Sarria-Sant Gervasi
The district Santalo/San Gervasi is a friendly, upper class area made up of quiet, relaxed streets and squares. Where the streets of Santaló and María Cubí intersect, you will find the highest concentration of fashionable spots in all of Barcelona. The people visiting this district are young and stylish and there are many bars and discotheques where you will find good music, good drinks, and lots of fun. At plaça Francesc Maciá you will meet the cream of the crop of Barcelona´s nightlife. San Gervasi is also one of the nicest and safest districts to live in Barcelona.
The Collserola mountain range, 17km long and 6km wide, marks the western limit of Barcelona, and incorporates the neighborhoods of Tibidabo and Vallvidrera. Public Transportation: the Tibibus runs from Pl. de Catalunya to Pl. Tibidabo (the very top of the mountain) stopping only once en route (every 30-40min., only when the Parc d’Attracions is open). The first bus from Pl. de Catalunya leaves 1hr. before park opening and the last usually leaves Pl. Tibidabo at 10pm, but schedules change frequently; for current details, call 010. Wheelchair accessible. An FGC train (U7 line) runs from Pl. de Catalunya to the Tibidabo stop; it stops at the foot of the peak in Pl. JFK, where C. Balmes turns into the Av. Tibidabo. Bus #58 also runs from Pl. de Catalunya to Pl. JFK. The 100 year-old Tram Via Blau ascend the steep Av. Tibidabo from Pl. JFK and takes about 5min. to get to tiny Pl. Dr. Andreu, where the funicular continues to Pl. Tibidabo (not wheelchair accessible). A Metro pass covers the FGC train and funicular on a single ticket; this combination is the cheapest way up the mountain and the only way to reach the church when the amusement park is closed.
The Collserola mountains hovered between wilderness and civilization for centuries. Remains from the Neolithic and Bronze Ages found in the park suggest it was home to many long before the Romans set up shop in the area. With the fall of the Roman Empire, Barcelona became vulnerable to the attack of many German tribes, forcing peasants north to defend their territory. For most of the last 1000 years, the area has been home to agricultural people who built the area’s historic chapels and masias (traditional Catalan farmhouses). In 1860, with the Industrial Revolution, the people of Barcelona began to notice the area’s potential for leisure and summer housing; in the last century, the installation of railtracks, trams, and funiculars has made the mountains easily accessible to urban residents wanting to take advantage of the mountains’ offerings. The Parc de Collserola encompasses essentially the entire chain of mountains; the landscape ranges from almost entirely wild to well-populated.
Tibidabo, the highest peak (512m), hosts a century-old amusement park and the popular Sagrat Cor church, while the hilltop town of Vallvidrera and the communications tower Torre de Collserola occupy a slightly lower peak nearby. The man most responsible for the development of Tibidabo and surrounding slopes was Dr. Salvador Andreu, who in 1899 founded the Tibidabo Society and invested heavily in the land, installing transportation and building hotels, the amusement park, and an extravagant casino, now in ruins. Soon after, the Barcelona bourgeoisie rushed to outdo one another in country-home construction, and the hillsides are now dotted with outstanding examples of early 20th-century Modernist and Noucentist (a return to classical forms) architecture. Many of these former homes now house offices and schools.
RECOMMENDED NIGHTLIFE
Razzmatazz, OttoZutz, Black Sheep, City Hall, LeKasBah, Sutton, Mondo, Danzatoria, Shoko, Opium Mar, Rivelinos, Opium Cinema, CDLC, Catwalk, La Terraza, Discothèque, Chupito Bar, Princesa 23, Nasty Mondays, Liquid, Pepino, Kharma, Roxy, entre otros.
AREAS IN THE DISTRICTS
Sants, Hostafrancs, La Bordeta, Poble Sec, Font de la Guatlla, Magòria, La Marina, Zona Franca y Montjuic.
RECOMMENDED MUSEUMS
El MACBA, Picasso, Joan Miró, Gaudí, MNAC, Museo de Cera de Barcelona, Museo Marítimo, FC Barcelona, Olímpico y del Deporte.
RECOMMENDED SCHOOLS AND UNIVERSITIES
EADA, EAE, Uniersidad de Barcelona, IED, Universidad Autónoma, La Salle, ABC, Don Quijote, ESERP, Speak Easy, European University, IS, Olé Languages.
SHOPPING CENTERS
Eroski, Caprabo, Consum.
