Columbus Monument Due to Re-Open in June

One of Barcelona's famous monuments, the statue of Christopher Columbus or Mirador del Colon, is due to re-open in June as  El Periodico reported recently. The column has a lift which can transport tourists up to the top to view a panorama of Las Ramblas and the Port Vell area, but has been closed since May of last year when six tourists got stuck in the lift and had to be rescued from the outside.

The reported cost of the repair work which is set to commence shortly is 200,000 Euros, which seems fairly steep for lift repair work, but the tourist board is prepared to assume the cost, given that the approximate 170,000 people that visit the monument each year generate a cool million Euros used to promote Barcelona in the tourist markets and fairs. The re-opening will coincide with the 125th anniversary of the opening of the monument - that's 1888 to save you doing the maths in your head.

I'll be completely honest, for the first year I lived here I never even knew you could go up there, and despite walking past it many an evening, I would never have thought you could fit a lift in the middle of it, never mind a viewing tower at the top although appearances can be deceptive. Now it's been given a super seal of approval over safety measures, it might just be time to pop along and have a look after all...

Anyone been up there? Any good or not really worth it ? Let me know in the comments!

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La Casa del los Pinxos

Some of you might be familiar with "pinxos" as a type of tapas, whereby each dish has a cocktail stick or two in the top which are counted at the end of your meal as method of payment in some restaurants. Well, alas, this is not a post about a restaurant of that name (may be tackled on another occasion!).

No, this is me thinking that there are so many cool buildings in Barcelona that often get overlooked due to the usual suspects taking all the glory. So it occurred to me that I could start a kind of mini-series of posts about buildings that are very distinctive and cool in their very own way, but don't necessarily merit a visit if you were on a whistle-stop tour of the city over some of the UNESCO masterpieces Gaudi's master hand penned.

So resisting the temptation of heading straight to wikipedia, I'll try and give you my opinion on a few places, the first of which is Casa Bartomeu Terrades i Brutau, more commonly known as the House of Spikes.



I've passed this building loads of times when my wife was pregnant with our two nippers as her doc was on that route, and I'd always found it very cool Like a downtown Disney castle with all the turrets and towers. I also don't mind admitting that I wouldn't have been surprised to learn it was a Gaudi design - given the brickwork similar to Park Güell and Palau Güell, too.



It's the design of another popular guy, though, Josep Piug i Cadafalch, and is actually three houses in one, built for Terrades' three daughters. As seems to be the norm with many of the Modernista buildings (and this is the only bit I'm quoting from an outside source) in 1905 a pamphleteer described the house as "a crime against the nation". If it looks wacky in 2010, I'm sure it must have raised a few eyebrows in 1905, but crime? me thinks not.



You could probably combine seeing this building on a sort of Modernista walk as it's visible from Diagonal/Rosello and not too far from Paseig de Gracia and also Casa Viçens, for example.



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UPDATE: Thanks for te comments correcting me on my terrible Catalan...here's the right spelling and photo!

Faith Moves Mountains...of Cash

Unless you've been hiding under a rock (why would you do that with such fantastic November weather we're having?!) you will know that this weekend sees the visit of the Pope to Barcelona, specifically to consecrate the Sagrada Familia Cathedral and perform the first mass there. Huge screens are being erected outside the surrounding streets, much of the area will be closed off to the public without a ticket, and the metro will not be stopping at Sagrada Familia station for the whole of the Sunday.



With such a massive amount of organisation and public funding, it's normal that the protesters are out with the balconies adorned with the "Jo no t'espero" campaign against Aids and the suggestion of a massive Gay kiss-a-thon (something like this) on Sunday as well. It's also been widely reported that people have been renting access to their balconies in and around the Sagrada Familia for the big day at some pretty impressive prices. I think I saw a report of a TV station paying a whopping amount to a community who are going to use the cash to put a lift in their building! Good on them!



All this as well, with the expectation that Gaudi might even turn out to be a saint!! Now, I'm not belittling what the guy did, and think he was a genius but absolutely crackers as well, but surely this is clutching at straws a bit? What do you think?!

Well, fear not people, as it's estimated that the Pope's visit will be leaving around 30 Million Euros in the fine city of Barcelona. Not sure how much everyday Joes like you and I will see of it, but it definitely shows that faith can move mountains. Mountains of cash!!

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BCN To Hold World Architecture Festival

If you're not too overwhelmed with the Pope's visit to Barcelona and the Sagrada Familia next month, then you might be interested to hear that Barcelona has been chosen to host this year's World Architectural Festival. With a host of impressive building's itself and proud of it's 9 UNESCO World Heritage Sites, Barcelona would be an obvious choice.

