Texas Stream Of Consciousness: BCN: Parc De La Ciutadella

Walking east from La Rambla allows you to explore the soulful neighborhood of Barri Gòtic; an interesting and ecclectic mix of people, smells and sounds, all nestled casually into narrow, criss-crossing streets and older construction vaguely reminding me of Florence, Italy. A eastern exit of Barri Gòtic will place you at the entrance to yet another lovely and historic park known as Parc De La Ciutadella.

Here you will find the Barcelona Zoo, the Catalan Parliament Building and the huge fountain area known as Cascada, loosely modeled after the Trevi fountains in Rome. If you dont know the convergence and divergence of Catalan and Spanish history, this is the place to learn. I would recommend not asking a Barcelona resident about the difference between Catalonia and Spain; this is a black hole from which discussion never exits. Keep in mind the Catalan sense of nationalism is extremely strong and they do not consider themselves part of Spain, technicalities aside.