The Rambla Rambla De Canaletes

The Rambla Until 1854, the year in which Barcelona finally broke through its city walls, the city extended no further than the hexagon of the 15th century enclosure. Today, the streets bordering the Casc Antic (historic centre) are: Ronda de Sant Pau, Ronda de Sant Antoni, Ronda d’Universitat, Ronda de Sant Pere, Passeig de Lluís Companys, Avinguda Marquès de l’Argentera, Passeig Colom and Avinguda del Paral.lel. There used to be only one wide street at the heart of the city, La Rambla, an old stream whose name, according to popular belief, derives from the Arabic ramla, meaning “sandy ground”. Until the beginning of the 18th century, the Rambla was merely a path beside a stream running between convents on one side and the old city walls on the other. It was in 1704 that the first houses were built on the site of the old city walls, the area where the Boqueria market now stands, and the first trees were planted. In 1775 the old city walls by the Drassanes, or medieval shipyards, were demolished and a few years later a road was laid turning that part of the Rambla into a tree-lined avenue. From the upper end, which runs into Plaça de Catalunya, to the lower end below the Columbus monument, this unique street in fact bears five names, each describing a section of the street. First, there is the Rambla de Canaletes, because of the Font de les Canaletes fountain, found there since ancient times: folk tradition has it that anyone who drinks from this fountain will keep returning to Barcelona. The next section of the Rambla is known as the Rambla dels Estudis, after the mid-15th century building of that name, the Estudi General or University. The university was suppressed by Philip V and the building used as a barracks. In 1843 it was demolished. Continuing down towards the sea you come to the stretch known as the Rambla de les Flors, the only place in 19th-century Barcelona where flowers were sold and which even today preserves its old special charm. It was also known as Rambla de Sant Josep in the past after the convent of the same name. Next comes the Rambla del Centre, also known as the Rambla dels Caputxins, because of the Capuchin convent that used to be there. Finally, there is the stretch called the Rambla de Santa Mònica, giving access to the port, called after the parish church there, previously a convent of the Discalced (barefoot) Augustinians. Rambla de Canaletes The top part of the Rambla running into Plaça de Catalunya is generally referred to as the Rambla de la Font de Canaletes, because of the fountain there. Well-known and much loved by the people of the city, it is one of the busiest places in Barcelona. The old fountain, at the Estudi General, the forerunner of today’s university, had small pipes that channelled water into a kind of trough. After the demolition of the old city walls a more modern fountain replaced it and the water, coming from the Montcada mine, acquired quite a reputation for purity. It is on the right going down the Rambla, just before you reach Carrer dels Tallers. They say that whoever drinks water at this fountain will keep coming back to Barcelona, and for many years, after a football game, fans would meet there and hold lively discussions. At the end of the seventies, with the end of the Franco dictatorship and the dawn of democracy, it was also one of the main places where the demonstrations demanding the return of liberty were held. On the corner with Carrer Tallers there is the small but renowned Boadas cocktail bar, which opened in 1933. It was the one of the first bars in Barcelona to specialise in cocktails, in this case with a strong Caribbean flavour. Down the same street, there are now shops selling all kinds of music. On this stretch of the Rambla there are seats where you can sit and rest a while. Further down, on the right-hand side, is Carrer del Bonsuccés, which takes you to the Barcelona Contemporary Art Museum (MACBA), the Barcelona Centre of Contemporary Culture (CCCB) and the offices of the Ciutat Vella District Council. Further down, on the other side, Carrer de Santa Anna and Carrer de la Canuda take you to Avinguda del Portal de l’Àngel, a major, pedestrianised shopping area. On Carrer de la Canuda there is the Ateneu Barcelonès, one of the oldest cultural institutions in the city, whose home since 1907 has been the Duke of Sabassona’s palace (built in 1796). Next to it is Plaça de la Vila de Madrid, with a sunken garden where you can see part of a Roman necropolis, laid bare by a bomb that fell in the Spanish Civil War. Rambla dels Estudis Ever since the 14th century the old city walls had closed off the upper section of this part of the Rambla, which is named after the 16th-century Estudi General or University sited here. After the War of Succession in the 18th century, King Philip V of Spain moved the University to Cervera and had the building converted into barracks. In 1843 the building was demolished to make way for the Isabel II Gate in the city walls. The current layout did not appear until all the old fortifications, still standing on the left- hand side in the 19th century, were finally demolished. If you start by going down the right-hand side of the Rambla, you will come to the Poliorama Theatre, which, since 1912, has occupied the ground floor of the Royal Academy of Sciences and Art, built in 1883 in an avant-garde style that anticipated the Modernista, or Catalan Art Nouveau, that appeared later. An electric clock on its façade has, since 1891, marked the official time in Barcelona. Inside the building there is another clock, dating back to 1869, which shows the time in 24 cities around the world, as well as the hour of sunrise and sunset. It has a perpetual calendar and a planetarium with the signs of the zodiac. Further down, on the right, past the street named after the painter Fortuny, you will find the old Jesuit church, Església Betlem (Bethlehem Church), destroyed by fire in 1671. Work on the present building, which stands on the corner of the Rambla and Carrer de la Carme, started in 1680. The main façade is on Carrer de la Carme and inside there is a large, single nave with side chapels in Catalan Gothic style. Before 1936 it was decorated with coloured marble inlays and brown-coated Italian stuccos, had a reredos, and two large screens in the galleries were adorned with gilded, polychrome figures. All this was destroyed by fire. The building itself was also damaged, but has since been restored to its previous condition. There is now an exhibition room at the church too. On the left-hand side of the Rambla, on the corner of Carrer de la Portaferrissa, is Palau Moia, also known as the palace of the Marquis of Comillas, a title given to its last owner, Antonio López i López, founder of the Transatlantic Company, the Hispanic Colonial Bank and the General Tobacco Company of the Philippines. When it was built in 1702 by Pere de Cartellà, the building abutted onto the old city walls along the side of the Rambla and it was one of the first buildings permitted to have windows cut through the city wall itself. The facade on the Rambla was altered in 1934 and the porticos of the ground floor were opened up to widen the pavement. Since 1981 the premises have been used by the Department of Culture of the Catalan government, the Generalitat. The upper floor, with the room used by the priest and poet Cinto Verdaguer, is preserved intact, as it was when he worked as the almoner of the Marquis de Comillas, under whose patronage he wrote the epic poem L’Atlàntida (Atlantis). Rambla de les Flors In the words of Cirici Pellicer, the Rambla de les Flors is the “quintessence of Barcelona, with its ever- changing beauty that follows the seasons of the year”. In the 19th century this was the only place in Barcelona where flowers were sold. And it is said that, from among the groups of people that congregated around the beautiful flowers, the painter Ramon Casas, a pioneer of Impressionism in Catalonia, selected his favourite model, later to become his wife. The flower stalls are now alongside kiosks selling all manner of books, magazines and newspapers from Spain and abroad. These kiosks, which stay open 24 hours a day, are to be found all along the Rambla. A little past Carrer de la Portaferrissa, but on the other side, is the Palau de la Virreina. This palace was built by the Viceroy of Peru, Manuel Amat i Junyent, also the Marquis of Castellbell. He died before he could enjoy it, so the palace then became the residence of his wife. Hence its name, literally, the “Palace of the Viceroys’ Wife”. The palace was built between 1772 and 1775. The plans had already been prepared by 1770, usually attributed to Josep Ribes, but it is by no means certain who actually drew them up. The building work was carried out under the direction of the architect and sculptor Carles Grau (1717-1798). Beside the palace is a very old little shop, Casa Beethoven, where you can find all manner of musical scores, both old and modern.

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