Barcelona - Jan 2020 - The Palace of Music

As you may have read, my prior blog entry was also about Barcelona, but 2 1/2 months ago around the begining of November.  Back then, it was sunny and people were at the beach.  Not THIS time!!

I wanted to get away from Mallorca due to the lousy weather we were having in January.  Storm Gloria was upon us and it was rain, rain, rain, and winds.  So, I decided to pop on over to Barcelona for 3 nights, 4 days.  Wellllll.....the weather was the same there!  I didn't think to check the weather reports!

I didn't do a Home Exchange.  Instead, I stayed in a nice hotel in the heart of the most popluar area of the city.  It was SUPPOSED to be a cheap getaway in the winter off-season.  First thing that went awry was the price of the hotel.  On Booking.com it was $162 for 3 nights.  But, it went up to $184 a short time later and when I finally was able to book it later the same day, it had gone up to $219.  One reason I had chosen Sunotel was not only the location but it had a rooftop jacuzzi and I wanted to go soak in it for hours.

Then, at the airport, Air Europa wouldn't honor my resident discount...I had to pay $94 more or not go.  My 3 night cheapie getaway was now exceeding $400.

It was a very bumpy flight, but BCN is only 40 minutes away, no biggie.

The first two days were windy and rainy and in the evenings thunder and lightning.  For some odd reason, the hotel didn't have a cover on their jacuzzi which all the cold rain falling into the hot water cooled it off so much, it wasn't worth using.  

The 3rd, and last day of my stay, the sun came out and I finally got to use the jacuzzi and had it all to myself.  Annoyingly, though, there was a timer that shut it off every TWO minutes!! Good grief!!  I must've punched the start button 20 times while in it!

Ok, so enough with my whining and let's look at some cool photos and video....shall we?

Arc de Triomf
It was built as the main access gate for the 1888 Barcelona World Fair.

Love these ornate street lamps along the promenade

Huge urns on top of the wall that lines the promenade
(you can see them in the next photo)
Love the snails!

Next, I headed over to Plaza Espana where I had previously seen (from the outside only) a former bullfightng stadium converted into a shopping mall.  I wanted to see what they did inside.

Plaza Espana

I paid $1.50 to ride the glass elevator up to the rooftop of the Arenas Mall, a former bullfight stadium

Watch this video as I tour the inside of the mall

The Venetian towers you see below were built for the 1929 Barcelona International Expo to mark the gateway to the exhibition district which now encompasses the Palau National, Magic Fountain, Montjuic, and venues from the 1992 Olympics.

The Palau de Musica
(Palace of Music)
Opened 1908
Seats 2,200

There's a story behind this stunning theater!!  In 1998, I had the thrilling experience of performing here, with the Seattle Mens Chorus, while on a tour of Europe.  Even though most of our program was in English, we finished with a song in Catalan.  At the end of the show, the audience went nuts with a standing ovation.  We left the stage and headed down the long ramp to the dressing rooms, disrobing along the way.  We could still hear the audience roaring and it wasn't dwindling.  Suddenly, someone shouted 'GET BACK ON STAGE!!'.   We ran back up the ramp madly trying to put our tuxes back on and took another bow.  The audience was utterly amazing and I'll never forget THAT experience, in THAT hall!!!!!

Located on a cramped street it's almost impossible to get a good photo of the entire exterior

18 Muses line the back of the stage, depicted playing various instruments

Outside on a small balcony

Tiny ticket windows!!!

Watch this video as I take the ($18) tour of the Palau de Musica interior spaces

Just a block away from the Palau is this interesting building that has a stenciled/wallpaper look

Back on Las Ramblas, I walked past the Corte Ingles department store

(much like Macy's back home)

I love the beautiful glass and iron canopy and light fixtures above the entrance to Corte Ingles

Mercado Boqueria on Las Ramblas

Soooooo tempting!!!

For $5, I purchased one of these funnel-shaped treats filled with shrimp, scallops, calamari and french fries

The next day, I was anxious to go see Gaudi's Park Guell.  I hadn't been there since 1998 and looked forward to spending more time roaming around its village.  I took two busses to get to the site way up on a hill, then hoofed it another 100 meters or so uphill to the parking lot and entrance gate.  It didn't seem very busy.  I was greeted by security guards who informed me the park was closed due to damage (mainly trees/brush) from the high winds of the previous day.  DANG!!!  Next time.

THE END

By the way, if you're interested in viewing any of my past entries about travelling around Europe and where I live in Mallorca, simply scroll down past my signature to the end.  There, you'll see 'Blog History'.  You can click on any Month/Year to see the titles I published at that time.  Simply click on the title you're interested in and it will take you to that page.

Next up... 
Seville and Cadiz, Spain!!

Dano