Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
ular song, its allegorical figures protected by a strident Sant Jordi (St George). Domènech i
Montaner strove to make the interior of his concert hall a veritable “box of light”, which he
achieved by capping the second-storey auditorium with a mighty bulbous stained-glass sky-
light - contemporary critics claimed it to be an engineering impossibility.
Numbers are limited on the very popular
guided tours
of the interior (1hr), so it's best to
buy a ticket in advance. Or, of course, you can always come to a performance - the
concert
season
here runs from September until June (see
Classical, contemporary and opera
).
Touring the concert hall
Tours start with a short video extolling the virtues of the building, followed by a close-up
look at the decorated facade columns and a brief visit to the two floors of the main concert
hall.SculpturesoftheMusesringthemainstage,whileallegorical decorationiseverywhere,
from the sculpted red and white roses in the colours of the Catalan flag to the representations
ofmusicandnatureintheglisteningstainedglass.Successiveextensionsandinteriorremod-
elling have opened up the rest of the original site - the
Petit Palau
offers a smaller auditori-
umspace,whiletothesideanenvelopingglassfacadeprovidesthemainpublicaccess tothe
box office, terrace restaurant and foyer bar.
Plaça de Sant Pere
Arc de Triomf/Urquinaona
Sant Pere neighbourhood extends around three parallel medieval streets, carrers de Sant Pere
de Més Baix (lower), Mitja (middle) and Alt (upper), which contain the bulk of the dis-
trict's most characteristic buildings and shops - a mixture of boutiques, textile firms, gro-
ceries and old family businesses. The streets all converge upon the original neighbourhood
square,
Plaça de Sant Pere
, whose foursquare
Església de Sant Pere de les Puelles
flanks
one side, overlooking a flamboyant iron drinking fountain and a few cafés that put out tables
onthesquare.Thechurchisactuallyoneoftheoldestinthecity,rebuiltin1147ontenth-cen-
tury foundations, though it's been destroyed and burned too many times since to retain any
interior interest - the high-walled facade, although it looks medieval, is a twentieth-century
renovation.
Mercat Santa Caterina
Av. de Francesc Cambò 16 • Mon 7.30am-2pm, Tues, Wed & Sat 7.30am-3.30pm, Thurs & Fri
7.30am-8.30pm; July & Aug 7.30am-3.30pm only • 933 195 740,
mercatsantacaterina.com
• Jaume I
At the very heart of Sant Pere is the eye-catching
Mercat Santa Caterina
, whose splendid
restoration has retained its original nineteenth-century balustraded market walls and added
slatted wooden doors and windows and a dramatic multicoloured wave roof. It's one of the
