Promotional "cinderella stamp" for the Barcelona International Exposition, 1929.

The 1929 Barcelona International Exposition (also 1929 Barcelona Universal Exposition, or Expo 1929) took place from 20 May 1929 to 15 January 1930 in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain.^[1] It was held on Montjuïc, the hill overlooking the harbor, southwest of the city center, and covered an area of 118 ha (291.58 acres) at an estimated cost of 130 million pesetas ($25,083,921 in United States dollars).^[1] Twenty European nations participated in the fair, including Germany, Britain, Belgium, Denmark, France, Hungary, Italy, Norway, Romania and Switzerland. In addition, private organizations from the United States and Japan participated.^[1]

In Barcelona, the previous 1888 Universal Exposition led to a great advance in the city’s economic, architectural and technological growth and development, including the reconstruction of the Parc de la Ciutadella, the city's main public park. A new exposition was proposed to highlight the city's further technological progress and increase awareness abroad of modern Catalan industry. This new exhibition required the urbanization of Montjuïc and its adjacent areas and the renovation of public spaces, principally the Plaça d'Espanya.

The exposition required much urban development within the city,^[2] and became a testing-ground for the new architectural styles developed in the early 20th century. At a local level, this meant the consolidation of Noucentisme, a classical style which replaced the modernism which dominated Catalonia at the turn of the 19th to 20th century. Furthermore, it marked the arrival in Spain of international avant-garde tendencies, especially rationalism, as seen in the design of the Barcelona Pavilion, created by German architect Ludwig Mies van der Rohe.^[2] The Exposition also allowed for the erection of several emblematic buildings and structures, including the Palau Nacional de Catalunya,^[2] the Font màgica de Montjuïc,^[2] the Teatre Grec,^[2] Poble Espanyol, and the Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys.^[2]

Origin of the Exposition[link]

The idea of a new exhibition began to take shape in 1905, promoted by the architect Josep Puig i Cadafalch, as a way of bringing out the new Plan of links designed by Léon Jaussely. It was initially proposed that the Exposition should be constructed in the area of the Besòs River, but instead, in 1913, planners selected Montjuïc as the site. While originally planned for 1917, the exposition was delayed due to World War I.

Puig i Cadafalch's project was supported by the Fomento del Trabajo Nacional, especially Francesc d'Assis, one of its leaders, who took charge of negotiations with the various agencies involved in the project. Thus, in 1913 the organization created a joint committee for organizing the event, consisting of representatives of the National Labor Development and the City Council, be appointed commissioners of the organization Josep Puig i Cadafalch, Francesc Cambo and Joan Pitch i Pon.

In 1915, the committee presented a first draft by Puig i Cadafalch, which was divided into three specific projects, each commissioned to a team of architects. Puig i Cadafalch and Guillem Busquets reserved the area at the base of the mountain, Lluis Domenech i Montaner and Manuel Vega i March planned the area atop the mountain—designated the International Section, and Enric Sagnier and August Font i Carreras Miramar developed a Maritime Section.

The principal difficulty of the project was the amount of land required. The exposition would need at least 110 hectares, and the Barcelona City Council had only 26 by 1914. Thus, using an 1879 law, they resorted to land-expropriation. In 1917, development work began at Montjuïc, with assistant engineer Marià Rubio i Bellver. Landscaping was done by Jean-Claude Nicolas Forestier, who was assisted by Maria Rubio i Tudurí Nicolau. Their design was distinctly Mediterranean, with classical influences, combining the gardens with the construction of pergolas and terraces. Likewise, a funicular was built to allow access to the top of the mountain, as well as an aerial tram, which connected the mountain with the Port of Barcelona. However, the aerial tram did not opened until after the fair, in 1931.

Construction, while somewhat delayed, was completed in 1923, but the introduction that year of the dictatorship of Primo de Rivera delayed the actual exposition, which finally occurred in 1929, coinciding with the Ibero-American Exhibition in Seville. Also, the delay made obsolete the goal of promoting electrical industry, so that in 1925 the event was renamed the International Exhibition in Barcelona. The change of objective led to the reorganization of the exhibition, so that it was devoted to three aspects: industry, the sports, and art. In this new period, the organization fell into the hands of Pere Domènech i Roura, the Marquis de Foronda, and Director of Works.

Further development of the event allowed for a great stylistic diversity in the buildings of various architects, some loyal to Noucentisme prevailing at the time, others reflecting recurring historicist and eclectic trends that persisted since the late 19th century, with particular influence from the Spanish Baroque. Despite this diversity, most buildings—at least, the official ones—had a common theme of monumentality and grandiosity. In contrast, buildings in the International Section, home to pavilions representing other countries and institutions, had a more contemporary aspect, parallel to the current state of the art of the period. This particularly included Art Deco and rationalism.

The exposition was opened by King Alfonso XIII on 19 May 1929. Led by Mayor Darius Rumeu i Freixa, Baron de Viver, it was attended by some 200,000 people in the general public and by many Catalonian political, economic, and cultural figures, including the Prime Minister (and dictator) Miguel Primo de Rivera.

In terms of cost, the exhibition lost money, with a deficit of 180 million pesetas. Its success was relative; during the event the stock market crashed in New York, on 29 October 1929, which reduced the number of participants in the event. At the social level it was achieved great success, as it allowed for a large influx of people, and achievements for the city of Barcelona, especially in the fields of architecture and urbanism.

The Avenue of the Americas from the Plaça Espanya

Exposition Center[link]

The Exposition Center, el recinte de l'Exposició, was built to designs by Puig i Cadafalch with two different types of buildings: palaces, the sections devoted to the official competition; and flags, representing countries, institutions and companies. The exposition's main axis began at the Plaça d'Espanya, where four large hotels were built, through the Avenue of Americas (now the Avinguda de la Reina Maria Cristina), which housed the grand buildings of the Exposition, to the foot of the mountain, the site of the "Magic Fountain", the Palaces Alfonso XIII and Victoria Eugenia, and a monumental staircase.

The Avenue of the Americas was decorated with numerous fountains, as well as glass columns—illuminated by electricity—designed by Charles Buïgas, which caused a great sensation. On both sides of the avenue were the main buildings of the Exposition: Palace of Costumes; the Palace of Communications and Transport; and the Palace of Metallurgy, Electricity and Locomotion. Today, these buildings are used as exposition spaces in the Barcelona Trade Fair. Along the avenue was Mechanics Square (now the Plaça de l'Univers), at the center of which stood the "Tower of Light", and the sculpture El Treball, de Josep Llimona.

Plaça d'Espanya[link]

The Plaça d'Espanya was included in Ildefons Cerdà's plan for the expansion of Barcelona, the Eixample. It was to be a major point of communication in the route between Barcelona and the towns of Baix Llobregat. After a first draft by the urbanized square Josep Amargós in 1915, the square was finally built to plans by Josep Puig i Cadafalch and Guillem Busquets, and then finished by Antoni Darder i Marsa. It was fully complete by 1926. They designed the square as a monumental rotary, to be surrounded by a Baroque colonnade. The design was influenced by Bernini's St. Peter's Square in Rome. Dividing the square from the Avenue of the Americas Ramon Reventós designed two bell-towers, which were heavily influenced by the one at the Basilica of Saint Mark in Venice.

At the center of the square another monumental fountain was built, designed by Josep Maria Jujol. Its ornate decoration is an allegory of Spain, surrounded by water. Three niches with sculptures symbolize the three principal rivers of the Iberian Peninsula, the Ebro, Guadalquivir, and Tagus. Around the central sculpture, three decorated columns symbolize Religion (a cross with Ramon Llull, Saint Teresa of Jesus, and Saint Ignatius of Loyola), Heroism (a sword with Pelagius of Asturias, James I and Isabella), and Arts ( a book with Ausias March and Miguel de Cervantes).

The Magic Fountain[link]

The famous Magic Fountain of Montjuïc, designed by Carles Buïgas, was constructed at the foot of Montjuic, and amazed the public with its light and water displays. Today, it is still an emblem of the Catalonian capital, and musical lightshows are often performed there during the annual festival of La Mercè, as well as during every weekend. Originally, [[The Four Columns |four columns]] were built in this location by Puig i Cadafalch to represent the Catalan flag, but these were removed by President Primo de Rivera's orders.

Official Sections[link]

• The Communications and Transport Centre: Designed by Félix de Azúa and Adolf Florensa in 1926, it was built in a neoclassical style inspired by the architecture of the French academy. It was one of the largest buildings of the Exposition, with an area of 16,000 m². With entrances onto the Plaza de España and Avenida de la Reina María Cristina, its structure is organised around a floor projecting out onto Plaza de España and supported by columnds. The Avenida’s facade is in the form of a triumphal arch, finished off with a group of sculptures including the figure of a ‘’Victoria’’. It is currently part of the Barcelona Trade Fair.^[3]

• The Clothing Centre (or Labour Centre): initially named the Centre of Pedagogy, Hygiene and Social Institutions, it was designed by Josep Maria Jujol and Andrés Calzada, and is located between the Plaza de España and the Avenida de la Reina María Cristina. With an area of 6,500 m², like the Communications and Transport Centre its structure had to be adapted to an elevated room supported on columns over the Plaza de España, with an irregularly shaped floor arrayed around a central space, with a large rotunda topped by an eastern-style dome. This building is also part of the Barcelona Trade Fair.

