La Rambla

This is La Rambla, the main pedestrian mall. It leads down from Placa Catalunya to the water. Along the way there are various street performers (e.g., living statues), and little market stands selling odds and ends. It reminded me of Esplanade Park in Helsinki—that mall also has trees running on both sides and also has similar kind of market stands in the evening.

At the bottom of La Rambla stands this statue of Columbus. Pointing to America perhaps? (It's hard to see from my pic, but his right arm is outstretched and pointing.) A travel guide that one of my hosts lent me says Columbus returned "in triumph to Barcelona with six Carib Indians. However, the city lost out when the monopoly on New World trade was given to Seville and Cádiz." Past Columbus' column is the Port de Barcelona with a pedestrian swing bridge and a shopping mall and aquarium beyond.

I like looking at boats and the port was a nice example of Mediterranean mooring, where the boats are backed (usually) stern-to the dock. One of the boats is bow-to the dock, but that seems unusual. It's not widely seen in US ports I understand, but it seems to make more economical use of space.