The perfect place to take the kids or to take cover on a rainy day in the Catalan capital, Barcelona ’s aquarium has a reputation as one of the best in the world. Located in the Port Vell area of the city, the impressive facility is the largest of its kind in Europe with twenty vast tanks containing a mind-boggling 5million litres of water. The highlight for most is the immense 80 foot walkway through the Aquarium’s largest tank which is home to several species of shark and gives visitors the chance to come face to face with these apex predators. For those keen to get a little bit more involved then there’s the excellent “Explora” section with a see and feel tank that lets you get up-close to some of the underwater animals – there’s even a chance to stand in one of the tanks whilst rays swim around your ankles. With many themed areas covering many of the worlds oceans visitors will have the chance to see a diverse array of fish and marine invertebrates including the world’s leading collection of sea creatures from the neighbouring Mediterranean .

FC Barcelona Museum and stadium tour

An extremely popular visitor’s site and well worth a look even if you’re not a football fan. The museum itself is a testament to the club’s illustrious history and is adorned with trophies, pictures and even statues of the clubs greatest players. After expansions in 1987, 1994 and 1998 the museum must be regarded as one of the city’s finest; the art section even features works by Dali and Miro. The museum ticket also includes the chance to see the magnificent Nou Camp stadium – the 90,000 seater stadium is a sight to behold and visitors can only imagine the noise when the stadium is full of screaming Barca fans. For a little extra money it’s worth purchasing a dual ticket which will give you further access to the players dressing rooms, press box and VIP lounge and conference areas. With over 1 million visitors every year it’s a must-see site and gives a real insight into one of the passions of this football mad city.

CosmoCaixa , Barcelona Science Museum

Only opened in September of 2005 Barcelona ’s new and improved Science Museum is set to take Barcelona by storm and has already proved itself to be extremely popular with the younger generation. Eclipsing Barcelona ’s ever-popular old Science Museum the new museum covers 30,000 square metres and is five times the size of its predecessor. With superb interactive activities such as the usual touch and smell room and the superb flooded Amazon forest, the museum is already proving to be a real shot in the arm for the city.

Museum of the History of Catalonia

Housed in the only remaining original building from Barcelona ’s old port, The Museum of the History of Catalonia is one of the city’s treasures. Lovingly restored, the original building dates back to 1881 when it was built as a trading depot. This excellent museum walks its visitors through Catalan history from prehistoric time’s right up to the 18 th century. Popular with school kids, university students and tourists alike, the museum is a must for history buffs or those with a general interest in the city and its surrounding areas. With a strong educational ethic, the museum is an excellent resource for anybody who wishes to use it.

Although thought of as a cathedral, it is in fact, a basilica – the cathedral in Barcelona is the Cathedral of Santa Eulalia.

Gaudi was handed the project in 1884, but only after the founding association and the original choice of architect Francesc del Villar had irreconcilable disagreements with those behind the project.

Gaudi went back to the drawing board and came back with a completely new design. He worked on the project for more than 40 years and during the last 15 years of his life, he devoted his entire efforts to it.

As the building began to take shape, and reach further and further into the sky, the building began to take on a much talked about fantastical shape and the now world famous four spike shaped towers were crowned with geometrically shaped tops that were most likely influenced by the Cubist movement. The complicated decorations covering the basilica are rooted firmly with Art Nouveau styles.

Unfortunately, in 1926, before La Sagrada Familia could be completed, Antoni Gaudi died. The iconic towers were originally intended to be three times higher than they were. At this time, the Spanish Civil War broke out and parts of the unfinished basilica and Gaudi’s models and workshop were destroyed. No plans were left for the completion of the building and since then, work has continued on it with a variety of different architects, including Francesc Quintana and Lluis Gari. Famous sculptors such as J. Busquets and the controversial Josep Subirachs have work decorating the facades.

Work has continued on La Sagrada Familia with the original plans being reconstructed from historical notes and adapting it to modern times.

As Gaudi intended, every part of the basilica’s design is rich with Christian symbolism. He wanted the church to be “the last great sanctuary of Christendom”. In all, there will be 18 of the striking towers, representing in ascending order of height, the 12 Apostles, the four Evangelists, the Virgin Mary, and tallest of all – Jesus Christ. The four Evangelists towers will be topped with their traditional symbols, an angel, a bull an eagle and a lion – representing St Luke, St Matthew, St Mark and St John accordingly. The tallest tower will be surmounted by a huge cross.

There will be three grand facades – the Nativity, the Passion and the unfinished Glory façade. The Passion façade includes strikingly emaciated figures of Christ being whipped and crucified and the doors on this façade reproduce words from the Bible in various languages, including Catalan, and the Glory façade is to be decorated with words from the Apostle’s Creed.

La Sagrada Familia was the most popular tourist attraction in the whole of Spain in 2004 with 2.26 million people visiting the unfinished building.

It is hoped that, with the advent of quicker building technology than in the 1900’s when La Sagrada Familia was started, it will be finished in 2026 – the centenary of Gaudi’s death.

You’d really need to write a novel to keep on top of everything that goes on at La Mercé each year so, we’ll just have to settle for some highlights. We start with one of the oldest traditions; the human towers or “Castells” are a real must-see, sometimes as much as ten stories high they’re a fantastic display of teamwork, agility and balance.

A recurring theme throughout the festival is the celebration of fire and one of the most exhilarating experiences of La Mercé is the “Correfoc” (the “Fire Run”) where costumed fire-breathing devils rampage around the streets in a colourful pyrotechnic display. Kids absolutely love this sort of thing and audience participation is a big part as the devils chase after those foolish enough to get in their way. Another favourite of the children is the “Dragons and Giants” procession which starts in the Plaza Real next to Las Ramblas.

Foodies and wine lovers shouldn’t feel left out either as there is no shortage of indulgence in those areas. Food and wine shows run throughout the festival showcasing local produce and allow you to try and buy the best that Catalonia has to offer.

Festivities aren’t just kept on the ground either, La Mercé also celebrates the sky with static hot air balloon flights, kite displays and other aerial exhibitions taking place throughout the festival on the city’s beaches. Other areas around the city to look out for are the Centro de Cultura Contemperanea de Barcelona where you can view street theatre, Moll de la Fusta which will be giving centre stage to numerous circus acts and Plaza St Rei where various dance troupes and performing artists will be vying for your attention. There’s also a museum open day where many of the city’s museums and galleries can be entered free of charge including the Picasso museum, the Museum of History of Catalonia, the Maritime Museum and many more.

The culmination of the festivities is called “Piromusica”l – the finale involves music and a huge fireworks display choreographed together for an amazing audio-visual experience. A big named music star is usually brought in to play the finale and 2005 saw local singer and composer Pep Sala having the honour of closing out La Mercé.

For tourists La Mercé offers a perfect opportunity to see Barcelona at its best – it’s a colourful, vibrant spectacle which offers something for all age groups and all tastes. It also offers visitors the perfect opportunity to see more of this wonderful city.