Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
LOCAL KNOWLEDGE
THE GREEN FAIRY
Thu-Sat; Liceu)
has been in business since 1820, and has served the likes of Heming-
way, who was known to slump here over anabsenta(absinthe). The bar still special-
ises in absinthe, a drink to be treated with respect. Your glass comes with a lump of
sugar, a fork and a little bottle of mineral water. Hold the sugar on the fork, over your
glass, and drip the water onto the sugar so that it dissolves into the absinthe, which
turns yellow. The result should give you a warm glow.
LOCAL KNOWLEDGE
EL RAVAL'S HISTORICAL BARS
ENTERTAINMENT
CINEMA
FILMOTECA DE CATALUNYA
cession €4/2 ; 4-10pm Tue-Sun; Liceu)
After almost a decade in the planning, the Filmoteca de Catalunya - Catalonia's national
cinema - moved into this modern 6000-sq-metre building in 2012. It's a glass, metal and
concrete beast that hulks in the midst of the most louche part of the Raval, but the building's
interior shouts revival, with light and space, wall-to-wall windows, skylights and glass pan-
els that let the sun in.
In addition to two cinema screens totaling 555 seats, the Filmoteca comprises a film lib-
rary, a bookshop, a cafe, offices and a dedicated space for exhibitions. This is mainly a film
archive space, though, which is being hailed as the marker of a cultural turning point for its