• The Centre for Metallurgy, Electricity and Motive Force: the work of Amadeu Llopart and Alexandre Soler i March, this building has an area of 16,000 m². From its rectangular plan, a large polyhedral dome rises from its centre, with a lantern but no drum, possibly inspired by Bruno Taut’s glass pavilion, built for the Deutscher Werkbund in Cologne. The facade is notable for its large classical pediment, decorated by Francesc d’Assís Galí’s frescoes (he also painted the entrance hall’s soffits, together with Josep Obiols and Manuel Humbert). To either side of the building are large towers with allegorical sculptures by Enric Casanovas. This building is also part of the Barcelona Trade Fair.^[4]

• The Centre for Textile Arts: designed by Joan Roig and Emili Canosa, this was situated between the Communications and Transport Centre and the Projection Centre, with its entrance on the Plaza del Universo. With an area of 20,000 m², it was dedicated to the textile industry, with booths for Spanish, German, Austrian, French, Italian and Swiss companies. The central body of the building is in renaissance style, while the taller facade was neoclassical, with a balustrade castellated in the Plateresque style and two domed towers. Its interior housed an exhibition on silk, promoted by Germany and designed by Ludwig Mies van der Rohe and interior designer Lilly Reich, the first example of the German architect’s creative genius. He conceived a well-lit, open space, neoplasticist in structure, where a skilled use of space achieved a feeling of open space throughout the room. The 50th Anniversary Centre, belonging to the Barcelona Trade Fair, was built in its place.^[5]

• The Projection Centre: designed by Eusebi Bona and Francisco Aznar, this building is situated between the Avenida de la Reina María Cristina, the Avenida Rius i Taulet and the Plaza del Universo. With an area of 10.000 m², it had two floors, the first with a large showroom, with a stage and projection room, and various exhibition rooms. The building’s facade is notable, in the classical, monumental style, decorated with sculptures by Joan Pueyo: four groups of caryatids with bisons, four groups of sphinxes and two fountains, carved in artificial stone. Removed after the Exposition, the current Convention Centre was built in its place. Next to this building were the Exposition’s offices, now a college (CEIP Jacint Verdaguer), designed by Juan Bruguera.

• The Alfonso XIII and Victoria Eugenia Centres: originally named the Centres for Modern Art and Architecture, they were designed by Josep Puig i Cadafalch y Guillem Busquets, symmetrically located next to the Magic Fountain, at the foot of the Palau Nacional. These were the first buildings to be constructed, completed in 1923, when they housed the a Furniture and Interior Decoration Exposition as a trial run for the later event. Each had a surface area of 14,000 m², rectangular floors formed by quadrangular modules, and a set of four towers for each building, topped by pinnacles in the shape of pyramids and decorated with sgraffito, representing Solomonic columns and plant motifs. The Alfonso XIII Centre was dedicated to Construction, while the Victoria Eugenia housed the representatives of countries without their own pavilions. It is currently part of the Barcelona Trade Fair.^[6]

• The Palau Nacional: the main building of the Exposition, this was designed by Eugenio Cendoya and Enric Catà, under the supervision of Pere Domènech i Roura, after Puig i Cadafalch and Guillem Busquets’ initial plan was rejected. Built between 1926 and 1929, it has an area of 32,000 m². Its classical style was inspired by the Spanish Renaissance, and its floors are rectangular with two lateral sections and a square section behind, with a large elliptical dome in the central part. The cascades and jets of the Palace’s staircase were also designed by Carles Buïgas, and nine large projectors were placed which to this day still send out intense beams of light which write the city’s name in the sky.^[7] The inauguration ceremony was held in its Oval Hall, presided over by Alfonso XIII and Queen Victoria Eugenia. The Palau Nacional was dedicated to an exhibition of Spanish art with more than 5,000 works from throughout Spanish territory. Various artists were involved in its decoration—in Novecento style, in contrast to the classical architecture—such as the sculptors Enric Casanovas, Josep Dunyach, Frederic Marès and Josep Llimona, and painters Francesc d'Assís Galí, Josep de Togores, Manuel Humbert, Josep Obiols, Joan Colom and Francesc Labarta. As of 1934, it has housed the Museo Nacional d’Art de Catalunya.^[8]

• The Barcelona Pavilion: designed by Josep Goday in the noucentist style, it contained the official representatives of the host city. Located between the Plaza de los Bellos Oficios (today called the Plaze de Carles Buïgas), the Avenida de la Técnica (currently calle de la Guardia Urbana), the Avenida Rius i Taulet and the Alfonso XIII Centre, it had an area of 2,115 m². With rectangular floors, it was built from steel, concrete and Montjuic stone. Its classical facade had a series of arches and sculptures, the work of Frederic Marès and Eusebi Arnau. It is currently the seat of the Guardia Urbana de Barcelona, together with the Press Centre.

• The Press Centre: dedicated to the magazines and daily papers printed in Barcelona at that time, this building was designed by Pere Domènech i Roura. Located on Avenida Rius i Taulet, it currently houses the Guardia Urbana de Barcelona. With an area of 600 m², it has a basement and three floors, with several styles mixed in a historistic concept: neo-Mudéjar, neo-Romanesque, neo-Gothic, etc. Domènech used various modernist elements, such as facebrick, iron and ceramics, being influenced by his father, Lluís Domènech i Montaner.

• The Centre for Decorative and Applied Arts: located between calle Lérida and the Avenida de la Técnica, this building was designed by Manuel Casas and Manuel Puig and had an area of 12,000 m². The building was organised around a central patio, covered by a rectangular glass structure; the rest of the building was in a French baroque style, with a monumental appearance. The facade displayed a set of receding and protruding shapes, from which two large towers topped with domes and lanterns stood out. In 1955, the Palau dels Esports de Barcelona (now the Barcelona Teatre Musical) was built in its place.

• The Graphical Arts Centre: located on the Paseo de Santa Madrona, this was designed by Raimon Duran i Reynals and Pelai Martínez, in a Noucentist style influenced by the Italian Renaissance, particularly Filippo Brunelleschi, Donato Bramante and Andrea Palladio. With an area of 4,000 m², it was dedicated to the graphical arts, particularly book printing. Entrance was via a staircase and two lateral ramps for vehicles, with a facade formed by arcaded galleries, with pavilions to the sides and a central drum over which a dome is elevated. Once again, the German exhibition designed by Mies van der Rohe and Lilly Reich stood out, composed of glass cabinets in geometric shapes. Since 1935 it has housed the Archeological Museum of Catalonia.^[9]

• The Centre of Agriculture: designed by Josep Maria Ribas i Casas and Manuel Maria Mayol, it is located between Paseo de Santa Madrona and calle Lérida. With an area of 16,000 m², it is arranged around a central patio, with five rectangular naves and two arcaded galleries. Influenced by the Italian Renaissance—particularly by Lombardy -- the facades of the various facades are covered by stucco and ceramincs, with several octagonal towers and triple arches. It is now known as the «Mercat de les Flors» (Market of the Flowers) and is occupied by the Theatre City, which includes the Theatre Institute, the Teatre Lliure Foundation, the Mercat de les Flors Municipal Theatre and the Fabià Puigserver Theatre.^[10]

• The Spanish Pavilion: designed by Antoni Darder, with an area of 4,500 m², was designed for representatives from the Government and ministries. It consists of a central body and two symmetrical wings, with towers at each end. It was inspired by the Plateresque style, with semicircular arches and Corinthian columns. It was demolished after the Exposition.

• The Delegation Centre: designed by Enric Sagnier i Villavecchia, it is located between the Avenida del Marqués de Comillas and the Avenida de Montanyans, opposite the Plaza de la Hidráulica (now the Plaza de Sant Jordi; the fountain of Ceres and an equestrian statue of Saint George by Josep Llimona were located here). With an area of 2,350 m², it was dedicated to the representatives of provincial Spanish delegations. Designed in a Gothic-Plateresque style, the main facade was concave, with a central tower and two symmetrical wings with crenellated arches and towers at their extremes. The Royal shield and the shields of Catalonia, León and Barcelona were displayed on the facade.

• The Chemistry Centre: designed by Antoni Sardà, this building was designed to display sports-related material, but at the last moment its function was changed in order to dedicated it to the chemical industry. With an area of 4,500 m², it was located in the Avenida de Montanyans, next to the Delegation Centre. Classically styled, the main facade was divided into three sections, the central section having a colonnaded entrance and a ribbed dome over a decagonal drum. From 1932 to 1962, when it was destroyed in a fire, it was the seat of Orphea Cinematographic Studios.^[11]

• The Royal Pavilion: now known as Albéniz Palace, it housed the representatives of the Spanish Royal House. Located close to the Stadium, surrounded by spacious gardens, it was designed by Juan Moya in a baroque style inspired by the 18th century French courts. The interior decoration is in the Empire style, most notably the tapestries designed by Francisco Goya and a room of mirrors copied from Versailles. Extended in 1970 and decorated by Salvador Dalí paintings, it is currently used in certain ceremonies and public acts.

• The Centre for Modern Art: designed by Antoni Darder in 1927, it had an area of 5,000 m² and is located between the Royal Pavilion and the Centre of Missions. It formed part of the “Art in Spain” section, containing collections of paintings, sculpture, drawings and engravings from the 19th century. Rectangular in plan, its main facade had a central body and two symmetrical wings, with a central structure in the form of semicircular arches resembling the work of the Italian architect Filippo Juvara.

• The Centre of Missions: designed by Antoni Darder, it had area of 5,000 m², dedicated to displaying the work of missionary institutions. The main facade was inspired by Romanesque churches, with semicircular arches built with semicircular arches with voussoirs, long, narrow windows and pentagonal tops. The building was rectangular in plan, with an octagonal dome inspired by the Italian Renaissance.

• The Southern Palace: designed by Antoni Millàs, it was located in the Avenida Internacional (now the Avenida del Estadio). With an area of 26,000 m², it was rectangular in plan, with three naves covered by square modules with skylight-style openings. It was located in a place initially planned to hold an aviation field, which was never built.

International Section[link]

Participating countries
Austria	Belgium	Czechoslovakia	Denmark
Finland	France	Germany	Hungary
Italy	Japan	Netherlands	Norway
Portugal	Romania	Spain	Sweden
Switzerland	United Kingdom	United States	Yugoslavia

As the Ibero-American Exposition of 1929 was taking place simultaneously in Seville, no Spanish American countries participated. From the remaining countries, the official participants were Austria, Belgium, Czechoslovakia, Denmark, Finland, France, German, Hungary, Italy, Norway, Romania, Sweden, Switzerland and the State of Slovenes, Croats and Serbs (later Yugoslavia; most of these countries had their own pavilions, except for Austria, Czechoslovakia, Finland and Switzerland. Apart from these countries, Japan, the Netherlands, Portugal, the United Kingdom and the United States participated in an unofficial capacity. Each country had a week dedicated to it throughout the course of the event, with a highlight of the German week being the flight of the Graf Zeppelin airship over Barcelona, on May 16, 1929.

