Montjuic

Tuesday so it must be Montjuic, the big hill that overlooks Barcelona which is a mix of formal gardens, museums and the Olympic Stadium from 1992. We wandered to the market on Las Ramblas for fruit for a picnic and then strolled to the funicular railway up the side of the hill. At the top you get some great views over Barcelona which is a surprisingly level city, everything being about five stories tall except for the odd church steeple and the odd tower building.

We wandered along to the formal park built on the side of the hill to explore the pathways and the lush selection of greenery but not many flowers at this time of year. And then we walked along, past the Joan Miro museum (which we went in on the last visit) heading for the Olympic stadium (which was a lot smaller than I'd expected) and the most marvelous communications tower that is straight out of Thunderbirds if ever anything was. It was a great thrill to see it and I took many, many photographs that, now that I can see them on the computer screen, all look vaguely the same, but who cares?

It was very hot in the sun in the open plaza around the tower so we then wandered over to the National Museum of Catalan Art (MNAC) for a much needed sit down, drink and food. And then wandered round the galleries for a couple of hours. The focus is, obviously, on Catalan artists, something I can in principle support, but it does mean that most people will only have heard of Picasso and Dali and they only have a few paintings in the museum since both have their own, dedicated, museums in Catalonia. The ground floor is partly made up of huge Romanesque frescoes rescued from churches and restored in the museum, although virtually all are incomplete. More interesting is the 'modern' gallery upstairs that includes some nice pieces although most seem to be quite derivative. Still, it's worth a visit and I'm pleased I finally got to see it.

There is also a fabulous view over central Barcelona from the front of the museum, looking out over the magic fountain at ground level that comes alive at night in a blaze of colour and music.