Barcelona

In 133 B.C.,  the Romans conquered the city built by an Iberian tribe and founded a colony they called Colonia Favencia Julia Augusta Paterna Barcino — beautifully shortened to "BARCELONA"!

TRANSPORTATION

The Metro consists of four lines and offers an inexpensive, comfortable and fast means of transportation. Also available is the Tourist Bus 100. This continuous shuttle visits 16 of the most popular sights in Barcelona and runs about every 30 minutes daily.

BANKS

Hours: Open Mon.-Fri. from 9am to 2pm. Sat. from 9am-12:30. Large hotels have exchange facilities.

SHOPPING

The most elegant shops in the city can be found along the Passeig de Gracia, Rambla de Cataluna and Avinguda Diagonal. The city's biggest shopping center is Galeria Preciados, containing stores such as Dorothy Perkins to Marks & Spencer. Most shops are open weekdays 9-1:30 and 5-8. Virtually all are closed on Sundays.

La Manuel Alpargatera  A highly traditional Catalan item is the canvas and rope-soled shoes called espadrilles. Buy them here, along with Panama hats and bucket bags galore. Closed Sunday.

Molsa  Antique pottery and beautifully made linens, some of the finest in Barcelona.

Poble Espanol  This popular re-created Spanish village features a few dozen stores where craftspeople demonstrate their work, and sell crafts from every part of Spain: glassware, leather goods, pottery, paintings and carvings.

Els Encants   Barcelona's biggest flea market, is held Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday 8-7. Here you will find antique lamps, clocks, handcrafts, and clothing. Haggling is the rule here, so be prepared to do so.

MUSEUMS

Museum of Catalan Art  Built in 1929 and recently renovated. This fascinating collection contains many pieces donated by Pable Picasso, Joan Miro, El Greco, Velazquez, and Zurgaran. The collection comprises works from the 13^th to 16^th centuries.

Museum of the Royal Pedralbes Palace   The palace is a reminder of the last days of peace before the outbreak of the Civil War. It was built in the 1920's for King Alfonso XIII just before he was dethroned, and it still holds many royal furnishings and possessions. It's also the home of the Ceramics Museum.

Museu Thyssen   This magnificent collection, just opened in the refurbished Pedrables Monastery, is part of the famed Thyssen-Bornemisza collection now permanently housed in Madrid.

Fundacio Antoni Tapies   One of the great names of 20^th-century Catalan art, Antoni Tapies also stood for the spirit of resistance to Franco in the 1960s and '70s. His life's work has been installed in one of the Eixample district's best modernist building and is crowned with a tangled metal "hairdo" that Tapies named Cloud and Chair.

Miro Foundation   A gift from the artist Joan Miro to his native city and one of Barcelona's most exciting contemporary art galleries. Miro died in 1983 and now rests in a nearby cemetery.

Picasso Museum   Malaga-born artist Pablo Picasso is often considered a native son of Barcelona by virtue of the long time he spent there as a student and young man. Two 15^th-century palaces provide a handsome setting for his works donated on 1963 and 1970. Although containing few of his major works, a visit is warranted to view sketches from his childhood, pictures from his Blue Period, and his famous Cubist variations.

Maritime Museum   This superb museum is full of ships, including a life-size reconstructed galley. The building was Spain's first arsenal and is among the oldest boat yards in the world.

Museum of City History   Sits on top of Roman remains of the city dating from circa 230 B.C. The remains of the Roman settlement in the basement include the foundations of private residences, a necropolis, public baths and an olive oil mill.

Archaeological Museum   Contains important finds from the Greek ruins on the Costa Brava, as well as from the Balearic Islands.

Bullfighting Museum   Contains photos of famous toreadors, costumes, and other bullfighting memorabilia.

Museum of the Sagrada Familia   Barcelona's most eccentric landmark. In the crypt of Gaudi's unfinished cathedral is a museum with the architect's scale models and photographs showing the progress of the construction, as well as photos of his funeral. He was run over by a tram and, unrecognized for several days, died in a pauper's ward in 1926. Construction began again in 1940 but faltered due to confusion over Gaudi's plans.

Military Museum   Perhaps the best thing about this museum is the teleferic (cable car) that you can catch to the top of Montjuic hill in order to see it. The building is a star-shaped fort that houses an extensive military arms collection, model castles, and military uniforms.

Palau Guell   This museum of Theater Arts was built by Antoni Gaudi in 1886 for his patron, the textile baron Count Eusebi de Guell, and it propelled the architect into the international limelight. The museum houses theatrical archives containing memoirs of Catalan literary figures, props from long-forgotten stage hits, and interesting antique theater posters.

Museu Frederic Mares   Hidden away deep within the Gothic Quarter is this curious stone museum with its soaring bevelled ceilings, curved, broad staircases, and a statuary collection. Catalan artist/collector Mares' treasures include Roman remains as well as Roman-to-Gothic collectibles. Upstairs you'll find the Museum Sentimental containing everyday objects from the last two centuries.

HIGHLIGHTS

Columbus Monument   Barcelona is very keen on Columbus, because it was here (to the Great Royal Palace's Tinell Salon) that he came back to Queen Isabella in 1493 with his first reports of the New World. Take the elevator to the top of the monument for a breathtaking view of the city.

Palacio Real Mayor   The residence of the Barcelona nobility and later home of Aragon's royalty. King Marti's Tower with its elaborate staircase looms above the very spot where Columbus reported back to Isabella with the first "Indians" in his retinue.

Cathedral of Barcelona   Built from 1298 to 1450 (the spire and neo-Gothic façade were added in 1892), highlights are the beautifully carved choir stalls, Santa Eulalia's tomb in the crypt, the cruicifix in the Lepanto Chapel, the tall cloisters surrounding a tropical garden, and the high altar. The Sunday Sardana or weekly dance outside the cathedral is something you must try to see.

Santa Maria del Mar   The most perfect of all Barcelona's Gothic churches. It was built from 1329 to 1383, during the reign of Alfonso the Good. It's a superb example of Catalon Gothic, with a 15^th-century rose window and a stained-glass representation of the Last Judgment.

Casa del Ardiaca   Located in front of the Episcopal Palace, the "Archdeacon's palace" was constructed during the Middle Ages as the residence of Archdeacon Despla, and is now the Municipal Institute of History. The cleric had a Pieta designed for his oratory and at the center of the house is a remarkable fountain.

Episcopal Palace   This 13^th-century palace is capped with an 18^th-century portal and opens onto a courtyard of mixed Romanesque and Gothic vintage, adjacent to an ancient Roman city wall.

Casa Mila   "The Quarry", still inhabited by tenants on long-term controlled rents, is Gaudi's most dramatic building aside from the cathedral. Its remarkable curving stone façade with ornamental balconies actually ripples its way around the corner of the block.

Palau de la Musica Catalana   Created by architect Domenechi Montaner in 1908, this art nouveau concert hall is the masterpiece of the Catalan "Modernismo" movement of the last century. The building is a delightful venue for opera and music. Closed Sunday.

Monestir de Pedralbes   This Gothic "monastery of the white stones" has been a convent since Queen Elisenda made it a treasure house of medieval art in the early 14^th century.