German pavilion.

• German Pavilion: this is considered to be one of its architect’s master works, Ludwig Mies van der Rohe. It is one of the best examples of the international style of architecture due to its purity of form, its spacial concept and its intelligent use of structures and materials, which turned this pavilion into the quintessential piece of 20th century architecture. In 1928 Mies was contracted to build the official German pavilion together with the Electricity Supply pavilion and several exhibits in the Official Section’s buildings, with the collaboration of interior designer Lilly Reich. Rectangular in shape, it is elevated on a travertine-covered podium; the covering was supported on cross-shaped columns and load-bearing walls, with side walls of different materials (plaster-covered bricks, steel covered by green marble and Morrocan onyx). Its decoration was reduced to two ponds and a sculpture, La Mañana, by Georg Kolbe. Demolished after the Exhibition, it was reconstructed between 1985 and 1987 in its original location by Cristian Cirici, Ignasi de Solà-Morales and Fernando Ramos, following Mies van der Rohe’s plans.^[12]

• Belgian Pavilion: designed by the architect Verhelle,^[13] this was next to the Spanish Pavilion. Rectangular in shape, it was inspired by the Hof von Busleyden in Mechelen, built when Margaret of Austria established the court there,^[14] notable for a watchtower twice the height of the building.

• Danish Pavilion: designed by Tyge Hvass, this was a dihedron of reddish wood with a gabled roof, evoking a typical Danish mountain house. The facade showed an embossed Danish flag, anchor, wheat sheaf and cog wheel, typical elements of the Danish economy.

• French Pavilion: designed by Georges Wybo, in a classical style with art deco elements, this was located next to the Alfonso XIII centre. It was a single-volume building in the shape of a cube, with its roof formed by superimposed stepped rectangular sections, like a ziggurat, with a sculpture at the front in the shape of a woman and the initials R. F. (République Française).

• Hungarian Pavilion: designed by Dénes György and Nikolaus Menyhért, this was made up of two rectangular sections, with a tower over it in the shape of a prism. An example of expressionist architecture, the geometrical synthesis of its structure evoked the architecture of the Pre-Columbian era.^[15]

• Italian Pavilion: designed by Piero Portaluppi, this was located between the Spanish and Swedish pavilions. It had a surface area of 4,500 m², in the shape of a U, a renaissance classical style and a monumental atmosphere. The facade had some columns with the eagle of the Roman Empire, a frieze with the country’s name and a fronton finished off with a statue of Minerva.

• Norwegian Pavilion: designed by Ole Lind Schistad, this was wooden like the Danish pavilion, with a similar likeness to mountain buildings, with shuttered windows and a sloped roof.

• Serbian, Croation and Slovene Pavilion: representing the country which would later be known as Yugoslavia, this was designed by the architect Dragiša Brašovan and located next to the Palau Nacional. Avant-garde in conception, it was a star-shaped building with the facade made from wooden strips arranged in horizontal black and white stripes.

• Romanian Pavilion: designed by Duiliu Marcu, this was a rectangular building with a tower to one side and a gabled roof, panelled with wood and stucco. The facade had a series of arches ending in a pergola, with architectural elements characteristic of Transylvania.

• Swedish Pavilion: designed by Peder Clason, as with the other Scandinavian buildings it was built of wood, rectangular and with a geometric structure within the avant-garde currents of the time, such as neoplasticism. Next to the entrance door was a conical wooden tower, topped with three superimposed horizontal discs; it was named “Funkis”, Swedish abbreviation for functionalism at the beginning of the 20th century. Both the building and the tower were dismantled after the Exhibition and reconstructed in Berga, where the pavilion served as a school up until the Spanish Civil War when the building was demolished at the beginning of the 1960s. There is currently a project to rebuild the tower next to the Olympic Museum, near its original location.^[16]

Private pavilions[link]

Pavilion of the Barcelona Bank Savings and Pensions.

• Pavilion of the Barcelona Bank Savings and Pensions: located on Paseo de Santa Madrona, this was designed by Josep Maria Ribas i Casas and Manuel Maria Mayol. Eclectic in style, it presents structural solutions based on various different styles: the central section was inspired by Spanish palacial architecture of the 18th century, while the lateral parts are based on civil architecture of northern Italy and the loggias are reminiscent of 19th century tastes in Mediterranean villas. Because of its raised location, terraces with illuminated fountains were located at its entrance. Since 1982 it has been the headquarters of the Cartographic Institute of Catalonia.^[7]

• Pavilion of the Philippine Tobacco Company: located on Paseo de Santa Madrona, it was designed by Antoni Darder and constructed in 1928. The building is U-shaped, surrounded by gardens, and has a tower to one side and an octagonal dome over its central section. Darder followed the “art deco” style which was popular in the 1920s, with an intelligent distribution of internal space and a playful use of exterior volume. In 1932 it became the Forestier Municipal Kindergarten.^[17]

• German Electricity Supply Pavilion (Electric Supplies Co.): designed by Ludwig Mies van der Rohe and Lilly Reich, it was located in Plaza de la Luz, between the Communications and Transport Centre and the Centre for Textile Arts. The company Electric Supplies Co. was in charge of supplying electricity for the entire Exhibition grounds. A rectangular single-volume building, similar to an industrial ship, it went almost unnoticed during the event, being one of Mies’ least well-regarded works and one of the last in which he used brick walls, passing on to using glass from then on.^[18]

• Can Jorba: the commercial company Jorba was presented in Can (“house of” in Catalan) Jorba, a small structure in the shape of the Eiffel Tower with the initials of the sponsoring brand built in: the J at the top and the A at the base of the tower.

• Pavilion of the Hydrographic Confederation of Ebro: designed by Regino Borobio, this was one of the few Spanish buildings in an avant-garde style, being a building in the shape of a horizontal box with a tall signal tower.^[19]

• Pavilion of the Hispano-Suiza Company: designed by Eusebi Bona, it was located in the viewpoint opposite the Palau Nacional.

• Artists’ Gathering Pavilion: designed by Jaume Mestres i Fossas, its objective was to present the works of various Catalan artists who were not represented in the official section, for which reason it coexisted in private form. The building, in an art deco style, was octagonal with a stepped dome, while the interior distribution of space and decoration were rationalist in style, one of the few national examples of avant-garde type. Participating artists included Pablo Gargallo, Josep Granyer, Josep Llorens i Artigas, Lluís Mercadé, Josep de Togores, Josep Obiols, Miquel Soldevila, Jaume Mercadé, etc., displaying paintings, sculpture, ceramics, furniture, jewellery, enamel, woven rugs and other works of art, most of which fell within the sphere of art deco.^[20]

Other Exhibition works[link]

Teatre Grec[link]

Teatre Grec.

The landscaping of Montjuic mountain left works like the Teatre Grec, an open-air theatre inspired by ancient Greek theatres (particularly the Epidaurus), designed by Ramon Reventós. Located in the site of an old quarry, it has a 460 m² semicircular area, with a diameter of 70 m and a 2,000 person capacity.^[21] It is currently the site of a summer festival in Barcelona, the Festival Grec.

The theatre is situated within Laribal Gardens, designed by Forestier and Rubió, where the famous “Cat Fountain” is located at the entrance to a building by Puig i Cadafalch which has been convertred into a restaurant (1925). There are many sculptures in the gardens, with works by Josep Viladomat, Enric Casanovas, Josep Clarà, Pablo Gargallo, Antoni Alsina, Joan Rebull, Josep Dunyach, etc. In the Miramar zone the Montjuic swimming pool was built, as well as a restaurant which in 1959 became the first RTVE studio in Barcelona.^[22]

Estadio Olímpico[link]

Olympic Stadium.

At the top of the hill, next to the International Section, the Olympic Stadium was built by Pere Domènech i Roura within the sports section. It had a surface area of 66,075 m² and a 62,000 person capacity, making it the second biggest stadium in Europe at the time, after Wembley. It contained fields for the practice of football and other sports, as well as athletics tracks and installations for various other sports such as boxing, gymnastics and fencing, as well as tennis courts and a swimming pool. The main facade was monumental in atmosphere, with a dome and a tall tower topped with a shrine. It was decorated with sculptures, most notably the “Horse riders making the Olympic salute”, two bronze equestrian sculptures by Pablo Gargallo. The building was remodelled by the architects Vittorio Gregotti, Frederic de Correa, Alfons Milà, Joan Margarit and Carles Buxadé for the 1992 Summer Olympics.^[23]

Poble Espanyol[link]

Entrance to the Poble Espanyol, with a reproduction of the walls of Ávila.

One work which had great public success was the Poble Espanyol (“Spanish Town”), a small showground containing reproductions of different urban and architectural environments from the entire national territory, in an atmosphere which ranges from the folkloric to the strictly archaeological. It was designed by the architects Ramon Reventós and Francesc Folguera, with the artistic advice of Miquel Utrillo and Xavier Nogués. The exhibition is divided into six regional areas: Castile and Extremadura, Basque Country and Navarre, Catalonia, Valencia and the Balearic Islands, Andalusia, Aragon and Galicia, around a Grand Plaza and surrounded by walls (a replica of the walls of Ávila. With a surface area of 20,000 m², it contains 600 buildings, of which 200 can be visited. Among the monuments reproduced some of the most notable are the Mudéjar belltower of Utebo (Zaragoza), the palaces of the marquis of Peñaflor (Seville) and of Ovando Solís (Cáceres), the cloister of Sant Benet de Bages and the Roman belltower of Taradell.^[24]

Impact of the Exhibition[link]

Palau Reial de Pedralbes.

