Without a car in Barcelona, we have joined the ranks of millions of people who use the Metro (subway), Ferrocaril (another subway system that runs in the northern part of the city and into the mountain suburbs), city busses, trams, and yes, our feet.  Truth be told, having a car in Barcelona would likely be as bad as having one in Manhattan – perhaps worse.   The traffic on main arteries is intense and constant, and the public transit is, in a word, fabulous!

The Metro stations and cars truly are kept clean, the trains run on time and frequently, and the routing maps are pretty simple to figure out (unless you are color blind…that could complicate matters).  The tunnels get a little stuffy when it’s hot out but the cars themselves stay pretty cool.  There are automated signs and pre-recorded announcements of the next stop and connections to other lines on every train.  The public buses are even nicer (honest). Air-conditioned, running frequently (the longest we have waited for a bus is about 10 minutes to get all the way across town), super clean.  There is even a nifty tram that runs along a chunk of the length of Avenida Diagonal – a main east/west artery through the upper part of the city – that helps get from line to line on the Metro.  Here is the really swift part:  Once you enter one of these transit systems – any of them – you can use the same entrance fee (it’s less than $2) to move around on any of the systems during any 90 minute period.  So, you can be on a bus, the Metro, the tram and the bus again to do errands if needed and you pay once.  Obviously longer jaunts to the suburbs involve some zone fees, but bottom line is that we don’t miss having a car AT ALL!

The other thing we have discovered is that Barcelona – at least the core of the  city – is actually very walkable and a delight to stroll through if you have the time and energy.  Andrew and I had an appointment “uptown” yesterday so we took the Metro and bus to get there quickly.  On the way back we decided to walk and did the whole thing in about an hour – with stops along the way at the sports store, vet, and market.

Oh yeah – the music thing :)…a common occurrence in the Metro tunnels is to come upon a musician (or two) playing for tips.  We’ve heard classical guitar, violin, drummers, rock singers, you  name it.  It’s a lovely diversion when passing through on a hot day.  Occasionally a band of Incan musicians hop on the train and do an impromptu concert, then pass the hat. No doubt this is illegal but hey, ya gotta make a living.

My greatest surprise came a few days ago as we were transferring from one line to another and I was startled by a familiar tune being played on an accordion…I turned to Eitan, who was already laughing and said:  “HAVA NAGILA???”.  Sure enough.  For the uninitiated in the Jewish music scene (from ions ago), this is a classic song that is played at nearly every wedding or Bar Mitzvah to encourage guests to get their groove on.

Viva España!