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The secret behind the fascination — Barcelona
Sometimes it seems as though the world is more or less divided into two groups: those who have been to Barcelona before — and those who absolutely want to go there. I don't know about you, but I don't know anyone who's been there before and isn't thrilled.
For me, this begs the question of why this is actually the case. Yes, Barcelona is located in the south, by the sea and has a Mediterranean flair. These are all big plus points. On the other hand, Barcelona is not the only city in Europe. So: What is so special about this city?
That's when I get the idea of combining my trip to Southwestern Europe with a stop in Barcelona, my way will somehow lead me past there. When, by chance, I received a last-minute invitation to an event in Barcelona before leaving, the decision was made: I would change my route and start my journey across the Iberian Peninsula with Barcelona! Las Ramblas, La Boqueria, Gaudí, Barcelona Port — I'm coming!
By the way: That this city must have something special can also be seen in the fact that many and very different artists have dedicated songs to it. A small compilation can be found here — also a good accompaniment to this article:
Barcelona's Special Energy — A First Rapprochement
When I arrive in Barcelona, I move into a hotel in Gracia — quite central and therefore a good starting point in all possible directions of the city. And that's even within walking distance!
It is a wonderful October afternoon and I still have a few hours until the start of the event (the invitation, you remember). I decide to be the first to greet Barcelona, which has been in my heart since my first visit here 30 years ago. Back then, I visited my best friend Christian here, who spent part of his studies in the Catalan Capital. It was the nineties, i.e. the time before mobile phones, not to mention smartphones. But at least there were already emails. And so I received emails from him over and over again in which he raved about this city. One day in February, among others, when he told me how he was sitting on the balcony in the warm sun with a cafe Cortado — while I was struggling with the grey, wet and cold Berlin winter. That was the moment when I decided to visit him here.
And that's exactly what greets me here again: It's mid-October and (from a northern European perspective) it feels like a perfect late summer afternoon!
So I step out of the hotel and onto the street and take a first walk down to the sea, where the sailboats move along the coast driven by the afternoon wind. On the way back, I choose one of the many inviting cafes from which I have a good view of the people passing by. I sit down in the warm afternoon sun, order a Café Cortado and start to absorb the city. I watch all the people, the locals and tourists, young and old; those who are still working and those who are on their way to work; those who go their way alone and those who are in deep conversation with each other strolling around here. And also all the different people at my neighboring tables, engaged in casual, sometimes eager conversations behind their black sunglasses. And somehow there seems to be a special energy in all of these people. Fascinating, I think.
And it is exactly this energy that I encounter again and again this evening at the event... until I hit the street well after midnight, still washed by a lukewarm breeze. Tired but happy, I return to my hotel. What a lovely first day.
The next morning I set off in a good mood, camera and notebook to explore and capture the special energy of this city. First, head back towards the sea, across the famous Las Ramblas pedestrian walkway, past the Mercat de la Boqueria (the municipal market hall) and all the small, lovingly designed shops and cafés.
Doubts, Grilled Prawns — and a Ray of Hope
After the first half day, I feel a bit frustrated. Wherever I put the camera, whatever I point it at, somehow the peculiarity of this city eludes immediate view. It's as if Bewitched: It's an Incredible City, but when it comes to translating that magic into direct images, it seems to fight back. Well, the crowds of tour groups don't directly contribute to getting an unobstructed view of the classic charm of this city, but it's kind of not alone.
A bit strained by this challenge, I decide to take a break and enjoy an early lunch. After all, a good meal helps you to gather and recharge your batteries. I work my way through the Mercat de la Boqueria, which is almost overflowing with people, into the back, where it seems to be a bit quieter. At some small bar, I sit down at the counter and order from Albert, the co-owner and son of the founders, a few of all the delicious-looking little things: Spanish omelet with Spanish ham, grilled prawns with garlic and herbs, grilled green asparagus... and yes, a glass of white wine. My mood has rarely improved so quickly.
And while I'm enjoying all these delights (which not only look so delicious but are also delicious), I get into conversation with Albert. About Barcelona, about Catalonia, about Spain, about Europe, about the world. What could be special about Barcelona, what Europe could learn from Barcelona. And, among other things, what he would like from or on a platform like this one here. Albert is considering whether it could be related to the region of Catalonia, including his own language and identification with it. Of course, all the buildings by Gaudí, the architect who shaped Barcelona so much. And as a farewell, he adds: “If you were to show Europe in front of the Internet, that would be something different, something special. Because it would show the soul of the different regions, the respective roots — beyond all the somewhat identical, rather superficial tourist perspectives.”
We say our goodbyes and I step out of the Boqueria and onto the streets with all the people, especially all the tourists (who are really numerous in Barcelona — really numerous!). And in doing so, I notice that the absolutely vast majority of people seem to perceive this city decisively through the screen of their smartphones, either taking pictures or filming. In any case, if they don't look down at anything else on their smartphones while walking down Las Ramblas walking street.
That gives me an idea: To make something else visible, you have to change your perspective. And what is another, perhaps even opposite, perspective to looking at the small screen of a smartphone, even facing downwards? Maybe I should look up for once? And about possible details? Get closer to them? The details of the architecture, such as all the facades and roofs? Or even the details such as typography, i.e. the font design, all the bars, cafes, etc.? Would this reveal Barcelona's secret?
