西班牙巴塞隆納坐落於伊比利半島，距離法國邊界 160 公里，與地中海僅幾步之遙。巴塞隆納歷史悠久，多樣的文化塑造其今日的地位，但是加泰隆尼亞文化才是讓巴塞隆納如此出眾的精隨。在巴塞隆納您眼見所及、口中所嚐、所到之處所有細節，皆是加泰隆尼亞創意的化身，巴塞隆納不只是城市，更是一場夢，就像我們的夢一樣，這裡有時喧囂、有時緊湊，但是永遠，都那麼誘人。
The Spanish city of Barcelona sits on the Iberian Peninsula, 100 miles from the French border,and just a few steps from the Mediterranean Sea. With its roots reaching back into pre-history, the hands of many cultures have shaped Barcelona. But it was the Catalan spirit that created something truly unique. In Barcelona, everything you see, taste, reach out and touch… every detail is an expression of Catalan creativity. For this is more than just a city, Barcelona is a dream. And just like our dreams, Barcelona is sometimes chaotic, often intense, and always, always seductive.
這場夢的起點，位在市中心的加泰隆尼亞廣場，順著巴塞隆納名人與傳奇人物的目光，踏上大道，一磚一瓦交織共舞。但你要小心，繁忙的蘭布拉大道也是扒手做案的天堂。沿著格拉西亞大道往北行，這一路上可以看到許多新藝術風格作品與現代化運動名家大作，而令人神魂顛倒的，不只有這一條城市主要大道，巴塞隆納的街旁小巷別有洞天，讓人為之驚艷。
The dream begins in the city’s heart, in Placa de Catalunya. Follow the gaze of Barcelona’s luminaries and legends, along avenues where iron, tile and stone melt together in a sensual dance. But beware, the busyness of La Rambla makes it a dream for pickpockets too. To the north, glide up Passeig de Gracia, a boulevard lined with creations by some of the giants of the Art Nouveau and Modernista movements. But it’s not just the city’s main avenues that lull the senses into a divine stupor; Barcelona’s side streets and alleyways are often rabbit holes into the sublime.
地中海暖陽為此處加溫時，選一個廣場小憩乘涼讓城市美景映入眼簾，巴塞隆納的歷史成就了今日夢幻，恣意在哥德區古鎮穿梭，每個轉角的新發現 能讓您深入了解哥德區的2 千年歷史與羅馬塔擦身而過，想像從前這座建築是如何守衛這個曾名為「巴西諾」的城市；除此之外，還有「巴塞隆納主教座堂」，這座加泰隆尼亞哥德式建築已有 600 年歷史是由羅馬神廟遺跡改建而成。
And when the Mediterranean sun turns up the heat, cool off in one of the many plazas and let the city come to you. Barcelona is a dream shaped by the past. Lose yourself in the old town, Barrio Gotico, where each turn reveals some new layer of the city’s 2000 year-old history. Pass through the Roman towers, which guarded the city when it was known in ancient times as Barcino. Just beyond, Barcelona Cathedral, a Catalan-gothic masterpiece 600 years in the making rises from the ruins of a roman temple.
在巴塞隆納，生活與藝術相輔相成；想要探索藝術就到「歐洲現代藝術博物館」，這裡紀念偉大藝術家絕倫大膽的作品，傳承加泰隆尼亞數百年傳統。從西班牙廣場出發爬上國家宮的階梯，造訪「加泰隆尼亞國家藝術博物館」。在這裡，您可以徜徉於加泰隆尼亞的創意中，從羅馬式美術到炫目的加泰隆尼亞文藝復興藝術品，國家宮就坐落在蒙特惠奇山半山腰，蕾絲般的小徑與花園和歷史寶藏深藏其中。
For in Barcelona, life and art are inseparable. Explore the galleries of the European Museum of Modern Art, which celebrates the daring works of artists building on centuries of Catalan tradition. From Plaza Espanya, climb the steps to the National Palace, the home of the National Art Museum of Catalonia. Here, take a deeper dive through Catalan creativity, from Romanesque murals, to the glittering works of the Catalan Renaissance. The National Palace sits on the slopes of Montjuic, a broad hill laced with trails, gardens and historic treasures.
