Sights and sounds of Barcelona
People in Barcelona greet each other “hola,” and bid each other “adéu” even strangers — an acknowledgement of the importance of “others” and as part of “us.”
Ihave been in Barcelona for about a week now. In between my activities as a visiting faculty member and researcher in La Salle Barcelona, I tried my best to experience as much of the sights, sounds, and smells of the city. And oh yes, just like any tourist, I sampled the tastes of the city as well.
What struck me on my first day in Barcelona was how quiet the city was. The La Salle Barcelona campus itself and its immediate neighborhood has a calm and peaceful ambience. University students and city residents go about their business in a relaxed manner. This is a welcome change for me, having lived for over a decade now in the heart of Manila, with its dense population, frantic pace, polluted air, and noisy streets. Even in downtown Barcelona, the noise levels are quite manageable. Once in a while, a driver will blow his horn at the vehicle in front of him to signal his impatience, but this has rarely happened over the past few days. Compare this to the horn-blowing symphony of cars, buses, and jeepneys in major intersections, and even in street corners, of Manila.
Mind you, the Catalans can get noisy too.
Last night, I took refuge from the cold wind and rain in one of the tapas bar along Carrer de Muntaner. “Habla Ingles?” I asked the bar owner. He didn’t. Fortunately, one of the customers, who seemed to be a regular, spoke English, and so I was able to order my choice tapa. While I was enjoying my pulpo y calamar (octopus and squid), coupled with a bottle of Moritz beer, the bar owner, my translator, and another man who was playing the slot machine by the bar engaged in an animated discussion. Señor “Slot Machine” got excited and started shouting about “Messi” and other things that were apparently about the recent game in Barca (officially Futbol Club Barcelona). Realizing that there were other people in the bar, he turned apologetically to me and said, in English, that they were just talking about football. He turned the volume down, and won a few more games in the slot machine. After a while, Señor “Translator” prepared to leave, and asked me if I needed any more help. I thanked him and told him that I will be able to manage.
A trip in Barcelona will not be complete without seeing the works of its great artists Joan Miró, Pablo Picasso, and Antoni Gaudi. On my second day in Barcelona, I spent several hours in Fundació Joan Miró, a museum that features various works of this great painter, sculptor, and ceramicist.
While I was there, several groups of school children and
teenagers were there for the guided tours. I asked myself, “if I had been exposed to the works of such great artists, might I have considered a career as an artist?”
Just the other day, I took the Blue Line of Barcelona Bus Turistic, which was essentially a Gaudi tour. I got off at La Pedrera, which is dubbed as “the zenith of Gaudi’s work.” Inspired by nature and geometry, Gaudi came up with this architectural gem, which has been variously described as “a stone poem,” “a giant sculpture” and “a great petrified wave.” What I liked about La Pedrera is that several floors of the building are still rented out as homes. Thus, it is a mixed use commercial and residential building, which just happens to be a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
I also spent several hours in Park Guell, which is probably the most beautiful (and soulful) park I have visited anywhere in the world. The free access areas provided something for lovers of art and nature. Just listening to Miquel Tarrida play his guitar under Gaudi’s arches or watching the street performers sing and dance actually made my day. I did not have to see the Monumental Zone to feel the spirit of Gaudi, who knew how to create extraordinary art for ordinary people ( inclusive art, if you will).
Let me end by sharing my observation on how people in Barcelona greet each other “hola,” and bid each other “adéu,” not only when they enter restaurants and stores but also when they meet other people, even strangers, inside elevators. For me, this is an acknowledgement of the importance of “others,” who, at the same time, are considered as part of “us.” Note the spiritual connotation of the word “adéu.”
In a few days, I will fly back to “loud” and “lively” Manila.
To Francesc Miralles and Eula Bianca Villar- Gomez, my hosts in Barcelona, and to the warm and wonderful people of Barcelona, “adéu” for now. Can’t wait to greet you “hola” again very soon.
The views expressed above are the author’s and do not necessarily reflect the official position of DLSU, its faculty, and its administrators.