TRAVEL GUIDE TO BARCELONA

Barcelona is a Spanish city to those who have not yet been there. For it is an essentially Catalan city and Catalonia is not Spain by any means. At least this is what people there say. Barcelona is indeed the capital city of the autonomous region of Catalonia but this is not the only reason for its uniqueness.

Barcelona is Spain's most worldly city, putting in shade even the capital, and the home for footballing arch-enemies, Madrid. The city hosted the EXPO as early as in 1929. More recently, it organised the Olympic Games in 1992. Currently, it is home to the Forum Barcelona 2004, arguably the world's biggest cultural festival, though some are more restrained in praise, claiming it is overhyped. Anyway, the festival is an unbelievable 8 months of exhibits, concerts, cultural fairs, you name it. For its sole purpose, a whole new district was created, boasting state-of-the-art architecture, an artificial island and a brand new sand beach.

Barcelona is generally known for brilliant and controversial sometimes architectural achievements, the tradition of which was started by the man called Antonio Gaudi whose Church Sagrada Familia, or the Holy Family, is one of the wonders of the architecture. As if that was not enough, this 1.5 million metropolis is beautifully located on the Spanish Riviera , joining the city life with that of a sea resort. In the opinion of many, the famed Ibiza is nowhere near Barcelona in terms of entertainment and the beautiful beaches.

Before it became, ironically for its strong Catalan self-image, Spain's most recognisable city, Barcelona began as a small trading settlement in the year 230 BC. It was founded by the Carthaginians who first saw the potential of the area. Unfortunately for them, and often for the city itself, that potential did not come unseen for many rulers and their armies who would invade it habitually. First the Visigoths, then the Arabs, and finally the French, all fought for the control of the city. The period of relative peace and prosperity began after the French army drove the Arabs out of the city and its region in the 9th century. It took another five centuries for Barcelona to experience the first golden era in its history. Barcelona was a kingdom of sorts then, with possessions including Sicily, Malta, Sardinia, and even parts of Greece.

The 15th century was marked by the Barcelona's union with the kingdom of Castile, the founders of Spain as we know it today. The royal house of Castile's harsh politics against Barcelona and Catalonia contributed to its decline. The city re-surfaced only in the 18th century, both in terms of the economy and culture. The industrial revolution in Spain began in Barcelona and the so-called Catalan Renaissance popularised the local culture to the point of nationalism.

The black years of Spain's civil war did not leave Barcelona alone, especially if it was an important centre of the Republican and, more generally, leftist movement. The city fell to fascist Franco finally, in 1939. Franco unsuccessfully tried to curb the nationalist Catalan sentiment in the city and the region. If Franco's regime could not crush it, then it not surprising at all Barcelona's Catalan spirit re-emerged under democracy. This time, however, its autonomy, language, culture, etc. are not deemed a threat any more by Madrid. As long as there is not any talk about independence, of course. The independence backers do exist, but they are not any real political force, at least for the time being. The city and its autonomous region have enough say in what matters, it seems, with their own local parliament.

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