While lacking the gravitas of Madrid, the Catalan capital city of Barcelona oozes urban cool. The cityscapes are dotted with modernist masterpieces from one of its most famous sons, Antoni Gaudi, as well as its other Catalan progeny such as Salvador Dali and Joan Miro. Art is almost synonymous with Barcelona, spanning the whole spectrum from the mildly avante-garde to the outright quaint.

Madrid Atocha station	The high speed AVE trains from Renfe	The inside of an AVE compartment	A happy baby heading to Barcelona!

Posing		.. and feeding pigeons at Plaza Catalunya

A warren of winding, cobbled streets in the Gothic Quarter	Plaza Catalunya	Apparently the rain in Spain does not just stay in the plain	Shopping, anyone?

Click to continue to Barcelona's architectural jewel, La Sagrada Familia