to budget constraints). The description outside the structure says building completion happened in 1923.

My natural instincts were telling me to go back home load my Canon 400D and get on with the work that I do best. Unfortunately, I had to behave myself. I was a business delegate here in my Gucci suit.

The spiralling tower, all in all 76 meters tall with the 3 Golden Crowns symbolise Sweden. I could not climb up there as there was some restriction on account of a dinner party to be held later that day.

The flames out in the courtyard were not lit. They say its lit only on the 10th of December. for a moment, I thought I was entering a Roman castle.

I entered the much-talked about Blue Hall, better known for the Nobel Prize Banquet that is held every year on the 10th of December. My first impression of the Hall was that it was rather small.

On the D-day, 1100 dignitaries including the King and his family, the Prime Minister and his Council of Minsters and the Nobel laureates all gather in this hall. I was told that on an average each delegate has only 60 cms between 2 people to squeeze himself. All the more important for him to have good table manners.

I got to see the Menu card of the much-talked about Nobel Prize Banquent Dinner. Well, I got tired of going through it. A restaurant attached to the City Hall serves that dinner for about 2000 SEK. My monthly ration costs me slightly less than that.

As I entered the hall, an elaborate arrangement was being made for a banquet to be held later in the evening. I also got to climb the stairs where the King calls upon the Nobel Laureate and awards the Medallion and the Million bucks. There is a Star sign etched on one of the walls directly overseeing the entrance of the steps. The legend says the Queen is supposed to look up to the Star as she climbs down the stairs. To ensure that she does not fall down or trip on her own elaborate gown, the steps were spaced sufficiently wide to accommodate her entire toe. That was crazy.

The trivia associated with this Blue Hall is that there is nothing 'Blue' about it. It was supposed to be a open-air hall, with the blue sky top. It never happened. then somebody mooted we will paint the walls blue. That never happened. Finally they said lets name it Blue Hall in remembrance of the original theme.

From here, I climbed up to the Golden Hall. The name was not deceiving. It was gold everywhere. Must be the "richest" hall in the world.

Some 18 million mosaic pieces, imported from Italy each one having a 23.14 carat gold layer was used to create this masterpiece. I was wondering how did they manage to fund the construction of such a lavish hall? I later got to know that the budget sanctioned was for 6 Million Kroner before the start of the project. They completed the project for 13 Million Kroner. The Stockholmers were generous in the early 1920s and contributed individually for the completion of the masterpiece. Now they have some of the highest taxes in the world.

I can go on and on about this hall, but better facts are available in the websites out there, do I suggest readers to fetch them. Only noteworthy mention was a representation of India in this hall represented by an Elephant and a howdah.

Also located here is the Stockholm's City Hall Council Chamber, with 101 seats. There is an even representation of both the sexes. The extra seat(100+1) is to ensure avoiding the 50-50 voting scenario. The ceiling here was spectacular.

The city hall is more famous these days with the Stockholmers due to number of Civil Marriages that take place in the French hall here. The wannabies come here on the Saturdays between 2 pm and 4 pm and get married in 5 minutes.