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| Entrance to La Boqueria
Of course, across from the market, there was a woman dressed as Marilyn Monroe who was waving from the balcony of the Erotic Museum.
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| Marilyn? |
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| Beautiful produce |
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| Lots of choice for ham |
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| Nuts and Dried Fruits |
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| Olive Oils |
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| Gorgeous Calcots (catalan green onions) |
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| Fish, anyone |
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| Where we bought some Manchego cheese |
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| Our dinner |
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| Eggs, anyone? |
After leaving the market, we went into the old Gothic quarter (Barri Gotic) and stopped to visit the oldest synagogue in Barcelona (Sinagoga Major) It is only two rooms, but a guide gives a 15 minute history of the synagogue. She told us that 15-20% of the population of medieval Barcelona was Jewish and that as the Jews paid taxes directly to the King rather than the Church, the King offered protection to the Jews. King James I visited the synagogue in 1263. There were four small synagogues at this time in Barcelona. This was due to the fact that no synagogue could be built higher than the smallest church. However, it was a thriving community and while there was a Jewish quarter, it was not a ghetto.
This all changed in 1391 when a pogrom took place during one of the worst black plague epidemics in Europe. The black plague killed 60% of Barcelona residents, but a lower percentage of Jews due to more rigorous hygiene practices. Jews were blamed for the Black plague in Barcelona and over 400 Jews were massacred and others were forced to convert or flee. The Inquisition in 1492 was the final blow, but the community was already destroyed.
By 1477, the building was a clothes dying establishment and had many other uses after that time. In the late 1980s, a researcher found the location of the synagogue. His research was based on documents from a tax collector, noting its location and the fact that the synagogue didn't have to pay taxes. The location was also identified as being a synagogue as the building was oriented eastward to Jerusalem and had two windows. The building was an electronics store in 1995 when it was purchased by a member of the Jewish community. It was restored and opened to the public in 2002 as a museum. While there is no regular congregation, it is used for ceremonies (marriages etc). A New York lawyer donated a 500 year old Torah scroll to the synagogue in 2006. There are 1000 Jewish families in Barcelona today and four active synagogues in other parts of the city.
Our guide told us that the synagogue dates back to the Roman times (300-400 A.D.) as a corner stone was found that had 18 (chai) written in Roman numerals. The restored rooms are where the men prayed. The women's section (only 20 square m) is a kitchen in an adjoining restaurant.
A fascinating piece of history!
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| Alano going down the steps into the synagogue |
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| Room where men would have prayed in the old synagogue |
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| Old key and other artifacts The synagogue was on a very ancient street. Other signage noted parts of an old Roman wall. |
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| View up the street with the synagogue
We then stopped at a cheese shop recommended in a guide book. Formatgeria La Seu is the only cheese shop in Spain that specializes in Spanish only farmhouse cheeses. It is run by a Scottish woman with a bit of a prickly personality. There is small cheese room. She gave us tastes of the three sheep cheeses that she had that day. They were all amazing. We bought a piece of La Serena, one of the few soft sheep cheeses I have ever had.
Small room with cheeses
La Serena sheep cheese
After leaving the cheese shop we passed a building dating back to 1770.
1770 building in Gothic Quarter
We also passed a sign we have seen all over Barcelona advertising the new TV show "Better Call Saul." Couldn't resist the Spanish ad.
Alano and "Better call Saul" ad
We took the food back to the apartment and had a light lunch with the sheep cheese and bread. The sun had come out and we headed to the beach. We first passed a Marina area with many large boats.
Marina
The beaches are gorgeous-- Barcelona started the transformation of their waterfront for the 1992 Olympics and has continued since that time to beautify the area. We saw lots of surfers in the water and a number of sailboats were out in the sea.
 
View from Barceloneta beach towards new W Hotel
We also immediately noticed this big fish in the distance. It turned out to be a Frank Gehry sculpture of a gold fish called Peix (fish), which has become the symbol of Barcelona's waterfront. We walked down the boardwalk to see the fish up close.
 
The Fish up close
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The beach was beautiful and there were many surfers taking advantage of the sun and waves.
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| Getting ready to surf the waves |
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| On the way to the beach
We passed a very cool sculpture of a tower. It was commissioned for the 1992 Olympics and is entitled L'Estrel Ferit (the Wounded Star) and pays homage to the old sailors quarters in La Barceloneta quarter. The sculpture concepts of four steel cubes stacked one above the other. It also references old lighthouses that are no longer required. The piece is by Rebecca Horn (b. 1944), a German visual artist.
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| L'Estrel Ferit
Our final stop on our walk home, was to get a cone of frites from a chip stand that has been in La Barceloneta (the waterfront quarter) since 1960.
 
Getting our frites ready
We walked back to the apartment and had a wonderful dinner with the dorade, potatoes, a green salad and some roja. Manchego cheese and pear for dessert. Lots of steps - about 18,000 for the day.
It is now Saturday February 28 and there is bright blue sky and sun.
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I see a new tv show in Toronto called "Better Call Alano". It would be how to live the "good life" with travel and food. Excellent blog; very interesting and informative. Thanks.
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