Just as in 1888, the 1929 Exhibition had a great impact on the city of Barcelona at an urban level, not only in Montjuic district, since improvement and refurbishment works were carried out throughout the city: Tetuán, Urquinaona and Letamendi squares were landscaped; the Marina bridge was built; the Plaça de Catalunya was urbanised; and the Avinguda Diagonal was extended to the west and the Gran Via de les Corts Catalanes to the southwest. Various public works were also carried out: street paving and sewer systems were improved, public bathrooms were installed and gas lighting was replaced with electricity.

At the same time, several buildings were remodelled, such as the City Hall, where Josep Maria Sert painted the Salón de Crónicas, and the Generalitat, where the flamboyant bridge over Bisbe street was built. The post office and the Estació de França (France Station) were completed after having spent several years under construction. The Palau Reial de Pedralbes was also built as a residence for the royal family, designed by Eusebi Bona and Francesc Nebot. During this period the first skyscraper in Barcelona was also constructed: the Telefónica building on the corner of Fontanella and Portal del Ángel, designed by Francesc Nebot.

Finally, they improved the city’s communications, with construction during the 1920s of the Barcelona El Prat Airport, the removal of level crossings within the city, the improvement of links with the city’s peripheral neighbourhoods, the Sarrià train being moved underground (Ferrocarrils de la Generalitat de Catalunya), the electrification of public trams and the extension of metro line 3 to Sants, connecting the Plaza de España with the Exhibition district. The construction of all these public works lead to a great demand for workers, causing a large increase in immigration to the city from all parts of Spain. At the same time, the increase in population lead to the construction of various workers’ districts with “cheap housing”, such as the Aunós Group in Montjuic and the Milans del Bosch and Baró de Viver Groups in Besós.^[25]

References[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: 1929 Barcelona International Exposition

Bibliography[link]

• Barjau, Santi (1992). Enric Sagnier. Labor, Barcelona. ISBN 84-335-4802-6. 
• Grandas, M. Carmen (1988). L'Exposició Internacional de Barcelona de 1929. Els llibres de la frontera, Sant Cugat del Vallès. ISBN 84-85709-68-3. 
• Roig, Josep L. (1995). Historia de Barcelona. Ed. Primera Plana S.A., Barcelona. ISBN 84-8130-039-X. 
• Urrutia, Ángel (1997). Arquitectura española del siglo XX. Cátedra, Madrid. ISBN 84-376-1532-1. 

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: 1929 Barcelona Universal Exposition

• Commons:Plaça Catalunya (1929 Barcelona Universal Exposition)
• Official website of the International Exhibition Office
• Didactic guide to the Exhibition
• La Exposición Internacional de 1929

Coordinates: 41°22′14″N 2°09′00″E / 41.37056°N 2.15°E / 41.37056; 2.15

Barcelona
—  Municipality  —
From upper left: Barcelona skyline, Castell dels Tres Dragons, Port of Barcelona, Sagrada Família, Camp Nou, Mar Bella beach
Flag Coat of arms
Nickname(s): Ciutat Comtal (City of Counts), Barna, BCN
Barcelona Location of Barcelona within Spain
Barcelona Location of Barcelona within Catalonia
Coordinates: 41°23′N 2°11′E / 41.383°N 2.183°E / 41.383; 2.183Coordinates: 41°23′N 2°11′E / 41.383°N 2.183°E / 41.383; 2.183
Country	Spain
Autonomous Community	Catalonia
Province	Barcelona
Comarca	Barcelonès
Districts	List Ciutat Vella Eixample Gràcia Horta-Guinardó Les Corts Nou Barris Sant Andreu Sants–Montjuïc Sarrià-Sant Gervasi Sant Martí
Government
• Type	Mayor-council
• Body	Ajuntament de Barcelona
• Mayor	Xavier Trias (CiU)
Area
• Municipality	101.9 km2 (39.3 sq mi)
• Urban	803 km2 (310 sq mi)
Elevation(AMSL)	12 m (39 ft)
Population (2009)
• Municipality	1,621,537 (city limits) 3,218,071 (Greater Barcelona)
• Density	15,991/km2 (41,420/sq mi)
• Urban	4,210,000
• Urban zone	4,440,629
• Metro	5,083,000
Demonym	Barcelonan or Barcelonian barceloní, barcelonina (ca) barcelonés, barcelonesa (es)
Time zone	CET (UTC+1)
• Summer (DST)	CEST (UTC+2)
Postal code	08001–08080
Area code	+34 (Spain) 93 (City)
Official language(s)	Catalan and Spanish
Website	www.barcelona.cat

Barcelona (English /bɑrsɨˈloʊnə/, Catalan: [bərsəˈɫonə], Spanish: [barθeˈlona]) is the capital of Catalonia and the second largest city in Spain, after Madrid, with a population of 1,621,537 within its administrative limits on a land area of 101.4 km² (39 sq mi). The urban area of Barcelona extends beyond the administrative city limits with a population of between 4,200,000^[1] and 4,500,000^[2] within an area of 803 km² (310 sq mi),^[1] being the sixth-most populous urban area in the European Union after Paris, London, the Ruhr, Madrid and Milan. About five million^[3][4][5] people live in the Barcelona metropolitan area. It is also Europe's largest metropolis on the Mediterranean Sea. It is the main component of an administrative area of Greater Barcelona, with a population of 3,218,071 in an area of 636 km² (density 5,060 hab/km²). It is located on the Mediterranean coast between the mouths of the rivers Llobregat and Besòs and is bounded to the west by the Serra de Collserola ridge (512 m/1,680 ft).

Founded as a Roman city, Barcelona became the capital of the County of Barcelona. After merging with the Kingdom of Aragon, Barcelona became one of the most important cities of the Crown of Aragon. Besieged several times during its history, Barcelona has a rich cultural heritage and is today an important cultural centre and a major tourist destination. Particularly renowned are the architectural works of Antoni Gaudí and Lluís Domènech i Montaner, which have been designated UNESCO World Heritage Sites. The headquarters of the Union for the Mediterranean is located in Barcelona. The city is known for hosting the 1992 Summer Olympics as well as world-class conferences and expositions, including the 1888 Exposición Universal de Barcelona, the 1929 Barcelona International Exposition (Expo 1929), the 2004 Universal Forum of Cultures, and the 2004 World Urban Forum.

Barcelona is today one of the world's leading tourist, economic, trade fair/exhibitions and cultural-sports centres, and its influence in commerce, education, entertainment, media, fashion, science, and the arts all contribute to its status as one of the world's major global cities.^[6][7] Indeed, it is a major cultural and economic centre in southwestern Europe (Iberian Peninsula), 26th in the world (after Moscow, before Dubai) ^[8] and a growing financial centre (Diagonal Mar and Gran Via). As of 2009 it was ranked Europe's fourth best city for business.^[9] One of Europe's principal Mediterranean ports can be found here as well as Barcelona international airport, which handles above 34 million passengers per year. It also boasts an extensive motorway network and is a hub of high-speed rail, particularly that which is intended to link Spain with France and the rest of Europe.

Barcelona is the 16th-most-visited city in the world and the fourth most visited in Europe after Paris, London, and Rome, with several million tourists every year.^[10] Barcelona is the 14th most "livable city" in the world according to lifestyle magazine Monocle.^[11] Similarly, according to Innovation Analysts 2thinknow, Barcelona occupies 13th place in the world on Innovation Cities™ Global Index.^[12] It is the fourth richest city by GDP in the European Union and 35th in the world with an output amounting to €177 billion, a figure nonetheless smaller than alternative estimates.^[13] Consequently, its GDP per capita output stands at €39,859 – some 44% higher than the European Union average and GDP per head is €80,894 according to Eurostat.^[14] Similarly, the city of Barcelona stands in 29th place in a list of net personal earnings headed by Zurich.^[15] As of 2009 the city was ranked Europe's third and one of the world's most successful as a city brand.^[16] Barcelona is the seventh most important fashion capital in the world.^[17] At the same time, the city was ranked Europe's fourth best business city and fastest improving European city, with growth improved by 17% per year.^[18] Barcelona, among world centers of commerce takes second place in economic stability.^[19]

As the capital of the autonomous community of Catalonia, Barcelona is the seat of the Catalan government, known as the Generalitat de Catalunya; of particular note are the executive branch, the parliament, and the Supreme Court of Catalonia. The city is also the capital of the Province of Barcelona and the Barcelonès comarca (district).

Names[link]

The name Barcelona comes from the ancient Iberian Phoenician Barkeno, attested in an ancient coin inscription in Iberian script as ,^[20] in Ancient Greek sources as Βαρκινών, Barkinṓn;^[21] and in Latin as Barcino^{[citation needed]}, Barcilonum^[22] and Barceno.^{[23][citation needed]}

During the Middle Ages, the city was variously known as Barchinona, Barçalona, Barchelonaa, and Barchenona.

Some sources say that the city could have been named after the Carthaginian general Hamilcar Barca, who was supposed to have founded the city in the 3rd century BC.^[24]

History[link]

The founding of Barcelona is the subject of two different legends. The first attributes the founding of the city to the mythological Hercules. The second legend attributes the foundation of the city directly to the historical Carthaginian Hamilcar Barca, father of Hannibal, who named the city Barcino after his family in the 3rd century BC.^[25]

In about 15 BC, the Romans redrew the town as a castrum (Roman military camp) centred on the "Mons Taber", a little hill near the contemporary city hall (Plaça de Sant Jaume). Under the Romans, it was a colony with the surname of Faventia,^[26] or, in full, Colonia Faventia Julia Augusta Pia Barcino^[27] or Colonia Julia Augusta Faventia Paterna Barcino. Mela^[28] mentions it among the small towns of the district, probably as it was eclipsed by its neighbour Tarraco (modern Tarragona), but it may be gathered from later writers that it gradually grew in wealth and consequence, favoured as it was with a beautiful situation and an excellent harbour.^[29] It enjoyed immunity from imperial burdens.^[30] The city minted its own coins; some from the era of Galba survive.

