Barcelona, Spain 10 - Ciudad Condal

Our last meal in Barcelona was at Ciudad Condal, another popular tapas bar. A montadito (open-faced sandwich) with shrimp, squid and asparagus was pretty good.

On the other hand, their greek salad wasn't quite different from what I expected. It was the mixture of diced tomatoes and feta cheese. Instead of cucumbers or green leaves, two pieces of Pan con Tomate came together.

I thought it was my last chance to try calçots (green onion). I heard that eating grilled calçots with romesco sauce was a winter tradition in Catalonia region, so I wanted to try some. I saw the word calçots on the menu and I ordered it. Our waiter said something about the dish but I didn't fully understand what he said although he spoke in English. After several minutes, what he brought to us was calçots cooked like Tempura! Then I remembered what he said - Tempura! The dish wasn't the traditional dish that I was looking for however all I could do was to eat whatever in front of me. The tempura version of calçots wasn't too bad actually.

It was our last day in Barcelona. We visited Santa Caterina Market. Although we didn't buy anything to bring back home, it was always enjoyable to see the local foods.

We also visited Museum of the History of Barcelona near the cathedral. The museum was housed in a complex of historic buildings, including the Saló del Tinell, built by King Peter IV in 1359–1362, where in 1493, the Catholic Monarchs, King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella, received Christopher Columbus upon his return from his first trip to America.

The real surprise of the museum was there were remainings of the largest Roman settlement ever discovered in Europe under the medieval palace. The excavations of Barcino, the ancient Roman city of Barcelona were impressive. There were lots to learn!

Adiós Barcelona! I will miss my freshly squeezed orange juice routine!

Now, where to next, J?