Goat Cheese Salad, Terra Mia Italian Restaurant, Barcelona

Sometimes the best places to eat are not necessarily along those well trodden touristic routes nor are tips suggested by travel guides comprehensive enough as to include them. When we think of Italian restaurants pizza and pasta come to mind instantly leaving short room for other kind of dishes. But even though you go beyond that point and you are a true enthusiast of Italian cuisine and you accept the fact that it is richer than that sold in Italian fast food restaurants, you may be surprised at some troves you can find out there. Terra Mia is a very small restaurant very near Parc Güell, but difficult to see if you get to the park by bus. It happens that tourists go straight from the parking lot to Parc Güell and back to the bus again without noticing that some blocks down the street, exactly at carrer Ramiro de Maetzu, 31 there is this hidden gem. I am just a very happy client and they are responsible for that because the service is impeccable and food is exquisite.This goat cheese salad in the picture above is just a sample but you ought to try their every dish as not only the ingredients are genuinely Italian but also the way they are cooked and served. In spite of being a small place they have a very nice terrace. Don't forget to try a bottle Il carpino wine. Find here Terra Mia Facebook page.

Girl at the Bar, Estacion de Francia, Barcelona

I liked the looks of this girl at the bar in Estació de Françia, Barcelona, with the blue and yellow lights falling on her, in front of the art nouveau lamp. Perhaps you would like to have a closer look of the lamp and see the beer pump as shown in previous post: Beer Pump and Lamp or want to check the entrance to the railway station: Woman waiting at Estación de Francia or Estació de França or Barcelona's most charming railway station. I think one of the best things about Barcelona is that you can enjoy art for a reasonable price, you can take a drink in a beautiful place like this for an affordable amount and of course I don't mean just the bar but the architecture of the building and the whole design of the place.

Barri Gotic, Barcelona: Carrer Avinyo near El Call

Here's Carrer d'Avinyó between Carrer Ferran and Carrer de la Lleona in Barri Gotic, Barcelona. Wandering down the streets of El Gotic, blindly meandering through the alleys, while being permeated by the mood, the charm of this historical part of the city, you get so detached that it is not really difficult to imagine how Barcelona used to be inside walls, and particular in this part of casc antic (old town) near the Jewish quarter. In fact, in XIII century the king allowed to open doors and windows in the Roman wall and the old perimeter of El Call (the Jewish quarter) expanded to include Carrers Avinyó and Banys Nous. In El Call de Barcelona lived about 4.000 people, approximately 15 per cent of the city population. Of course, there are the shops and many other anachronisms now but you get the idea. These two nuns in front of the Rent Shop at Avinyó 12 may be of help to reminisce.