Barcelona is a city of many charms, from gothic antiquities and Roman ruins to districts full of 19th century apartment buildings. It is justly famous for distinctive architecture from Gaudi and his Modernist contemporaries.
Barcelona is highly walkable, as long as you prize comfort over fashion, or wear truly comfortable boots. You can stroll long boulevards and gentle hills until you reach the outskirts of the city. Many neighborhoods have lots of tiny pedestrian-only streets with shops that open mornings and late afternoons for people shopping for their next meal.
The locals buzz about on motorcycles and shared-access bikes. We’ve noted a big increase in adoption of the shared bikes in the 12 months since our last visit here.
For those of us without bikes, we appreciate the metro, buses and trams. For just under 10 € you can get a 10-ride ticket that works across the transport system. There’s no problem sharing the ticket with your spouse or traveling companion. Yesterday afternoon we used up half the ticket…
When you need to rest your feet, there are lots of parks and greenbelts, or the nearly ubiquitous cafes and tapas bars.
We found a wonderful coffee shop just outside the Barri Gotic where the coffee beans are fresh roasted, and the barristas pride themselves on the quality of their coffee and hot chocolates. My hot chocolate was so thick and dense with chocolate that a spoon could practically stand up by itself.
I love window shopping here, especially the niche specialty stores.
But what I find surprising is the lack of yoga studios. After walking around the city for two days, I’ve come across few references to yoga. Here is the only public mention of yoga I have seen so far.