過去 100 年來，蒙特惠奇連續經歷了兩次重新詮釋與改造，首次是於 1929 年的萬國博覽會再來則是 1992 年的夏季奧運；除了這裡，還有其他地方受奧運洗禮改頭換面。幾百萬噸的白沙讓原本平凡無奇，綿延 3.2 公里的濱水區有了新生命，搖身一變，讓巴塞隆納成為世上數一數二，擁有美麗沙灘的城市，有絕美海洋、土壤、還有風。
Over the last 100 years, Montjuic has been continually re-imagined and re-shaped, first by the World’s Fair in 1929, and again by the Summer Olympics of 1992. But the slopes of Montjuic were not the only part of the city to be given an Olympic makeover. Millions of tonnes of sand were pumped onto two miles of shoreline, giving run-down waterfront barrios a new lease of life, and lifting Barcelona high into the ranks of the world’s great beach cities. Whether it’s the sea, the soil, or the wind.
巴塞隆納境內 9 座世界遺產中，高第的作品就佔了7 座。文森之家，是這位未來感建築鬼才設計的首棟家庭住宅，與傳統建築不同，高第採用了摩爾式建築融合東方色彩，運用折衷材料，奠基了全新的建築概念，但是對高第來說，這棟建築不過是前進現代主義之路的首站，在蘭布拉大道上於桂爾宮拱廊下逡巡。地下室的樹狀支柱，以及屋頂上的煙囪充滿希望與未來感，位在格拉西亞大道半路的不和諧街區。每棟建築風格迥異是 4 位現代主義大師，透過建築在較勁，但是高第的巴特略之家，搶走了眾人的目光。在這裡，高第施展了他的天賦，打破每個城市的定律，建造了當地人口中的「骨頭屋」。仰望建築的正面，仿若莫內筆下覆滿了百合花的池塘，沿著蜿蜒曲折的大廳和 不斷向上旋轉的內部空間，最終抵達宛如龍脊的屋頂。不遠處有高第設計的最後一棟私人住宅，米拉之家；有人說，建築的正面讓人 聯想到飾有海藻的海崖，也有人說它像雲霧繚繞的蒙塞拉特山；無論像什麼，米拉之家是世代藝術家的謬思女神。一位美國年輕製片人受到建築煙囪啟發後，創造了達斯·維達及帝國風暴兵。高第一定會喜歡的，他不只是名建築師。他的天分亦在家具設計 室內設計，以及園林設計上展露無疑。
Of the nine UNESCO World Heritage sites in Barcelona, Gaudi is responsible for seven of them. Visit Casa Vicens, the first residence designed by this future architectural superstar. Unlike anything built before, Gaudi fused Moorish and oriental styles with eclectic materials to create the foundations of a new architectural language. But for Gaudi, this voyage into modernism was only the beginning. Just off La Rambla, step through the arches of Palau Guell, whose tree-like basement pillars and rooftop chimney pots were but a taste of things to come. Halfway along Passeig de Gracia is the Block of Discord, where contrasting buildings by four modernist masters jostle for attention. But it’s Gaudi’s Casa Batllo that steals the show. It is here Gaudi began to realize his full powers, breaking every city by-law to create what locals call, the house of bones. Gaze up at the facade, which resembles a lily-covered pond straight from the brush of Monet. Then follow the serpentine halls and swirling interiors ever upward before emerging onto the back of a dragon. Just around the corner is the last private residence designed by Gaudi, Casa Mila. Some say the facade evokes coastal cliffs festooned with seaweed; others say it conjures up the mist-shrouded peaks of Montserrat. Whatever the case, Casa Mila has inspired generations of artists, including a young American filmmaker, who in these chimneys found the inspiration for Darth Vader and his Storm Troopers. Gaudi would have loved that, for he was more than just an architect; his genius extended to furniture design, interior decoration, and, landscaping.
