We hadn’t been to Barcelona since NYE 2019, so when our friend and former neighbor David Kamm suggested it as a place to meet up during his 40-day European sojourn, we were game.
We hopped on a very early morning train, which was not an ideal way to spend my birthday. As much as we like to travel by train, we’ve decided that Spanish trains could use some improvement. First, unlike the French trains, most of them lack wi-fi. Second, although Spaniards have a reputation for being noisy, we normally don’t find this to be true or bothersome, except for on trains. The Spaniards don’t seem to understand that the train is not your living room or office, so they are constantly talking on the phone or using their “outside” voices. It makes us crazy.
We stayed in a new part of town for us, away from the center, and found Barcelona’s metro, bus and tram system to be convenient and easy to use. But we still walked a ton. We explored the Gothic quarter on a free tour, where we heard some fascinating mythical tales about the various gargoyles on the cathedral. Can you spot the unicorn and the elephant?
We went back to the Miro Foundation to see a special exhibit about Joan’s close connection to his family. Having recently gone through our storage facility and disposed of so many mementos, it was fascinating to see Miro's wedding place card/menu with handwritten notes by the bride and groom ,together with their wedding photo. If you’re a famous artist, these things get displayed in a museum in a special exhibit. If you’re a normal person, eventually they get thrown away. (Actually, we weren’t that ruthless, we still have various wedding memorabilia!)
Miro had a fondness for setting aside works for his wife, daughter, and grandchildren. Unlike Picasso, he signed the back of his paintings and would then add a notation for the family member. To show this practice, the museum had the works set into special frames away from the wall.
The Constellation series, which Miro did as WWII broke out, was apparently a turning point in his career. This piece, which Joan gave to his wife Pilar, is the only one of the series that remains in Europe.
These pieces were done much later, in 1976, and set aside for specific grandchildren.
As always, the views from the Montjuic area are fabulous.
We spent a few hours at the Maritime Museum, which is located where the royal shipyards existed for centuries. There is a full-size replica of the Royal Galley from the battle of Lepanto in 1571, along with many other historical items, and others that are just entertaining.
Barcelona never disappoints. We enjoyed several good meals and bottles of wine with David.
More on the wine in the next post.
Hasta pronto,
Shana & Jeff
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