Latest City Guides
| Barcelona |
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| By Michael Tulipan | ||||||||||||
Page 1 of 10  The vibrant Spanish city of Barcelona is a study in dichotomy, a place with two distinct languages, split between a modern metropolis and a gothic past, business savvy by day and pulsing with energy at night. For visitors, the city offers an embarrassment of riches, especially when it comes to art, architecture and history. The city of Barcelona is full of architectural marvels and is most closely associated with the architect Antoni Gaudí, the pre-eminent practitioner of Catalan Art Nouveau, also known as Modernisme. However, the city has its origins much earlier, dating back to about 15 BC, when it was established by the Romans. For many centuries after, the city was protected by large defensive walls, which contained and limited the city's growth.
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The area once within the walls, known as the Ciutat Vella (Old Town), is today the city's tourist nexus - the Barri Gothic, El Raval and La Ribera. Further inland, past Plaça Cataluyna, is the newer part of the city, starting with the Eixample, constructed on a grid from the 1850s onwards. Here you will find Gaudi's most famous works - La Sagrada Familia, La Pedrera and the Parc Guell. Near the imposing hill of Montjuic along the sea lies yet another revitalized neighborhood - the once neglected port area.