WALK ALL AROUND THE GOTHIC QUARTER
There is, of course, a full (new) kitchen, but who goes to BCN to cook? Within a one-minute walk of the apartment there are over 45 restaurants (including the unmissable Els 4 Gats - google it), the then café where the teenage Picasso had his first exhibition in 1899.
OWNER WILL MAKE SURE YOU DON'T STARVE!
I'll give you a list of the best (and most reasonable) local restaurants where the locals eat (you'll be the only tourists there!) as well as the out of the way small cafes and bars where interesting people drop in to have a drink and a chat. And where to find mojitos for €3.50!
And I'll let you in on the Barcelona fishermen's best kept secret - the address of the wonderful seafood restaurant where, for only €17, you will help yourself to as much fish soup, shrimp, oysters, paella (yes, as much paella as you want!), salads and other starters as you like. Go back for more. And after you finish all that, they will bring you the main course!
WALK TO THE CATHEDRAL - 3 minutes
While there is, of course, air-conditioning, the apartment is naturally air-cooled and ventilated by leaving the front and rear balcony double doors (floor to ceiling) open so that a nice breeze comes through the apartment. The narrow street, with 7 dress shops, a painter, artisans (puppet-maker, cabinet maker and watch-maker), curio shops and restaurants, is actually a stop on the Modernist Route (google it), so there is life on the street till after midnight. (Tourists of the better type, as it were, and not too many of them!). You are a 2-minute walk (across the Via Laietana) to the Music Palace, one of Barcelona's treasures (google Palau de la Musica) and one of the best places in Barcelona for a cup of coffee. Or enjoy an al fresco drink in at the café in Cathdral Square (3 minutes' stroll) or in Music Palace Square.
THE STREET AND AREA ARE VERY VERY SAFE SAFE SAFE
The street is tucked behind Police Headquarters and it is so safe that the expensive dressmaker boutique just a few doors up from the apartment does not see a need to have metal shutters over her shop window at night. And the dresses go for up to €800! See the photo below of the shop taken at 2 AM. And none of my tenants or friends who have stayed at the apartment (nor I) have ever had the slightest problem in the area around the apartment at any time, day or night. (I suppose being just behind Police Headquarters helps!)
WALK EVERYWHERE EXPLORING THE OLD CITY
But the real treat of the apartment is that 25 seconds from the hustle and bustle of the Via Laietana you are on a beautiful, very quiet (and well-lit) medieval street straight out of Cervantes and just 20 meters from the old monastery of Santa María de Montsío (1371). On the other side of the monastery, 25 seconds away, is a new children's playground with a café and the remains of the original Roman aqueduct. Plan your day at the cafe with the monastery and aqueduct right there. A walk through the Gothic Quarter or to El Born from the apartment is a walk back in time. There are 9 ceramic murals on the street (one is 5' x 3') with historical allusions or poetry.
WALK TO PASEO DE GRACIA TO SHOP - WHY PAY FOR TAXIS?
Plaza Catalunya, the heart of Barcelona, is a 4-minute walk from the apartment. The Passeig de Gracia with its designer shops and Modernist buildings, begins there. . At the Plaza Catalunya 2 metro lines, 2 train lines and 20 bus lines stop there. .
You can (and will) WALK EVERYWHERE from this apartment and save on time and taxi money.
I'll send you an email telling you where the jazz clubs, salsa dancing, wine tastings, cheese-tastings, beer tastings, local bars with tapas for €2 and wine for €1 per glass are, not to mention the tiny bars (14 sq. meters) where you have to chat with locals), I 'll also tell you where you can hear operatic arias or baroque music in a senyorial fuedal palace.All within walking distance from the apartment!
NO SMOKING - NO PETS - KIDS WELCOME
The apartment is for people who like to breathe clean air!. No pets are allowed. No parties are allowed as it is a residential building. The apartment is child-friendly.
LOCATION - LOCATION - LOCATION
CULTURE - CULTURE - CULTURE
I have read that Northamericans and Australians look for three things when they want to buy or rent a place . . . This is it.
Keywords: Newly refurbished apt on Moderniist Route in heart of BCN off Plaza Catalunya in Gothic Quarter