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About God, Details, and the Little Prince
And so I spend the rest of the day diving into a completely new world for me. So look out: an incredible architectural diversity with a rarely seen playful creativity that you can discover in Barcelona when you look at the sky: a wide variety of house and style forms, plus creative ornaments on the facades, far beyond functional elements. And all this across the various stylistic periods: from Gothic to Renaissance to Art Nouveau and Modernism. The latter the stylistic period, which also includes Gaudí's work.
With all this diversity, it is without question that Gaudí stands out with his very special style. The first among like-minded people, so to speak. However, one underlying aspect seems to me to be the most exciting: What does it say about builders who commission such creative, even very unorthodox architects? And not one builder or two. You may still be able to regard these as individual cases. Hardly, however, when an entire city center seems to have entered into a creative competition over centuries — in view of hundreds of such very individual buildings! And what does this say about the city, which is apparently not just dozens (hundreds?) Such builders named and named their citizens, but also owns an administration that approves this? And about the citizens of a city who, on the other hand, are not taking to the barricades but are accepting it positively?
For me, this can only mean one thing: For centuries, a city has entered into a competition of openness and therefore of creativity and diversity! In doing so, he fed himself, so to speak: Openness turned into creativity and courage, all of this has attracted appropriate people who in turn have made this city even more open, creative and courageous. And so on and so forth. Until today. And all this as an ongoing, self-sustaining attractiveness — as you can impressively see from the tourist boom!
You can discover exactly the same if you pay attention to the typography of the restaurants, bars, shops and cultural institutions.
Now I have a feeling that typography is a topic that very few of you have paid more attention to so far; after all, writing is about a carrier of content. In any case, I've thought that way for a very long time. Until at some point I became aware of the differences between fonts — and with them that fonts (like any design) can very well make a big difference.
Let me try a comparison: You're standing in front of a table full of presents. But those that are lying there in the plastic bag in which they were probably bought just before are hasty, fast-fast. And then the ones that are wrapped in great paper and lovingly decorated with a bow. Which of these gifts do you think will attract our greater attention — and our goodwill? In the Spirit of the Little Prince: “The time you've lost for your rose is what makes your rose so important.”
It's the same with fonts: First of all, because they determine whether we focus our attention on a text at all — or not even notice it. We perceive what we have seen many times much less because it no longer seems new to us. But the next step is also how much weight we attach to the words we read. A font that we see over and over again is considered familiar (just think of the standard fonts on computers such as Arial or Times New Roman!). And, as a rule, so does the content. In addition, this indicates — albeit unconsciously — whether someone has made a lot of effort to produce something beautiful, unusual in a text — and has also paid attention to the form.
Yes, this also applies, although we are much less aware of, the design of text: typography. And so the typographical diversity in a city (especially in the houses of the different periods) is also an indication of the diversity and creativity and attention to detail of its inhabitants. And so in the tendency for their openness, which is expressed in exactly all the details.
God is in the details, they say. This is rarely as true as in Barcelona.
Diversity as an experience: The Mercat de la Boqueria
Yes, what else is there to say about Barcelona? Perhaps and especially against the background of diversity and the importance of details?
Let's go back to the Boqueria for this. Perhaps it is such a tourist attraction precisely because — albeit unnoticed by most — it is the very concrete, enjoyable translation of diversity and attention to detail. The history of this market reportedly dates back to 1217. More than 800 years, then! With such a long existence, it's fair to say that the market is a relevant part of Barcelona's history — and therefore also a piece of culture. Culture here as a “manifestation of human existence,” as Wikipedia puts it. The Boqueria therefore both as a defining element of the city and as a result of it. As an expression of their cultural specificity. And when you look at the variety of products on the market, you understand the fascination that triggers them — and attracts people from all over the world.
And this diversity also shapes its retailers, as they are in daily contact with the world — which in turn leads to further openness and inspiration and, as a result, diversity. In the case of Boqueria, as an immediate sensory experience in the form of scents on the nose and taste experiences on the tongue. As ingredients for cooking, but also as finished products. As a menu or as finger food, hearty or sweet — everyone will find something here — and likes to come back again and again. Just like me, who went to Albert for dinner several times — and not only because his food is so great, but also because with him I met a great, cosmopolitan European who really inspired me!
Unfortunately, it is necessary to do more detailed research to find out the roots of all Barcelona's openness. But I have a first idea: As I was thinking about it while strolling through Barcelona, I spontaneously called my friend Christian (you remember studying here 30 years ago and drinking a cafe outside in a T-shirt in February). I asked him if he had any ideas. We mused a bit — and he pointed out that Barcelona had been a trading city for a very long time. World ocean access and global trade included. And so their inhabitants would have been in contact with the world for a long time. I find a plausible explanation of how a city embarked on an upward spiral of openness, novelty and attractiveness.
I would have liked to discuss this further with him, unfortunately he had to go out and buy winter jackets for the children because it had gotten cold in Berlin. Smiling, I put my face in the warm October afternoon sun and sip on my Café Cortado.
What we are taking with us for Europe
Barcelona — You seem to be the prime example of what happens when you open up and engage with others: You get inspired, get new ideas — and they become something new, which in turn attracts people and thus further promotes creativity and attractiveness.
So let's do Europe and ourselves all a big favor and dare to do more Barcelona in our lives — greater attractiveness and an enriched life is the reward!
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