Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Rambla del Raval and around
Liceu
The most obvious manifestation of the changing character of El Raval is the
Rambla del
Raval
, a palm-lined boulevard driven right through the centre of the district between c/de
l'Hospital and c/de Sant Pau. The
rambla
has a distinct character that's all its own, mixing
kebabjointsandgrocerystoreswithanincreasingnumberoffashionablecafésandbars.Sig-
nature building, halfway down, is the glow-in-the-dark designer
Barceló Raval hotel
, while
children find it hard to resist a clamber on the massive, bulbous cat sculpture. A weekend
streetmarket
(sellinganythingfromsamosastohammocks)addsabitmorecharacter,while
the two extremes of the
rambla
offer a snapshot of the changing neighbourhood. At the bot-
tom end, off
carrer de Sant Pau
, the
barri
's remaining prostitutes accost passers-by as they
head back towards the Liceu and the Ramblas. The top end, meanwhile, leads you straight
into the streets of the “upper Raval”, flush with boutiques, bars and galleries.
HIDDEN GEMS: EL RAVAL
Carrer de la Riera Baixa
Just off the top of Rambla del Raval, the narrow
Carrer de la Riera Baixa
is at the centre
ofthecity'ssecondhandandvintageclothingscene.Adozenfunkylittleindependentclothes
shopsprovidethescopeforanhour'sbrowsing,withfunky
Resolis
bar(no.22)thebestplace
to take a break in between.
Plaça del Pedró and Carrer d'en Botella
In
Plaça del Pedró
(junction of c/del Carme and c/de l'Hospital) a cherished statue of Santa
Eulàlia (co-patron of the city) stands on the site of her supposed crucifixion, facing the sur-
viving apse of a Romanesque chapel. Carrer d'en Botella, just off the square, is unremark-
able, save for the plaque at no. 11 which records the
birthplace of Manuel Vázquez Mont-
albán
, probably the city's most famous writer, whose likes and prejudices found expression
in his favourite character, detective Pepe Carvalho.