Basilic of la Mercè

Some important Roman ruins are exposed under the Plaça del Rei, its entrance located by the city museum (Museu d'Història de la Ciutat); the typically Roman grid plan is still visible today in the layout of the historical centre, the Barri Gòtic ("Gothic Quarter"). Some remaining fragments of the Roman walls have been incorporated into the cathedral.^[31] The cathedral, also known as the Basilica La Seu, is said to have been founded in 343. The city was conquered by the Visigoths in the early 5th century, becoming for a few years the capital of all Hispania. After being conquered by the Arabs in the early 8th century, it was reconquered in 801 by Charlemagne's son Louis, who made Barcelona the seat of the Carolingian "Hispanic March" (Marca Hispanica), a buffer zone ruled by the Count of Barcelona.

The Counts of Barcelona became increasingly independent and expanded their territory to include all of Catalonia. In 1137, Aragon and the County of Barcelona merged in dynastic union^[32][33] by the marriage of Ramon Berenguer IV and Petronilla of Aragon, their titles finally borne by only one person when their son Alfonso II of Aragon ascended to the throne in 1162. His territories were later to be known as the Crown of Aragon, which conquered many overseas possessions and ruled the western Mediterranean Sea with outlying territories in Naples and Sicily and as far as Athens in the 13th century. The forging of a dynastic link between the Crowns of Aragon and Castile marked the beginning of Barcelona's decline. The Bank of Barcelona, probably the oldest public bank in Europe, was established by the city magistrates in 1401. It originated from necessities of the state, as did the Bank of Venice (1402) and the Bank of Genoa (1407).^[34]

The fortress at Montjuïc that was the most southerly point from which measurements were made when calculating the meridional definition of the metre

The marriage of Ferdinand II of Aragon and Isabella I of Castile in 1469 united the two royal lines. Madrid became the centre of political power whilst the colonisation of the Americas reduced the financial importance (at least in relative terms) of Mediterranean trade. Barcelona had always been the stronghold of Catalan separatism and was the center of the Catalan Revolt (1640–52) against Philip IV of Spain. The great plague of 1650–1654 halved the city's population.^[35] The Napoleonic wars left the province ravaged, but the postwar period saw the start of industrialization.

In the 18th century, a fortress was built at Montjuïc that overlooked the harbour. In 1794, this fortress was used by the French astronomer Pierre François André Méchain for observations relating to a survey stretching to Dunkirk that provided the official basis of the measurement of a metre.^[36] The definitive metre bar, manufactured from platinum, was presented to the French legislative assembly on 22 June 1799.

The resistance of Barcelona to Franco's coup d'état was to have lasting effects after the defeat of the Republican government. The autonomous institutions of Catalonia were abolished,^[37] and the use of the Catalan language in public life was suppressed. Barcelona remained the second largest city in Spain, at the heart of a region which was relatively industrialised and prosperous, despite the devastation of the civil war. The result was a large-scale immigration from poorer regions of Spain (particularly Andalusia, Murcia and Galicia), which in turn led to rapid urbanisation. Barcelona hosted the Olympic Games in 1992, which helped revitalize the city.^[38]

A panoramic view of Barcelona (click to enlarge)

Geography[link]

Barcelona from space

Barcelona is located on the northeast coast of the Iberian Peninsula, facing the Mediterranean Sea, on a plain approximately 5 km (3 mi) wide limited by the mountain range of Collserola, the Llobregat river to the southwest and the Besòs river to the north.^[39] This plain covers an area of 170 km² (66 sq mi),^[39] of which 101 km² (38.9 sq mi)^[40] are occupied by the city itself. It is 120 km (75 mi) south of the Pyrenees and the Catalan border with France.

Tibidabo, 512 m (1,680 ft) high, offers striking views over the city^[41] and is topped by the 288.4 m (946.2 ft) Torre de Collserola, a telecommunications tower that is visible from most of the city. Barcelona is peppered with small hills, most of them urbanised, that gave their name to the neighbourhoods built upon them, such as Carmel (267 m), Putxet (181 m) and Rovira (261 m). The escarpment of Montjuïc (173 m), situated to the southeast, overlooks the harbour and is topped by Montjuïc castle, a fortress built in the 17–18th centuries to control the city as a replacement for the Ciutadella. Today, the fortress is a museum and Montjuïc is home to several sporting and cultural venues, as well as Barcelona's biggest park and gardens.

The city borders on the municipalities of Santa Coloma de Gramenet and Sant Adrià de Besòs to the north; the Mediterranean Sea to the east; El Prat de Llobregat and L'Hospitalet de Llobregat to the south; and Sant Feliu de Llobregat, Sant Just Desvern, Esplugues de Llobregat, Sant Cugat del Vallès, and Montcada i Reixac to the west.

Climate[link]

Barcelona has a Mediterranean climate^[42] (Köppen climate classification: Csa),^[43] with mild, humid winters and warm, dry summers.

Its average annual temperature is 20 °C (68 °F) during the day and 11 °C (52 °F) at night. The average annual temperature of the sea is about 18 °C (64 °F). In the coldest month – January, the temperature typically ranges from 8 to 17 °C (46 to 63 °F) during the day to 2 to 10 °C (36 to 50 °F) at night and the average sea temperature is 13 °C (55 °F).^[44] In the warmest month – August, the typical temperature ranges from 25 to 31 °C (77 to 88 °F) during the day to about 20 °C (68 °F) at night and the average sea temperature is 25 °C (77 °F).^[44] Generally – the summer / "holiday" season lasts about six months, from May to October. Two months – April and November – are transitional; sometimes the temperature exceeds 20 °C (68 °F), with an average temperature of 17–18 °C (63–64 °F) during the day and 8–9 °C (46–48 °F) at night. December, January and February are the coldest months, with average temperatures around 14 °C (57 °F) during the day and 5 °C (41 °F) at night. Large fluctuations in temperature are rare, particularly in the summer months. Sunshine duration is 2,524 hours per year, from 138 (average 4.5 hours of sunshine at day) in December to 310 (average 10 hours of sunshine at day) in July.^[45]

Main sights[link]

Sagrada Família church, Gaudi's masterpiece

The Barri Gòtic (Catalan for "Gothic Quarter") is the centre of the old city of Barcelona. Many of the buildings date from medieval times, some from as far back as the Roman settlement of Barcelona. Catalan modernista architecture (related to the movement known as Art Nouveau in the rest of Europe), developed between 1885 and 1950 and left an important legacy in Barcelona. Several of these buildings are World Heritage Sites. Especially remarkable is the work of architect Antoni Gaudí, which can be seen throughout the city. His best-known work is the immense but still unfinished church of the Sagrada Família, which has been under construction since 1882, and is still financed by private donations. As of 2007, completion is planned for 2026.

Barcelona was also home to Mies van der Rohe's Barcelona Pavilion. Designed in 1929 for the International Exposition for Germany, it is an iconic building that came to symbolize modern architecture as the embodiment of van der Rohe's aphorisms "less is more" and "God is in the details." The Barcelona pavilion was intended as a temporary structure, and was torn down in 1930 less than a year after it was constructed. A modern re-creation by Spanish architects now stands in Barcelona, however, constructed in 1986.

Barcelona won the 1999 RIBA Royal Gold Medal for its architecture,^[47] the first (and as of 2012, only) time that the winner has been a city, and not an individual architect.

Plaça Reial

World Heritage Sites[link]

In Barcelona there are several points of interest declared World Heritage Sites by UNESCO:^[48]

Code	Name	Year	Coordinates	Image
320-001	Park Güell	1984	41°24′59.6″N 2°09′07.9″E / 41.416556°N 2.152194°E / 41.416556; 2.152194 (Parque Güell)
320-002	Palau Güell	1984	41°22′45″N 2°10′28″E / 41.379183°N 2.174445°E / 41.379183; 2.174445 (Palacio Güell)
320-003	Casa Milà	1984	41°23′51.3″N 2°09′46.9″E / 41.397583°N 2.163028°E / 41.397583; 2.163028 (Casa Milà)
320-004	Casa Vicens	2005	41°22′50.5″N 2°10′30.6″E / 41.380694°N 2.175167°E / 41.380694; 2.175167 (Casa Vicens)
320-005	Facade of the Nativity and crypt of the Sagrada Familia	2005	41°24′19.8″N 2°10′30.2″E / 41.4055°N 2.175056°E / 41.4055; 2.175056 (Templo Expiatorio de la Sagrada Familia)
320-006	Casa Batlló	2005	41°22′00.3″N 2°09′59.0″E / 41.36675°N 2.16639°E / 41.36675; 2.16639 (Casa Batlló)
804-001	Palau de la Música Catalana	1997	41°23′16″N 2°10′30″E / 41.38778°N 2.175°E / 41.38778; 2.175
804-002	Hospital de Sant Pau	1997	41°24′50″N 2°10′30″E / 41.41389°N 2.175°E / 41.41389; 2.175 (Hospital de la Santa Cruz y San Pablo)

Historic buildings and monuments[link]

Sagrat Cor, at the summit of the Tibidabo mountain

Barcelona Cathedral

View of Barcelona into the "Parc Güell".

• Sagrada Família, the international symbol of Barcelona
• Palau de la Música Catalana and Hospital de Sant Pau, designed by Lluís Domènech i Montaner, included in the UNESCO Heritage List list in 1997.
• Works by Antoni Gaudí, including Park Güell, Palau Güell, Casa Milà (La Pedrera), Casa Vicens, Sagrada Família (Nativity façade and crypt), Casa Batlló, Crypt in Colonia Güell. The first three works were inscribed as a World Heritage Site in 1984. The other four were added as extensions to the site in 2005.
• The Cathedral of St. Eulalia
• Church of Santa Maria del Mar (Gothic)
• Gothic church of Santa Maria del Pi
• Church of Sant Pau del Camp
• Palau Reial Major, medieval residence of the counts of Barcelona and the Kings of Aragon
• The Columbus Monument
• The Arc de Triomf, a triumphal arch built in 1888

Museums[link]

Barcelona has a great number of museums, which cover different areas and eras. The National Museum of Art of Catalonia possesses a well-known collection of Romanesque art while the Barcelona Museum of Contemporary Art focuses on post-1945 Catalan and Spanish art. The Fundació Joan Miró, Picasso Museum and Fundació Antoni Tàpies hold important collections of these world-renowned artists.

