Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
The Ramblas ends at
PlaçadelPortaldelaPau
, coming up hard against the teeming traffic
that runs along the harbourside road. The landmark Columbus monument is straight ahead
in the middle of the traffic circle, with the quayside square beyond flanked by the
Port de
Barcelona
(Port Authority) and
Duana
(Customs House) buildings. An
antiques market
,
where you can find dusty treasures like patinated medals, lace-trimmed fans and leather-
bound books, fills the square at the weekend (10am-8pm). Away to the south is the
Moll de
Barcelona
, a landscaped wharf leading to the Torre de Jaume I
cable-car station
and the
EstacióMarítima
,whereferriesleavefortheBalearics.Thelarge,bulbousbuildingperched
in the centre of the wharf is the city's
World Trade Centre
, housing a deluxe hotel, plus of-
fices, convention halls, shops and restaurants.
Mirador de Colón
Pl. del Portal de la Pau • Daily March-Sept 8.30am-8.30pm; Oct-Feb 8.30am-7.30pm • €4, under-12s €3, un-
der-4s free • Drassanes
Inaugurated just before the Universal Exhibition of 1888, the striking
Mirador de Colón
commemorates the visit made by Christopher Columbus (known locally as Cristóbal Colón)
to Barcelona in June 1493. The explorer tops a grandiose, iron column, 52m high, guarded
bylionsatthebase,aroundwhichunfoldreliefstellingthestoryofhislifeandtravels-here,
if nowhere else, the old mercenary is still the “discoverer of America”. A lift whisks you up
to the enclosed
mirador
at Columbus's feet for terrific 360-degree city views - the narrow
viewing platform, which tilts perceptibly outwards and downwards, is emphatically not for
anyone without a head for heights.
ANOTHER WRONG TURN FOR COLUMBUS?
WhentheItalian-bornnavigator,
ChristopherColumbus
,sailedintoBarcelonaharbourin
1493, he was received in style by the Catholic monarchs of Spain, Ferdinand and Isabella.
Inabidfornewandprofitabletradingroutes,theyhadfinancedhisvoyageofexplorationa
yearearlier,whenColumbushadsetouttochartapassagewesttotheOrient.Hefamously
failed in this, as he failed also to reach the North American mainland (instead “discover-
ing” the Bahamas, Cuba and Haiti), but Columbus did enough to enhance his reputation
and by 1504 had made three more exploratory voyages. Later, nineteenth-century Catalan
nationalists took the navigator to their hearts - if he wasn't exactly Catalan, he was the
closest they had to a local Vasco da Gama - and so they put him on the pedestal that they
thoughthedeserved.Awkwardlyforthelocals,thestatueisactuallypointinginthegeneral
direction of Libya, not North America, but as historian Robert Hughes puts it, at least “the
sea is Catalan”.
