La Rambla: plans to transform Barcelona’s tourist rat run into a cultural hub
An ambitious project is under way to turn one of the world’s most overrun streets into an the ‘immersive art centre of southern Europe’
So, logically, they’re saying that more arts means less people. That art itself repels?
Well, of modern art that probably is true, yes.
Las Ramblas (at least 6 years ago when I was last there) was a hole, mainly because of the aggressive prozzies everywhere. Unless you enjoy being sexually assaulted while being robbed, it’s really not for anyone 🙁
One of my friends recently had his pocket picked there… Nothing out of the ordinary really, except that he’s a Spanish plain-clothes policeman and a member of the team targeting pickpockets on Las Ramblas! 🙂
Is Barcelona’s La Rambla a tourist rat-run? Years since I’ve been there. No reason to. Stayed in a fleabag hotel just off of it, years ago. That part of the city always had a bit of a reputation. But I’d say it was a Spanish creation, rather than a tourist one. Every big city seems to have one & that’s Barcelona’s. Point being, if they clean it it up & turn it into a cultural hub, it’ll be recreated somewhere else in the city. If, of course, there’s anyone left in Barcelona to create one after this summer.
Tourism is for the many, and tends to spoil it for the elite art-lovers. If you are rich and fancy an arty stroll in Barcelona, you don’t want a lot of ordinary people getting in the way and so it makes sense to pass a few laws to move them on.
BiS,
Interesting parallel in that local gov wants to take advantage of this quiet period to clean up Walking Street and make it more family friendly. Local opinion is, as you say, that it’ll just relocate. The “unconventional businessmen” who own it aren’t just going to walk away from the money.
When I first visited over 25 yrs ago it was enjoyably transgressive especially towards the bottm end.
It’s really gone downhill since and is rather boring.
Prozzies never bothered me there. I find that insulting.
Rowdy,
I find that on the first visit they are a nuisance, less so the second time and after three or four visits one is more or less ignored. It’s as if one has an invisible “noob” mark that only they can see. I take it you are a frequent visitor?
Major port has many prostitutes. And this is surprising, because?
A few times now, Roue. I like the atmosphere there – it’s reminiscent of Paris before the savages invaded.