Several museums cover the fields of history and archeology, like the City History Museum, the Museum of the History of Catalonia, the Archeology Museum of Catalonia, the Barcelona Maritime Museum and the private-owned Egyptian Museum. The Erotic museum of Barcelona is among the most peculiar ones, while Cosmocaixa is a science museum that received the European Museum of the Year Award in 2006.

The National Museum of Art of Catalonia.

Parks[link]

Barcelona contains sixty-eight municipal parks, of which twelve are historic parks, five are thematic (botanical) parks, forty-five are urban parks and six are forest parks.^[49] They range from vest-pocket parks to large recreation areas. The urban parks alone cover 10% of the city (549.7 ha/1,358.3 acres).^[40] The total park surface grows about 10 ha (25 acres) per year,^[50] with a proportion of 18.1 square metres (195 sq ft) of park area per inhabitant.^[51]

Of Barcelona's parks, Montjuïc is the largest, with 203 ha located on the mountain of the same name.^[40] It is followed by Parc de la Ciutadella (which occupies the site of the old military citadel and which houses the Parliament building, the Barcelona Zoo and several museums); 31 ha/76.6 acres including the zoo), the Guinardó Park (19 ha/47.0 acres), Park Güell (designed by Antoni Gaudí; 17.2 ha/42.5 acres), Oreneta Castle Park (also 17.2 ha/42.5 acres), Diagonal Mar Park (13.3 ha/32.9 acres, inaugurated in 2002), Nou Barris Central Park (13.2 ha/32.6 acres), Can Dragó Sports Park and Poblenou Park (both 11.9 ha/29.4 acres), the Labyrinth Park (9.10 ha/22.5 acres), named after the garden maze it contains.^[40] There are also several smaller parks, for example, the Parc de les Aigües (2 ha/4.9 acres). A part of the Collserolla Park is also within the city limits. PortAventura, one of the largest amusement parks in Europe with 3,000,000 visitors per year, is located one hour's drive from Barcelona.^[52]

Beaches[link]

The Barceloneta beach

Barcelona beach was listed as number one in a list of the top ten beach cities in the world according to National Geographic^[53] and Discovery Channel.^[54] Barcelona contains seven beaches, totalling 4.5 km (2.8 mi) of coastline. Sant Sebastià and Barceloneta beaches, both 1,100 m (3,610 ft) in length,^[40] are the largest, oldest and the most-frequented beaches in Barcelona. The Olympic Harbour separates them from the other city beaches: Nova Icària, Bogatell, Mar Bella, Nova Mar Bella and Llevant. These beaches (ranging from 400 to 640 m/1,300 to 2,100 ft) were opened as a result of the city restructuring to host the 1992 Summer Olympics, when a great number of industrial buildings were demolished. At present, the beach sand is artificially replenished given that storms regularly remove large quantities of material. The 2004 Universal Forum of Cultures left the city a large concrete bathing zone on the eastmost part of the city's coastline.

Beach in Barcelona

Demographics[link]

Demographic evolution, 1900–2007, according to the Spanish Instituto Nacional de Estadística

According to Barcelona's City Council, Barcelona's population as of 1 June 2006 was 1,673,075 people,^[55] while the population of the urban area was 4,210,000. It is the central nucleus of the Barcelona metropolitan area, which relies on a population of 5,083,000.^[56]

The population density of Barcelona was 15,779 inhabitants per square kilometre (40,870 /sq mi),^[57] with Eixample being the most populated district. 62% of the inhabitants were born in Catalonia, with a 23.5% coming from the rest of Spain. Of the 13.9% from other countries, a proportion which has more than tripled since 2001 when it was 3.9%,^[40] the majority come from (in order) Ecuador, Peru, Morocco, Colombia, Argentina, Pakistan and China.^[58]

As official language, Spanish is understood almost universally in Barcelona. In addition, 95% of the population understand Catalonia's own native Catalan language, while 74.6% can speak it, 75% can read it, and 47.1% can write it,^[59] thanks to the linguistic immersion educational system. While most of the population state they are Roman Catholic (208 churches), there are also a number of other groups, including Evangelical (71 locations, mostly professed by Roma), Jehovah's Witnesses (21 Kingdom Halls) and Buddhists (13 locations),^[60] and a number of Muslims due to immigration.

In 1900, Barcelona had a population of 533,000 people,^[39] which grew steadily but slowly until 1950, when it

Forum Park in Barcelona

started absorbing a high number of people from other less-industrialized parts of Spain. Barcelona's population peaked in 1979 with 1,906,998 people, and fell throughout the 1980s and 1990s as more people sought a higher quality of life in outlying cities in the Barcelona Metropolitan Area. After bottoming out in 2000 with 1,496,266 people, the city's population began to rise again as younger people started to return, causing a great increase in housing prices.^[61]

Population density[link]

Note: This text is entirely based on the municipal statistical database provided by the city council.

Barcelona is one of the most densely populated cities in Europe. For the year 2008 the city council calculated the population to 1,628,090 living in the 102.2 km² sized municipality, giving the city an average population density of 15,926 inhabitants per square kilometre.

In the case of Barcelona though, the land distribution is extremely uneven. Half of the municipality or 50.2 km², all of it located on the municipal edge is made up of the ten least densely populated neighbourhoods containing less than 10% of the city's population, the uninhabited Zona Franca industrial area and Montjuïc forest park. Leaving the remaining 90% or slightly below 1.5 million inhabitants living on the remaining 52 square kilometres at an average density close to 28,500 inhabitants per square kilometre.

Of the 73 neighbourhoods in the city, 45 had a population density above 20,000 inhabitants per square kilometre with a combined population of 1,313,424 inhabitants living on 38.6 km² at an average density of 33,987 inhabitants per square km. The 30 most densely populated neighbourhoods accounted for 57.5% of the city population occupying only 22,7% of the municipality, or in other words, 936,406 people living at an average density of 40,322 inhabitants per square kilometre. The city's highest density is found at and around the neighbourhood of la Sagrada Família where four of the city's most densely populated neighbourhoods are located side by side, all with a population density above 50,000 inhabitants per square kilometre.

Economy[link]

Barcelona Business Centre.

General information[link]

Fórum Convention Center and Barcelona Stock Exchange

The Barcelona metropolitan area comprises over 66% of the people in one of the richest regions in Southern Europe – Catalonia, with a GDP PPP per capita amounting to €30,300 (21% more than the EU average). The Barcelona metropolitan area has a GDP amounting to $177 billion (4th richest city by GDP in the European Union and 35th in the world), is equivalent to $35,975 in per capita terms (44% more than the EU average).^[13] Barcelona city has a GDP €80,894 per head; according to Eurostat.^[14] Furthermore, Barcelona is Europe's 4th best business city and fastest improving European city, with growth improved by 17% per year.^[9] Also, among world centers of commerce it takes second place in economic stability.^[19]

Gran Via center, part of Fira de Barcelona.

Barcelona has a long-standing mercantile tradition. Less well known is that the region was one of the earliest to begin industrialization in continental Europe, beginning with textile-related works from the mid 1780s but really gathering momentum in the mid-19th century, when it became a major centre for the production of textiles and machinery.^{[citation needed]} Since then, manufacturing has played a large role in its history.

Borsa de Barcelona (Barcelona Stock Exchange) (es) is a stock exchange in Barcelona. This is the main stock exchange in the northeastern part of the Iberian Peninsula.

Trade fair and exhibitions[link]

World Trade Center Barcelona

Drawing upon its tradition of creative art and craftsmanship, Barcelona is nowadays also known for its award-winning industrial design. It also has several congress halls, notably Fira de Barcelona – second largest trade fair and exhibition centres in Europe,^[62] that host a quickly growing number of national and international events each year (at present above 50).

Mobile World Congress in Fira de Barcelona.

Fira de Barcelona venues total is 405,000 m² (41 ha), not counting Gran Via center on the Plaza de Europa. However, the economic crisis and deep cuts in business travel are affecting the Council's positioning of the city as a convention centre.^[63]

An important business centre, the World Trade Center Barcelona, is located in Barcelona's Port Vell harbour.

Tourism[link]

Barcelona is the 16th-most-visited city in the world and the fourth most visited in Europe after Paris, London, and Rome, with several million tourists every year.^[10]

Barcelona as internationally renowned a tourist destination, with numerous recreational areas, one of the best beaches in the world,^[53][54] mild and warm climate and historical monuments, including eight UNESCO World Heritage Sites has tens good-quality hotels and developed tourist infrastructure. Also, three times more tourists visit than there are residents.

Manufacturing sector[link]

Headquarters and a factories of SEAT and Nissan lies in the city and suburbs.
Headquarters and a factories of SEAT and Nissan lies in the city and suburbs.

Past and present, Barcelona is an important European automobile manufacturing centre. Formerly there were automobile factories of AFA, Abadal, Actividades Industriales, Alvarez, America, Artés de Arcos, Balandrás, Baradat-Esteve, Biscúter, J. Castro, Clúa, David, Delfín, Díaz y Grilló, Ebro trucks, Edis, Elizalde, Automóviles España, Eucort, Fenix, Fábrica Hispano, Auto Academia Garriga, Fábrica Española de Automóviles Hebe, Hispano-Suiza, Huracán Motors, Talleres Hereter, Junior SL, Kapi, La Cuadra, M.A., Automóviles Matas, Motores y Motos, Nacional Custals, National Pescara, Nacional RG, Nacional Rubi, Nacional Sitjes, Automóviles Nike, Orix, Otro Ford, Partia, Pegaso, PTV, Ricart, Ricart-España, Industrias Salvador, Siata Española, Stevenson, Romagosa y Compañía, Garaje Storm, Talleres Hereter, Trimak, Automóviles Victoria, Manufacturas Mecánicas Aleu.^[64][65]

Today, the headquarters and a large factory of SEAT (the largest Spanish automobile manufacturer) are in one of its suburbs. There is also a Nissan factory lies in the logistics and industrial area of the city.^[66] Also, the factory of Derbi, large manufacturer of motorcycles, scooters and mopeds lies near the city.^[67]

The Brandery, fashion show in Barcelona.

