The Plaza Real or Plaça Reial of Barcelona !!

Posted in Europe, Spain

I bring you back to another nice city of my dear Spain,this is Barcelona, I had visited several times on business trips and once as a personal visit, my oldest son has lived as an exchange student in it. Memories forever indeed ,The city of Barcelona faces the Mediterranean Sea and open to Europe. I found me a picture in my cd rom vault that should be in my blog for you and me, Barcelona capital of the Autonomous Community of Catalunya and the province of Barcelona,and in the kingdom of Spain. Therefore, let me tell you a bit on the Plaza Real or Plaça Reial of Barcelona !! Hope you enjoy the post as I.

The Plaza Real or Plaça Reial or Royal Square is a rectangular public square located in the Gothic Quarter (Old City district) and borders La Rambla. Conceived in the Neoclassical style on a destroyed urban fabric, it is unique in that its classical rhythm is subverted by minimally altering the spacing between pilasters, giving the impression that the square is quadrangular.

It was decided to establish a single vehicular access to the square from the Rambla and two pedestrian access points: the Bacardí Passage, which also connects the square to the Rambla; and the Madoz Passage, which connects it to Calle Ferran. The former was covered with skylights and crossed by an iron and glass bridge, while the latter was conceived as an arcaded courtyard inspired by French urban planning of the Napoleonic era. It occupies a rectangular space, framed on all sides by three-story buildings in a classical style with uniform facades. At street level, the ground floor is articulated with arcaded galleries of semicircular arches and square pillars, while the two upper floors are of the giant order with Corinthian pilasters; finally, the attic is crowned by a balustraded railing. The rooftops of the towers flanking this street are decorated with terracotta medallions depicting navigators and explorers of the Americas.

In 1876, the placement of a monument in the center of the square was proposed to replace the failed statue of king Fernando el Catolico. It was decided to install a fountain, called the Fountain of the Three Graces. It consists of a circular pool in the center of which rises a basin with six mascarons spouting water, above which are the statues of the Graces, topped by another basin above them. Another prominent feature is the lampposts designed by Antoni Gaudí in 1879. Ultimately, only two were installed in Plaza Real, each with six arms. These are two gas lampposts, made of cast iron with marble bases. They have six iron arms with bronze pieces at the joints, arranged in two levels of three arms. They are decorated with the coat of arms of Barcelona and a finial with two entwined snakes and a winged helmet, representing the caduceus of Mercury.

The Plaza Real, so named in honor of the Catholic Monarchs, began to be built in 1850 on the site left by the old Capuchin convent of Santa Madrona, thanks to the disentailment of 1836, (sep state and church) ,which left numerous plots of land that were built on or converted into public spaces. In 1847, the grand Liceu Theatre was inaugurated, and it was decided that the new Plaza Real would become a leisure center for the bourgeoisie, with hotels, cafes, and shops. Although originally intended solely for the bourgeoisie, it is today a popular, lively space filled with terraces, restaurants, and nightclubs where tourists and locals gather. Furthermore, this place frequently hosts events such as festivals, carnivals, and open-air markets.

The closest transport is metro line 3 Liceu station and not far also line 4 Jaume I station

The Barcelona tourist office on the Plaza Real (catalan Plaça Reial) : https://www.barcelonaturisme.com/wv3/en/page/4427/placa-reial.html

The city of Barcelona on its heritage:  https://www.barcelona.cat/en/discoverbcn/pics

The Heritage site of Catalunia on the Plaza Real of Barcelona : https://patrimoni.gencat.cat/en/collection/placa-reial

The Spain National Tourist Office on Barcelona : https://www.spain.info/en/destination/barcelona/

There you go folks, you will do well to visit Barcelona , is a different Spain but still Spain. It has a more central European feel to it. Again, hope you enjoy this post on the Plaza Real or Plaça Reial of Barcelona !! as I.

And remember, happy travels, good health, and many cheers to all !!!

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Published by pedmar10

I am a lover of travels to Europe , Americas , Africa and Asia as well ,who like to share my experiences of the last 53 years with the world, visiting so far 81 countries; living in 6, working in 5, and Citizen of 4, speaking fluently 4 languages. I can deal with sports especially football/soccer and love music, arts, wine collector/drinker, and go out to restaurants, and just visit the world. My background comes all the way from Candelaria and Pajara in Tenerife, Spain where my grandparents came from ;not knowing each other then, to Punta Brava, west of Havana, Cuba. There , my parents born in Cuba met and later on I was born there too. 100% guanche (annexed Tenerife to Spain on April 10 ,1496). I left Cuba as many have to Madrid, Spain where I lived for 4 years. Then, move to Perth Amboy ,New Jersey USA (living there 13 yrs) ; where I completed high school, became a US Citizen, learned to drive a car, and learned English. Afterward, went to the university in Florida, ERAU, and upon graduation decided to moved there to Ormond by the Sea, near Daytona Beach, finally moving North Miami, then Hialeah, then another moved to Silver Lakes division in Miramar, Broward county, Florida; in Florida I lived a total of 18 years. Finally , moved to France in 2003 ,Versailles call me for its royalty, and working in Paris was great. It was time to seek frontiers again and moved to Brech near Auray, Morbihan in Brittany , and later move to not too far Pluvigner. Total so far in France has been 20 years, and counting. Moving average a home every 5.5 years hopefully this will be my last. Cheers All rights reserved. No part of this blog may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means or stored in a retrieval system of any nature, without the written permission of the copyright holder, me. No part of this work may be modified, without the written permission of the holder, me.No part of this work may be exposed to public view in any form or by any means, without identifying the holder as the author, and with the before mentioned permission.

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