Barcelona Santa Maria del Mar

Barcelona Santa Maria del Mar:
One of the most perfect surviving examples of the Catalan Gothic style, this graceful basilica stands out for its characteristic horizontal lines, plain surfaces, square buttresses and flat-topped octagonal towers. Its superb unity of style is down to the fact that it was built relatively quickly, with construction taking just 55 years (1329 to 1384). Named after Mary as patroness of sailors, it was built on the site of a small church known as Santa Maria d'Arenys (sand), for its position close to the sea.


In the broad, Barcelona Santa Maria del Mar, single-nave interior, two rows of perfectly proportioned columns soar up to fan vaults, creating an atmosphere of space around the light-flooded altar. There's also superb stained glass, especially the great 15th-century rose window above the main door. The original window fell down during an earthquake, killing 25 people. The incongruous modern window at the other end was a 1997 addition, belatedly celebrating the Olympics.

It's perhaps thanks to the group of anti-clerical anarchists who set the church ablaze for 11 days in 1936 that its superb features can be appreciated - without the wooden Baroque furniture that clutters so many Spanish churches, the simplicity of Barcelona Santa Maria del Mar lines can emerge. On Saturdays, the Barcelona Santa Maria del Mar basilica is in great demand for weddings, and it's a traditional venue for concerts, particularly the Requiem Mass at Easter and Handel's Messiah at Christmas.

Barcelona Santa Maria del Mar Address

Plaça de Santa Maria
Area Born & St Pere
Transport Metro Jaume I .
Telephone 93 310 23 90
Open 9am-1.30pm, 4.30-8pm Mon-Sat; 10am-1.30pm, 4.30-8pm Sun.
Admission free.

Barcelona Jardins Mossèn Costa i Llobera

Barcelona Jardins Mossèn Costa i Llobera
The port side of Montjuïc is protected from the cold north wind, creating a microclimate two degrees centigrade warmer than the rest of the city, which is perfect for 800 species of the world's cacti. This extraordinary collection has been closed to the public for some time while funding for essential maintenance is sought.

Barcelona Jardins Mossèn Costa i Llobera Address
Ctra de Miramar 1
Area Montjuic & Poble Sec
Transport Metro Paral·lel, then funicular .
Open 10am-sunset daily.
Admission free.

Barcelona Jardí Botànic

Barcelona Jardí Botànic:
After the original 1930s botanical garden was disturbed by the construction for the Olympics, the only solution was to build an entirely new replacement. This opened in 1999, housing plants from seven global regions with a climate similar to that of the Western Mediterranean.


Everything about the futuristic design of the Barcelona Jardí Botànic, from the angular concrete pathways to the raw sheet steel banking (and even the design of the bins), is the complete antithesis of the more naturalistic, Gertrude Jekyll-inspired gardens of England. Barcelona Jardí Botànic is meticulously kept, with all plants being tagged in Latin, Catalan, Spanish and English along with their date of planting, and has the added advantage of wonderful views across the city. There is a small space housing occasional temporary exhibitions and useful, free audio guides to lead visitors through the gardens.

Barcelona Jardí Botànic Address
C/Doctor Font i Quer
Area Montjuic & Poble Sec
Transport Metro Espanya /bus 50, 55, 61.
Telephone 93 426 49 35
Open Jan, Nov-Dec 10am-5pm daily. Feb-Mar, Oct 10am-6pm daily. Apr-May , Sept 10am-7pm daily. June-Aug 10am-8pm daily.
Admission €3.50; €1.70 reductions; free under-16s. Free last Sun of mth.

Barcelona Font Màgica de Montjuïc

Barcelona Font Màgica de Montjuïc: Still using its original plumbing, the 'magic fountain' works its wonders with 3,600 pieces of tubing and more than 4,500 light bulbs. Summer evenings after nightfall see the multiple founts swell and dance to anything from the 1812 Overture to Freddie Mercury and Montserrat Caballé's Barcelona, showing off its kaleidoscope of pastel colours. In July 2008, a new piece was inaugurated with the Barcelona Font Màgica de Montjuïc fountain choreographed to film soundtracks including Blade Runner, Gladiator and Lord of the Rings.