As in other modern cities, the manufacturing sector has long since been overtaken by the services sector, though it remains very important. The region's leading industries today are textiles, chemical, pharmaceutical, motor, electronic, printing, logistics, publishing, telecommunications and information technology services.^{[citation needed]}

Fashion[link]

The traditional importance in textiles is reflected in Barcelona's repeated attempts to become a major fashion centre. In summer 2000, the city became a host for the prestigious Bread & Butter urban fashion fair until 2009 when it was announced that it would be held again on Berlin.^[68][69] This was a hard blow for the city as the fair brought €100 m to the city in just three days.^[70] There have been many attempts to launch Barcelona as a fashion capital, notably Gaudi Home. The Brandery, an urban fashion show, is held in Barcelona twice a year. Barcelona is the seventh most important fashion capital in the world.^[17]

Government and administrative divisions[link]

Palau de la Generalitat de Catalunya.

Barcelona is governed by a city council formed by 41 city councilors, elected for a four-year term by universal suffrage. As one of the two biggest cities in Spain, Barcelona is subject to a special law articulated through the Carta Municipal (Municipal Law). A first version of this law was passed in 1960 and amended later, but the current version was approved in March 2006.^[71] According to this law, Barcelona's city council is organized in two levels: a political one, with elected city councilors, and one executive, which administrates the programs and executes the decisions taken on the political level.^[72] This law also gives the local government a special relationship with the central government and it also gives the mayor wider prerogatives by the means of municipal executive commissions.^[73] It expands the powers of the city council in areas like telecommunications, city traffic, road safety and public safety. It also gives a special economic regime to the city's treasury and it gives the council a veto in matters that will be decided by the central government, but that will need a favourable report from the council.^[71]

The town hall of Barcelona

The Comissió de Govern (Government Commission) is the executive branch, formed by 24 councilors, led by the Mayor, with 5 lieutenant-mayors and 17 city councilors, each in charge of an area of government, and 5 non-elected councilors.^[74] The plenary, formed by the 41 city councilors, has advisory, planning, regulatory, and fiscal executive functions.^[75]

The six Commissions del Consell Municipal (City council commissions) have executive and controlling functions in the field of their jurisdiction. They are composed by a number of councilors proportional to the number of councilors each political party has in the plenary.^[76] The city council has jurisdiction in the fields of city planning, transportation, municipal taxes,

Gothic Gallery in the Palau de la Generalitat de Catalunya.

public highways security through the Guàrdia Urbana (the municipal police), city maintenance, gardens, parks and environment, facilities (like schools, nurseries, sports centres, libraries, and so on.), culture, sports, youth and social welfare. Some of these competencies are not exclusive, but shared with the Generalitat de Catalunya or the central Spanish government.

The executive branch is led by a Chief Municipal Executive Officer which answers to the Mayor. It is made up of departments which are legally part of the city council and by separate legal entities of two tipes: autonomous public departments and public enterprises.^[77]

The seat of the city council is on the Plaça de Sant Jaume, opposite the seat of Generalitat de Catalunya. Since the coming of the Spanish democracy, Barcelona had been governed by the PSC, first with an absolute majority and later in coalition with ERC and ICV. After the May 2007 election, the ERC did not renew the coalition agreement and the PSC governed in a minority coalition with ICV as the junior partner.

After 32 years, on 22 May 2011, CiU gained a plurality of seats at the municipal election, gaining 15 seats to the PSC's 11. The PP hold 8 seats, ICV 5 and ERC 2.

The Saló de Cent, in the town hall of Barcelona.

Districts[link]

Districts of Barcelona

Since 1987, the city has been divided into 10 administrative districts (districtes in Catalan, distritos in Spanish), each one with its own council led by a city councillor. The composition of each district council depends on the number of votes each political party had in that district, so a district can be led by a councillor from a different party than the executive council.

The districts are based mostly on historical divisions. Several of the city's districts are former towns annexed by the city of Barcelona in the 18th and 19th centuries that still maintain their own distinct character. The official names of these districts are in the Catalan language.

Education[link]

Barcelona has a well-developed higher education system of public universities. Most prominent among these is the University of Barcelona, a world-renowned research and teaching institution with campuses around the city.

Paranymph of the Historic building of the UB

Barcelona is also home to the Polytechnic University of Catalonia, and the newer Pompeu Fabra University, and, in the private sector the EADA Business School founded in 1957, became the first Barcelona institution to run manager training programmes for the business community. IESE Business School, as well as the largest private educational institution, the Ramon Llull University, which encompasses internationally prestigious schools and institutes such as the ESADE Business School. The Autonomous University of Barcelona, another public university, is located in Bellaterra, a town in the Metropolitan Area. The Open University of Catalonia, a private Internet-centered open university, is also based in Barcelona.

Historic building of the University of Barcelona, entrance vestibule

The city has a network of public schools, from nurseries to high schools, under the responsibility of a consortium led by city council (though the curriculum is the responsibility of the Generalitat de Catalunya). There are also many private schools, some of them Roman Catholic. Most such schools receive a public subsidy on a per-student basis, are subject to inspection by the public authorities, and are required to follow the same curricular guidelines as public schools, though they charge tuition. Known as escoles concertades, they are distinct from schools whose funding is entirely private (escoles privades).

The language of instruction at public schools and escoles concertades is Catalan, as stipulated by the 2009 Catalan Education Act. Spanish may be used as a language of instruction by teachers of Spanish literature or language, and foreign languages by teachers of those languages. An experimental partial immersion programme adopted by some schools allows for the teaching of a foreign language (English, generally) across the curriculum, though this is limited to a maximum of 30% of the school day. No public school or escola concertada in Barcelona may offer 50% or full immersion programmes in a foreign language, nor does any public school or escola concertada offer International Baccalaureate programmes.

Culture[link]

Palau de la Música Catalana

Barcelona's cultural roots go back 2000 years. To a greater extent than the rest of Catalonia, where Catalonia's native Catalan is more dominant, Barcelona is a bilingual city: Catalan and Spanish are both official languages and widely spoken. The Catalan spoken in Barcelona, Central Catalan, is the one closest to standard Catalan. Since the arrival of democracy, the Catalan culture (very much repressed during the dictatorship of Franco) has been promoted, both by recovering works from the past and by stimulating the creation of new works. Barcelona is designated as a world-class city by the Globalization and World Cities Study Group and Network.^[78]

The Liceu opera house

Entertainment and performing arts[link]

Barcelona has many venues for live music and theatre, including the world-renowned Gran Teatre del Liceu opera house, the Teatre Nacional de Catalunya, the Teatre Lliure and the Palau de la Música Catalana concert hall. Barcelona also is home to the Barcelona and Catalonia National Symphonic Orchestra (Orquestra Simfònica de Barcelona i Nacional de Catalunya, usually known as OBC), the largest symphonic orchestra in Catalonia. In 1999, the OBC inaugurated its new venue in the brand-new Auditorium (l'Auditori). It performs around 75 concerts per season and its current director is Eiji Oue.^[79]

La Rambla (in the right), famous for its living statues

Yearly two major pop music festivals take place in the city, the Sónar Festival and the Primavera Sound Festival. The city also has a thriving alternative music scene, with groups such as The Pinker Tones receiving international attention.^[80]

Media[link]

El Periódico de Catalunya and La Vanguardia are Barcelona's two major daily newspapers (both with Catalan and Spanish editions) while Sport and El Mundo Deportivo (both in Spanish) are the city's two major sports daily newspapers, published by the same companies. The city is also served by a number of smaller publications such as Ara and El Punt Avui (in Catalan), by nation-wide newspapers with special Barcelona editions like El Pais and El Mundo (both in Spanish), and by several free newspapers like 20 minutos and Què (all bilingual).

Several major FM stations include Catalunya Ràdio, RAC 1, RAC 105 and Cadena SER. Barcelona also has a local TV stations, BTV, owned by city council. The headquarters of Televisió de Catalunya, Catalonia's public network, are located in Sant Joan Despí, in Barcelona's metropolitan area.

Sports[link]

Estadi Olímpic de Montjuïc (Barcelona Olympic Stadium).

Barcelona has a long sporting tradition and hosted the highly successful 1992 Summer Olympics as well as several matches during the 1982 FIFA World Cup (on the two stadiums). It has also hosted, among others, the final of European Champions League (1989, 1999), Eurobasket (1973, 1997), Euroleague (1969, 1998, 2003, 2011), 2003 EuroHockey Nations Championship and the 1951, 1954, 1957, 1979 European Roller Hockey Championship, 1958 European Judo Championships, 1970 European Water Polo Championship, 1970 European Aquatics Championships, 1976 European Taekwondo Championships, 1980 European Karate Championships, 1987 European Wushu Championships, 1995 IAAF World Indoor Championships, 1996 FIFA Futsal World Championship, 2002 Euro Beach Soccer Cup, 2003 World Aquatics Championships, 2007 European Baseball Championship, 2010 European Athletics Championships and some other. Also, the city aspires to organize the 2022 Winter Olympics. The opening, closing, medal ceremonies and indoor sports would be held in Barcelona, while outdoor sports would be held in ski resorts in the Pyrenees, mainly La Molina.^[81]

The Camp Nou, the largest stadium in Europe.

FC Barcelona is a sports club best known worldwide for its football team, one of the largest in the world and second richest football club in the world.^[82] It has 62 of national (likewise 41 runners-up) and 15 continental (likewise 10 runners-up) trophies, including four of the UEFA Champions League (likewise 3 runners-up and actually champion) and two of the FIFA Club World Cup (likewise 1 runners-up and actually champion). Also, it the only men's club in the world to accomplish a sextuple. FC Barcelona also has teams in the Spanish basketball ACB league (Regal FC Barcelona), the handball ASOBAL league (FC Barcelona Handbol), and the roller hockey league (FC Barcelona Hoquei), all of them winners of the highest European competitions. The club's museum is the second most visited in Catalonia. Twice a season, FC Barcelona and cross-town rivals RCD Espanyol contest in the local derby in La Liga, while its basketball section has its own local derby in Liga ACB with nearby Joventut Badalona. Barcelona also has other clubs in lower categories, like CE Europa and UE Sant Andreu.

