Visiting Barcelona [Part 5/5]: Sunset on Barceloneta Beach

As the sun began to set on our last day in Barcelona it was time to visit a much sought after part of the city: the beach at sunset. The big city beach in Barcelona is located in a part of town called La Barceloneta. The neighborhood is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea, the Moll d'Espanya of Port Vell, and the El Born neighborhood and even has its own flag. We were in for a last treat and I hope you will enjoy these final images from our Barcelona Travel Series.

This is only a part of a 5-part travel series to Barcelona:
Part 1: Sagrada Familia
Part 2: La Rambla, Old Town and Park Guell
Part 3: Montjuic Castle and Port Olimpic
Part 4: Casa Mila, Casa Batllo and Park Ciutadella
Part 5: Sunset on Barceloneta Beach

Barcelona Estació de França Station

Before we arrived at the beach we walked from the Park Cituadella which I have shown you in the previous part. This walk took us along the Barcelona Train Station named Estació de França. It is the second busiest railway station of the city after Barcelona-Sants in terms of regional and long-distance ridership. I entered it because its architecture caught my attention.

It's a very grand station, with trains spread out over 14 platforms. You can enter without having a ticket and roam freely and take pictures, which I enjoyed a lot. It is generally seen as the city's most beautiful station. It is worth seeing in its own right for the restrained mix of classical and more modern styles - complete with decoration in marble, bronze and crystal, and modernista and art déco motifs. Over the last three decades it has been eclipsed as Barcelona’s main station by the subterranean sprawl of Sants. Indeed, most other stations of Barcelona are at least partly underground.

Lunch in the Port

We had a great lunch in a Italian restaurant called "La Tagliatella". Some of us had pizzas, other pasta dishes and risotto. Very good food for a reasonable price, which is all you can ask for, especially in Barcelona where the prices can get steep very quickly.

La Barceloneta

La Barceloneta homes a satisfied quantity of small bars or clubs, where one can eat dinner or order a drink until the wee hours of the early morning. Upon arrival to the beach, the environment and atmosphere of La Barceloneta changes. Today, the cosmopolitan neighborhood reaches its maximum entertainment factor in the summer.

The Barceloneta was once the home of fishermen, people associated with the fishing trade and the metal industry, and is now one of the city's most visited and popular districts. In 1988, in pre-Olympic days, the decision was taken to demolish the old beachfront restaurants, known as xiringuitos, and public baths, heralding a process of opening the city up to the sea and the modernisation of an area which now offers first-class beaches as the main attraction for its visitors.

This part of Barcelona is considered one of the best places to try fresh fish or paella in Barcelona. A great selection of tapas are also offered off any menu. The most typical of the tapas of La Barceloneta would be called the "bomba." It is a ball of potatoes filled with meat and the selection of spicy sauce or the classic aioli. A "caña," a glass of beer from a barrel, is always served as well. Towards the beach, one might come across balconies with clothes hanging to dry, all types of shops, wineries, bars, and restaurants.

Located in the traditional fishing district, this is one of Barcelona's oldest and best-loved beaches. It is thought to have inspired Miguel de Cervantes as the setting for the fight between Don Quixote and the Knight of the White Moon. It was here that the knight errant was finally defeated and abandoned his quest.

The day came to an end and so did our stay at the beach. The weather wasn't too warm which made sitting at the beach enjoyable but also meant we couldn't take a swim which I was very poised about. Anyway, we went back to the hotel and next day it was time to return back home. Six wonderful days in Barcelona flew by and left were the memories of this amazing city on the Mediterranean.

Thank you all for visiting and reading this travel series. The response was really big which I'm very happy about. If you have missed previous parts you can view them through the links at the top of this post. It won't be long before a new travel series starts...

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