Barcelona ranks among my favorite places in the entire world, and has since my first visit in 2009 Among my favorite places in the city is the Historic Botanical Garden, located on Montjuic.
Montjuic itself offers expansive, breathtaking views of the city. It is sprawling, but feels small and intimate above the bustle of the city below. It was home to Barcelona's Worlds Fair as well as the 1992 Summer Olympics. Montjuic was designed as part of an initiative to create a large Urban Park (Ciutadella Park) that would become home to Catalonia's recreation and cultural activities. (For my friends from St. Louis, it is like a Spanish Forest Park!)
During our visit, after we visited the olympic stadium, we decided to slow it down with a stroll through the beautiful botanic gardens. It felt as though we stumbled across them almost, which made it all the more striking and romantic to be hidden amidst the maze. We were there during the late Spring, and everything we came across was bright, blooming, and showing off. The salt air off of the Mediterranean, the fresh breeze of the mountainside, and the garden united to become a symphony of the most beautiful fragrance.
I couldn't get enough. When we made our way down the mountain it felt like returning from some secret place to the "real world" below. Do you know the feeling of finding a beautiful place within a beautiful place? That was Montjuic for me. And I can't wait for a chance to be there again.