Palau Sant Jordi (St. George's sporting arena) and Montjuïc Communications Tower

Barcelona has two UEFA elite stadiums (): FC Barcelona's Camp Nou, the largest stadium in Europe with a capacity of 100,000 and the publicly owned Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys, with a capacity of 55,000; used for the 1992 Olympics. Also, the city has several smaller stadiums such as Mini Estadi, with a capacity of 15,000 and Estadio Narcís Sala, Nou Sardenya with a capacity of 7,000. In the suburbs of Barcelona there is a third UEFA elite stadium () – Estadi Cornellà-El Prat, with a capacity of 40,000. Also, except Palau Sant Jordi (St. George's sporting arena), with a capacity of 12,000–24,000 (depending on use), city has two other larger sporting and concert arena: Palau Blaugrana, with a capacity of 7,500 and Palau dels Esports de Barcelona.

Circuit de Catalunya/Circuit de Barcelona, race track of Formula 1 and MotoGP on the suburb of Barcelona.

Several major road running competitions are organized year-round in Barcelona: the Barcelona Marathon every March with a participants of over 10,000 in 2010, the Cursa de Bombers in April, the Cursa de El Corte Inglés in May (with about 60,000 participants each year)^{[citation needed]}, the Cursa de la Mercè, the Cursa Jean Bouin, the Milla Sagrada Família and the San Silvestre.

The Open Seat Godó, a 50-year-old ATP World Tour 500 Series tennis tournament, is held annually in the facilities of the Real Club de Tenis Barcelona (Barcelona Royal Tennis Club). Also, each Christmas, a swimming race across the port is organized. Near Barcelona, in Montmeló, the 131,000 capacity Circuit de Catalunya / Circuit de Barcelona racetrack hosts the Formula One World Championship, Formula One Spanish Grand Prix, Catalan motorcycle Grand Prix, Spanish GT Championship and GP2 Series. skateboarding and bicycling are also very popular in Barcelona. In the city and the metropolitan area, there are tens of kilometers of bicycle paths.

Transport[link]

Airports[link]

Aerial view of the Barcelona Airport.

Barcelona is served by Barcelona El Prat Airport, about 17 km (11 mi) from the centre of Barcelona. It is the second-largest airport in Spain, and the largest on the Mediterranean coast. It is a main hub for Vueling Airlines and Spanair (closed), and also a focus for Iberia and Air Europa. The airport mainly serves domestic and European destinations, but some airlines offer destinations in Latin America, Asia and the United States. The airport is connected to the city by highway, commuter train (Barcelona Airport railway station) and scheduled bus service. A new terminal (T1) has been built, and entered service on 17 June 2009.

Sabadell Airport is a smaller airport in the nearby town of Sabadell, devoted to pilot training, aerotaxi and private flights. Some low-cost airlines, such as Transavia.com and Ryanair, prefer to use Girona-Costa Brava Airport, situated about 90 km (56 mi) to the north of Barcelona and the Reus Airport, situated 77 km (48 mi) to the south, though they offer some flights from Barcelona El Prat Airport

Seaport[link]

Port of Barcelona

The Port of Barcelona has a 2000-year old history and a great contemporary commercial importance. It is Europe's ninth largest container port, with a trade volume of 2.57 million TEU's in 2008.^[84] The port is managed by the Port Authority of Barcelona. Its 7.86 km² (3 sq mi) are divided into three zones: Port Vell (the Old Port), the commercial port and the logistics port (Barcelona Free Port). The port is undergoing an enlargement that will double its size thanks to diverting the mouth of the Llobregat river 2 km (1¼ mi) to the south.^[85]

The Port Vell area also houses the Maremagnum (a commercial mall), a multiplex cinema, the IMAX Port Vell and Europe's largest aquarium – Aquarium Barcelona, containing 8,000 fish and 11 sharks contained in 22 basins filled with 6 million litres of sea water. The Maremagnum, due to being situated a designated tourist zone, is the only commercial mall in the city that can open on Sundays and public holidays.

The Port Vell.

Public transport[link]

Metro in Barcelona and Tram in Barcelona.

Barcelona is served by a comprehensive local public transport network that includes a metro, a bus network, two separate modern tram networks, a separate historic tram line, and several funiculars and aerial cable cars. The Barcelona Metro network comprises eleven lines, identified by an "L" followed by the line number as well as by individual colours. Most of the network (nine lines) is operated by the Transports Metropolitans de Barcelona (TMB), but three lines are FGC commuter lines that run through the city. When finished, the L9 will be the second longest underground metro line in Europe with 42.6 km; only shorter than London's 76 km Central Line.

The Estació del Nord (Northern Station), a former railway station that was renovated for the 1992 Olympic Games, now serves as the terminus for long-distance and regional bus services.

Barcelona taxi and Barcelona bicing station.

Another company, TRAMMET, operates the city's two modern tram networks, known as Trambaix and Trambesòs.^[86] The historic tram line, the Tramvia Blau,^[87] connects the metro to the Funicular del Tibidabo (both operated by TMB). The Funicular de Tibidabo climbs the Tibidabo hill, as does the Funicular de Vallvidrera (FGC). The Funicular de Montjuïc (TMB) climbs the Montjuïc hill. The city has two aerial cable cars: Montjuïc Aerial Tramway (to the Montjuïc castle) and Port Vell Aerial Tramway that runs via Torre Jaume I and Torre Sant Sebastià over the port.

Barcelona has a metered taxi fleet governed by the Institut Metropolità del Taxi (Metropolitan Taxi Institute), composed of more than 10,000 cars. Most of the licences are in the hands of self-employed drivers.^[88] With their black and yellow livery, Barcelona's taxis are easily spotted.

On 22 March 2007,^[89] Barcelona's City Council started the Bicing service, a bicycle service understood as a public transport. Once the user has their user card, they can take a bicycle from any of the 100 stations spread around the city and use it anywhere the urban area of the city, and then leave it at another station.^[90] The service has been a success, with 50,000 subscribed users in three months.^[91]

Siemens Velaro designed for speeds of 310 km/h (194 mph) at Barcelona-Sants AVE station.

Railway[link]

Barcelona is a major hub for RENFE, the Spanish state railway network, and its main intercity train station is Barcelona-Sants station. The AVE high-speed rail system – designed for speeds of 310 km/h (194 mph) – was extended from Madrid to Barcelona (Madrid–Barcelona high-speed rail line) in 2008.^[92] Generally, Barcelona has high-speed rail links with major cities of Spain.

B-20 motorway in Barcelona.

A high-speed rail connecting Barcelona and France – LGV Perpignan–Figueres will be launched in 2012. Rodalies and the Ferrocarrils de la Generalitat de Catalunya (FGC) run Barcelona's widespread commuter train service.

Roads and highways[link]

Barcelona lies on three international routes, including European route E15 (north-south), European route E90 (west-east) and European route E09; it also has a comprehensive network of motorways and highways throughout the metropolitan area, including A-2, A-7/AP-7, C-16, C-17, C-31, C-32, C-33, C-60. The city is circled by three half ring roads or bypasses, Ronda de Dalt (B-20) (on the mountain side), Ronda del Litoral (B-10) (along the coast) and Ronda del Mig (separated into two parts: Travessera de Dalt in the north and the Gran Via de Carles III), two partially covered^[93] fast highways with several exits that bypass the city.

The city's main arteries include Diagonal Avenue, which crosses it diagonally, Meridiana Avenue which leads to Glòries and connects with Diagonal Avenue and Gran Via de les Corts Catalanes, which crosses the city from east to west, passing through its centre.

International relations[link]

Torre de Gel (Ice Tower)

Twin towns and sister cities[link]

Barcelona is twinned with the following cities:^{(in chronological order)[94]}

• Montpellier, France, 1963
• Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, 1972
• Monterrey, Mexico, 1977
• Boston, United States, 1983
• Busan, South Korea, 1983^[95]
• Cologne, Germany, 1984
• St. Petersburg, Russia, 1984
• São Paulo, Brazil, 1985 ^[96][96][97]
• Montevideo, Uruguay, 1985
• Seville, Spain^[98]
• Tel Aviv, Israel, 1998
• San Francisco, United States, 2010^[99]

Other forms of cooperation and city friendship similar to the twin city programmes exist to many cities worldwide.^[112]

Other sights[link]

See also[link]

	Spain portal
	Catalan-speaking countries portal

• Catalan people
• Catalan cuisine
• List of markets in Barcelona
• List of tallest buildings and structures in Barcelona
• 1888 Exposición Universal de Barcelona
• 1929 Barcelona International Exposition
• 2004 Universal Forum of Cultures
• 2004 World Urban Forum
• Mossos d'Esquadra
• Urban Region of Barcelona

References[link]

Bibliography[link]

•  This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Smith, William, ed. (1854–57). "^{article name needed}". Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography. London: John Murray. 
• "Barcelona". Gran Enciclopèdia Catalana. Barcelona: Ed. Enciclopèdia Catalana S.A.. 
• Busquets, Joan. Barcelona: The Urban Evolution of a Compact City (Harvard UP, 2006) 468 pp.
• McDonogh, G. W. (January 2011). "Review Essay: Barcelona: Forms, Images, and Conflicts: Joan Busquets (2005)". Journal of Urban History 37 (1): 117-123. DOI:10.1177/0096144210384250. 
• Marshall, Tim, ed. Transforming Barcelona (Routledge, 2004), 267 pp.
• Ramon Resina, Joan. Barcelona's Vocation of Modernity: Rise and Decline of an Urban Image (Stanford UP, 2008). 272 pp.

Notes[link]