barcelona’s arc of triumph
Most visitors deem Barcelona as Spain’s most attention-grabbing city and it’s not hard to see why. Out-of-this-world designs, chic bars, a strong culinary tradition and a plethora of things to see and do all make Barcelona the usual first stop in Spain and for many, the preeminent impression of the country. A closer look however, reveals a complex heritage. For starters, majority of the signs in the city are not even in Spanish. They are in Catalan, the native language of Catalonia, the region where Barcelona is situated. In fact, whenever I made the effort of speaking to the locals in Spanish, I would be replied to in English. People here are staunchly Catalan in identity.
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