Over 1000 architects from 80 countries will be attending to crown what the average Joe would call the coolest building of the year award, I suppose! A massive judging panel will decide on the best building over many different categories (it's not as simple as I'm making out), meaning essentially many winners. The panel is comprised of most of the top names in architectural offices around the world including Sir Norman Foster, responsible for the communications tower in Barcelona, and also the planned transformation of FC Barcelona's Camp Nou stadium, too.


And what better backdrop than the sprawling Metropolis that is Barcelona? The city is an amazing example of gentrification and transformation of urban planning. So much so, in fact, that The Royal Institute of British Architects awarded its Gold Medal to the entire city of Barcelona instead of an individual in 1999. Sir Richard Rogers is also heading an “Urban Task Force” which is said to provide “Barcelonization” of 10 British cities, including Newcastle-Upon-Tyne, amongst others. To this note, one of the keynote speeches of the festival is Josep Acebillo's "Transformation of Barcelona".

The Festival is to be held from the 5th to 9th November, and tickets are still available. If you're looking for accommodation in Barcelona during the conference, then check out BCN Rentals website.

New Modernista Museum Opens in Barcelona

It's well known that Barcelona is a haven for those who love architecture, with some of the most famous buildings in Europe so easily recognised by many people. The city boasts 9 UNESCO World Heritage Sites with all but one of those being a building (the one that isn't is Park Güell). It's also no surprise that 7 of the 9 UNESCO World Heritage sites in Barcelona have been created by the hand of Antonin Gaudi. Gaudi was considered to be one of the most influencial figures in the Modernitsta movement, and even the other two sites not by Gaudi are Modernista buildings, too: Hospital Sant Pau and Palau de la Musica Catalana. So, what the devil is Modernista?



At a time where industry was flowing in Barcelona (cotton, fabrics, etc.) many of the wealthy folk of the city commissioned buldings to be built for them and their families. It seems like there was a competition for the wackiest buildings and designs with a disregard for uniformity and "fitting in" - hence the well known "manzana de discordia" or the Block of Discord which has the most remarkable display of buildings in such a small radius, and why today thousands of people flock to see such buildings as Casa Mila, Casa Battlò, Casa Viçens, Palau Güell, etc. etc.

However, the Modernista movement was not only reflexcted in buildings. Obviously art played a huge role in the movement, and sculptures, ornaments, furniture, etc. can all be considered to fall undert the same category. Until now, it's possibly been difficult to recognise just exactly what could be considered Modernista (unless you visit the period attic apartment in La Pedrera), so there's a good reason to be happy this weekend with the inauguration of the Museu del Modernisme which sets to showcase 400 different pieces displaying the disciplines within Modernism. The museum is located on Calle Balmes, number 48, which is a nice central location, and is sure to be a success for those wanting to expand their knowledge on the subject. From the Facebook page, the virtual images certainly look great, and I'll be popping along sometime soon to check it out as well.

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Spot the Difference.

OK, first I'd like to apologise for the quality of the image, but this was literally something that I came across this morning and thought it would be interesting to add - but the pic was taken really quickly. However, you should get the idea. First click on the image below to see a bigger version.

There are two buildings in the photo which are undergoing work on the facade. At first glance you can easily see the huge promotional canvas that is covering the building on the right with the car ad. So, where's the other?

No, it's not a trick.

Many blocks of Barcelona Apartments in the city have the scaffolding covered in a replica image of the building itself. I have no idea if this is some kind of rule by the council that certain buildings are not allowed to have ads , or if they want to put a cap on how many ads a street can have, or if it's something to do with too much distraction for drivers (this pic was taken at the intersection of Diagonal and Paseo de Gracia) - so please feel free to comment if you know.

Many of the buidlings receive help from the local council, subsidising the costs of the works on facades, as they do with the installation of elevators, for example. These buildings also have a banner/advert with "Barcelona posa't guapa" to show the support given by the council(literal translation is Barcelona, "get yourself pretty") and I think it's a good idea. Often some streets, especially in the Old Town of Barcelona are spoiled by derelict, imposing edifices abandoned and in ruin. That the council wants to help in renovation plans, can only be a good thing. I remember when I first arrived here, though, that I thought it was so funny replacing the building's facade with a cover....of the building's facade! I'm encouraging comments here as to your opinions and thoughts, so feel free to add something!