For a small city trip to Barcelona with wife and children I was searching for a nice small hotel. Not top off the bill but just a budget one and central located. I found one in the El Raval district. El Raval, together with the Gothic Quarter and El Born, it forms the old center of Barcelona. In the past this was not exactly ‘the place to be’. You will certainly still notice this in some places. The narrow streets with hardly any sunlight are an unique attraction. On our way to El Ramlas I discovered a true work of art, just next to the entrance of a store. Many tourists will just pass trough, but I stoped! Here I found the work of 2 great steertart creators, Bronikart and Citykittystreet. Beside their own work, they also make small prints and drawings glued to walls. A new trend in the street art movement.
After our tourist visit to the Ramlas I went to explore El Raval with my camera. And although the neighborhood is still struggling with a raw image and the consequences of its notorious past as a red light district and migrant neighborhood, El Raval has been rapidly developing in recent years as the most versatile, young, hip and multicultural district of Barcelona. On and around Plaça dels Àngels, where the Museu d’Art Contemporani is located, you will find lots of graffiti and street art alongside Pizza-eating skaters. Near the museum is a large wall painting of the world-famous Keith Haring. After all, a cool trendy neighborhood… I will definitely go back.
