John T.
Yelp
4.5
I stumbled upon this park completely by accident. I was doing my usual -- taking the train somewhere, getting off and exploring -- when my wanderings led me to a bunch of noise. Wanting to check it out, I saw an inviting green space. As I have written about many times on here, green spaces are my nature spots of choice so I made a beeline for the green stuff. This park is magically delicious. It's not the architectural wonder of Parc Guell. Instead, the magic of this park comes from the people, elements, location, and design.
The people are hilarious. I felt like I was transported back to my liberal arts college past. All around me were drum circles, dirty hippies and the smells of patchouli, body odor, marijuana, and horseshit. I heard Peter, Paul & Mary, the Indigo Girls and Tupac. The crush of humanity was a thing of beauty. In addition to the dirty hippies (have we cycled back to them yet), there were throngs of tourists, families, children running wild, grandparents on their last nerve, and couples looking for grassy knolls on/in which to do the nasty.
The elements are wondrous. Being a park, there are all sorts of trees, flowers, trails, and inviting leas for exploration. Additionally, there are random sculptures that make for great photo opps.* My favorite elements, though, involved water. The fountain/castle is breathtaking. Not only is it a stunning visual, but it's interactive, as you can climb it, engage in the water element and spend time hypnotized by its glory. There's also a small lake, perfect for a romantic row around the park. I wouldn't get in it as the liquid looked very Toxic Avenger-ish but the sentiment was nice.
If you knew where you were going beforehand (I did not), you would know that the park is close to the zoo, the Arc de Triomf (had no idea there was one in Barcelona) and some cool neighborhood details. Keep your camera at the ready because the scene changes quickly and you're going to want to be able to capture everything with a quickness. Not to fear: there are plenty of nearby shops for all your eat & drink needs.
While not the Gaudi dreamscape of other Barcelona sites, I found this park to be both highly functional in design as well as highly entertaining. There was always something new to discover and engage yet the oblong shape made sense and isn't so circuitous as to be disorienting. It's just enough Alice in Wonderland to entertain without being overwhelming. What a happy accident. I need to get lost while exploring more often.
*Just be sure to go in and grab your opportunity, as waiting in line like a gentleman is a f00ls errand.