the Barcelona Trip from Delhi

1. Barcelona Trip<br />In a privileged position on the northeastern coast of the Iberian peninsula and the shores of the Mediterranean, Barcelona is the second largest city in Spain in both size and population. It is also the capital of Catalonia, 1 of the 17 Autonomous Communities that make up Spain. There are two official languages spoken in Barcelona: Catalan, generally spoken in all of Catalonia, and Castillian Spanish. The city of Barcelona has a population of 1.510.000, but this number spirals to more than 4.000.000 if the outlying areas are also included. The capital of Catalonia is unequivocally a Mediterranean city, not only because of its geographic location but also and above all because of its history, tradition and cultural influences. The documented history of the city dates back to the founding of a Roman colony on its soil in the second century B.C. Modern Barcelona experienced spectacular growth and economic revival at the onset of industrialization during the second half of the 19th century. The 1888 World's Fair became a symbol of the capacity for hard work and the international outlook projected by the city. Culture and the arts flourished in Barcelona and in all of Catalonia; the splendor achieved by Catalonian modernism is one of the most patent displays.<br />Languages spoken<br />Catalan and Spanish<br />reakfast A coffee with some sort of pastry (pasta) is the typical breakfast. You may get a croissant or some cream-filled number (such as a canya). Some people prefer a savory start - you could go for a bikini - a toasted ham and cheese. A Spanish tostada is simply buttered toast (you might order something to go with it). The Catalan version, a torrada, is usually more of an open toasted sandwich with something on it besides butter (depending on what you ask for). Although not terribly common in Barcelona, some people go for an all-Spanish favourite, xurros amb xocolata/churros con chocolate, a lightly deep-fried stick of plain pastry immersed in thick, gooey hot chocolate. You'll find a few such places around town and they are great hangover material. Lunch & Dinner Many straightforward Spanish dishes are available here as elsewhere in the country. The travellers' friend is the menu del dia, a set-price meal usually comprising three courses, with a drink thrown in. This is often only available for lunch and can range from around €6 at budget places to €25 at posh establishments. A plat combinat/plato combinado is a simpler version still - a one-course meal consisting of basic nutrients - the 'meat-and-three-veg' style of cooking. You'll see pictures of this stuff everywhere. It's filling and cheap but has little to recommend it in culinary terms. You'll pay more for your meals if you order a la carte, but the food will be better. The menu (la carta) begins with starters such as amanides/ensaladas (salads), sopes/sopas (soups) and entremesos/entremeses (hors d'oeuvres). The latter can range from a mound of potato salad with olives, asparagus, anchovies and a selection of cold meats - almost a meal in itself - to simpler cold meats, slices of cheese and olives. The hungry Catalan, after a starter, will order a first then second course. The latter may come under headings such as: pollastre/pollo (chicken); carn/carne (meat); mariscos (seafood); peix/pescado (fish); arros/arroz (rice); ous/huevos (eggs); and verdures/verduras (vegetables). Red meat may be subdivided into porc/cerdo (pork), vedella/ternera (beef) and anyell/cordero (lamb). Be aware that second courses frequently do not come with vegetables: You order a side dish of vegetables or salad. Often the first course is designed to take care of this side of your diet, though. Postres (desserts) have a lower profile; gelats/helados (ice cream), fruit and flans are often the only choices in cheaper places. Sugar addicts should look out for local specialities, such as crema Catalana, where possible. <br />Avg meal Per Day EUR 15<br />weather forecast from 5th October,2010 to 12th october,2010<br /> Flight