A wet dark morning stuck on a motorway is guaranteed to make a weekend in Barcelona even better than normal. Not that last weekend the weather at home was expected to be bad, sunshine was forecast throughout the UK, but it was still nice to board that ‘plane!

Barcelona has lots of hidden surprises, some you hear about chatting in bars, some on line, but this particular secret was one we found out about in a book about the city, not your standard tour guide, but one that had been written a fair few years ago by someone who had adopted the place as a second home – much as we have.

This particular place is hidden ‘in plain sight’ as they say, and I bet there are a fair few people who have wandered past one store in particular on the Passeig de Gracia and never given it a second glance.

Passeig de Gracia is one of the two main shopping streets that run up from near Placa de Catalunya – easy to find, on all the tourist maps, and indeed on the route of the tourist city bus. It’s one of those must see streets. If you’re hoping to visit the designer shops, then this road will be on your itinerary, the other being Rambla de Catalunya (not to be confused with La Rambla which runs from Placa de Catalunya down towards the port).

Even if you aren’t interested in the shops, the road is well known for its architecture – in fact one block has been nicknamed ‘La Mançana de la Discòrdia’ (block of discord) as within a short distance there are buildings designed by three different famous modernist architects (for those that want to know Josep Puig i Cadafelch, Lluís Domènech i Montaner and Gaudí).

So, wander up here and you will soon spot Casa Mila, La Pedrera ‘the quarry’. The building is famous, but unfortunately the façade of the building is currently covered for renovation and so I couldn’t take a photo – but there are plenty of pics about on the internet and in guide books.  Join the queues to look inside, go up to the roof and view the city, you can even visit at night and discover the ‘secret Pedrera’ but make sure you do something not many other people do. Visit the shop next door.

Vincon stands adjacent to La Pedrera, and has secrets of its own to reveal. Yes, go in and it’s a shop, well a ‘design store’. Downstairs you can buy stationery (if you love notebooks and pens you could spend hours browsing!), lights, some amazing books with photographs of the city, and much more (if you have the money to spend). But it’s upstairs that we found the real surprise.

It’s a listed building, that was designed by architect Antoni Rovira i Rabassa in 1899 and belonged to a painter, Ramón Casas.

From the terrace you can admire the back of Pedrera, from inside you can forget you’re in a department story and imagine what it would have been like to have lived there.

If you’ve got the money to spare, go in for a glass of champagne (Woody Allen has played Jazz here). If you’ve not, why not sit, like we do and have a coffee at Buenos Migas and just imagine…

I originally posted this on my old blog in February. With Valentine's Day looming on the horizon, I had decided to start a series of posts about one of my love affairs. 

In part, my story is about a love affair with a person in the city. In part, it's about my love affair with Barcelona itself. Either way, it's a love affair of the heart, and those are the type that count....

I'm now blogging over here, and thought I'd move the posts so that the full story can be found in one place. 

Barcelona is a multi faceted city. Beautiful, bright, old, dark, a place of peace, a place of festivals and celebrations. I think we've experienced all in the time we've spent there so far - but there is so much more to discover, to experience... It's a place of iconic images, of sand, sea, and structure... of people, of the colours and flavours of Catalan food, the green mint of Mojito's, the bright red of sun ripe tomatoes, the contrast and beauty of art and architecture that has imbued the place over the years. Barcelona can be something different to everyone who goes there, something new every time you return.

I want to share here, my Barcelona. Not a place of pickpockets and bustle, but a city you can fall in love with, a city where you can fall in love. And what better place to start than on the beach at sunrise, or even better, sunset?

La Barceloneta is in the Ciutat Vella district of Barcelona. In the height of summer, the sandy beach is packed for the better part of the day, but visit out of season, between November and March and although there is still a life and vitality to the place, the hordes have gone.  Or, do as we have done and visit the beach at sunrise, or in the evening as the sun sets,  and find a place of pure romance, a place where it is hard to believe you are moments away from the centre of a city.

From the central beach area, with it's restaurants and bars, it's worth taking your shoes off, letting the sand slip between your toes (or stick to the boardwalk!), and walking all the way to the distinctive building in the distance that is the W hotel...

The impressive building is worth a close look, and from here you can get a wonderful view, but don't stop here to eat - Barcelona doesn't have to be about fine dining, instead make your way back up the beach.

Sit in one of the bars with a cup of coffee, watch the skateboarding dogs and the surfers... and then much later leave the sea behind and explore the narrow streets of old Barceloneta.

Stroll across the Plaça Del Poeta Boscà, and tucked away round the back you will find Can Ramonet. The perfect spot to enjoy the feel of historic Barceloneta - try the tapas, or just sit out in the sun and enjoy a glass of wine or cava.

A romantic evening of sun, sea, tapas and good wine, a perfect start for a love affair.... And the beach at Barcelona is where Lottie discovered that her heart was still in Tippermere.... and that is where my story Stable Mates started.