Barcelona Font Màgica de Montjuïc Address
Plaça Carles Buïgas 1
Area Montjuic & Poble Sec
Transport Metro Espanya .
Telephone 93 316 10 00
Open 9am-5pm daily. Shows (every 30 mins) May-Sept 9.30-11pm Thur-Sun. Oct-Apr 7-8.30pm Fri, Sat.
Admission free.

Centre Civic Pati d'en Llimona

Barcelona Centre Civic Pati d'en Llimona: From the street, peer through the glass paving slabs and windows to see the excavated foundations of a round defence tower that dates from the earliest Roman settlement, along with the remains of a Roman bath and house that stood against one of the gates of the city wall.

In the 15th century, a luxury town villa was built on the site; the courtyard still contains various capitals with carved faces from this period (along with a sculpture of two female nudes by local hairdressing king, Lluis Llongueras). The Centre Civic Pati d'en Llimona activities include photography exhibitions, workshops, theatre shows and poetry readings.

Barcelona Centre Civic Pati d'en Llimona Address

C/Regomir 3
Area Barrí Gòtic
Transport Metro Jaume I .
Telephone 93 268 47 00
Open Exhibitions 9am-9pm Mon-Fri; 10am-2pm, 4-8pm Sat. Closed Aug.
Admission free.

Barcelona Cementiri Sud-Oest

Barcelona Cementiri Sud-Oest: Designed by Leandro Albareda in 1880, this enormous necropolis, sits at the side of the motorway out of town, and is a daily reminder to commuters of their own mortality. The dead were originally placing them in four sections: one for Catholics, one for Protestants, one for non-Christians and a fourth for aborted foetuses. Barcelona Cementiri Sud-Oest now stretches over the south-west corner of the mountain, with family tombs stacked five or six storeys high.


Many, especially those belonging to the gypsy community, are a riot of colour and flowers. The Fossar de la Pedrera memorial park remembers those fallen from the International Brigades and the Catalan martyrs from the Civil War. There is also a Holocaust memorial and a mausoleum to the former president of the Generalitat Lluís Companys.

The cemetery Barcelona Cementiri Sud-Oest is much visited, in particular on All Saints' Day, when the roads are clogged solid with cars. In 2007, modernisation and expansion of the facilities started in order to provide more parking space, flower stalls, a new entrance and, eventually, a new home for the city's collection of funeral carriages at the Barcelona Cementiri Sud-Oest.

Barcelona Cementiri Sud-Oest Address

C/Mare de Déu de Port 54-58
Area Montjuic & Poble Sec
Transport Bus 38 .
Telephone 93 223 16 83
Open 9am-5pm daily.
Admission free.

Barcelona Casa Àsia

Barcelona Casa Àsia: This cultural centre for Asia and the Asian Pacific is housed in the jaw-droppingly ornate Palau Baró de Quadras, designed by Puig i Cadafalch. If you can tear your eyes away from the lavish carvings and mosaics, there are a variety of excellent temporary exhibits covering anything from modern Chinese abstract art to Iranian graphics.

The underlying function of this organisation, however, is the promotion of Asian culture in Barcelona with language courses, international conferences and cinema cycles (often subtitled in English). Barcelona Casa Àsia also features an oriental café on the ground floor and an excellent multimedia library on the fourth floor, which allows visitors to hire CDs, DVDs and books on presentation of their passport or ID card.

Address

Avda Diagonal 373
Area Eixample
Transport Metro Diagonal .
Telephone 93 238 73 37
Open Exhibitions 10am-8pm Mon-Sat; 10am-2pm Sun. Library 10am-8pm Mon-Fri; 10am-2pm Sat. Café 10am-9pm Mon-Fri
Admission free.