Reservation to Barcelona Rs. 36,012<br />http://cheapfaresindia.makemytrip.com/international/international/direct?execution=e1937077s1<br />http://www.booking.com/hotel/es/barcelona/nuevotriunfo.en.html?aid=317676;label=home_form;sid=0f064e2b7b8c957afdbae5b9dc9ef964;checkin=2010-10-05;checkout=2010-10-12<br />Hotel Neuvo Triunfo<br />Price for 7 nights Euro 428 including VAT and Service charges<br />Car On Rent GBP 91.02 for seven days<br />Fuel Rate GBP0.15 per KM<br />Barcelona Museums<br />Fundació Miró Category: Museums/Galleries Location: MontjuïcAddress: Parc de Montjuïc, s/n, 08038 Barcelona, Spain. Phone: 934 439 470<br />The Miró Foundation was a gift from the artist Joan Miró to his native city and is one of Barcelona's most exciting showcases of contemporary art. The airy, white building was designed by Josep Lluís Sert and opened in 1975; an extension was added by Sert's pupil Jaume Freixa in 1988. Miró's unmistakably playful and colorful style, filled with Mediterranean light and humor, seems a perfect match for its surroundings. Look for Alexander Calder's mercury fountain. Miró himself rests in the cemetery on Montjuïc's southern slopes. When he died in 1983, the Catalans gave him a send-off amounting to a state funeral. COST: EUR5. Tues.-Wed. and Fri.-Sat. 10-7, Thurs. 10-9:30, Sun. 10-2:30.<br />Ticket 5 Euros<br />Distance from hotel 1.6 KM<br />Palau de la Música Catalana Category: Museums/Galleries Location: Sant Pere, La Ribera, La Ciutadella and Barceloneta Address: Sant Francesc de Paula 2, Barcelona, Spain. Phone: 93/268-1000 <br />One of the world's most extraordinary music halls, with facades that are a riot of color and form, the Palau de la Música (Music Palace) is a Barcelona landmark. From its polychrome ceramic ticket windows on the Carrer de Sant Pere Més Alt side to its overhead busts of (from left to right) Palestrina, Bach, Beethoven, and (around the corner on Carrer Amadeus Vives) Wagner, the Palau is a flamboyant tour de force. Designed by Lluís Domènech i Montaner in 1908, it is today considered the flagship of Barcelona's Moderniste architecture. If you can't attend a concert, take a tour of the hall, offered daily at 10:30, 2, and 3 (in English) for 700 ptas./EUR4.21. Ticket office: (just off Via Laietana, around a corner from the hall itself).<br />Ticket EUR 4.21<br />Distance from Fundació Miró 4.8 KM<br />Park de la Ciudadella: This park is situated in the Barri Gotic, and you can find many huge, important museums of art and culture, and even a great lake where you can rent boats. This was originally a fortress made in the shape of a star, built for King Felipe V in 1715. But after an 18 month seige the fortress fell, and after a while it was a hated symbol of oppression for the locals. Under the Napoleonic regime it was used as a prison. General Prim destroyed the Citadel in 1878, and a statue was erected to him on the spot. Now this is a public garden and exhibition space. You can find palaces of typical Spanish architecture filled with art here. In 1888 the park was used for the Universal Exhibition and many of the beautiful buildings were constructed for that. The gardens and fountains were also designed in that time, partly by a very young Gaudí.<br />Ticket EUR 3<br />Distance 1.3 KM<br />Distance from park de Le Claudia to nauvo triunfo 2.6 km<br />Mar Bella (Metro Ciutadella Vila Olímpica, plus 20-minute walk) Divided from Bogatell by a breakwater housing a school and hire center for windsurfing, hobie cats and kayaks, Barcelona's only naturist beach is tucked away behind a long hillock of rustling bamboo. Nearby is a peaceful park - good for a picnic or siesta under the trees.<br />Neuvo Triunfo hotel,Barcelona to Mar Bella 3km<br /> <br />Shopping Centre<br />2Kms away from the Hotel<br />Barcelona Airport to and from Hotel 26kms<br />Total Cost <br />Flight Reservation Rs. 36012<br />Hotel Charges Euro 428= Rs.26026<br />Meal Rs. 6385<br />Car Rent With Fuel 91+4=Euro 95= Rs.5776<br />Museum Tickets Euro 12= Rs.729<br /> Shopping Rs. 1000<br />Grand Total 75928<br />