The Esquerra Eixample and the university

Stops along the way

Things to notice.

1. 01

   1

   Universitat de Barcelona — Edifici Històric

   Elies Rogent's 19th-century main building, half Romanesque, half Mudéjar, fronting *Gran Via*. Walk in — it's a working university, not a museum — and head straight through to the cloisters; the public is tolerated as long as you're quiet.

   01

   Universitat de Barcelona — Edifici Històric

   Elies Rogent's 19th-century main building, half Romanesque, half Mudéjar, fronting *Gran Via*. Walk in — it's a working university, not a museum — and head straight through to the cloisters; the public is tolerated as long as you're quiet.

   ◉Street View
2. 02

   2

   The cloister gardens

   Two courtyard gardens behind the facade, with orange trees, a pond and students reading on the stone benches. The single best free sit-down in this part of town, and almost nobody who isn't enrolled knows to come in.

   02

   The cloister gardens

   Two courtyard gardens behind the facade, with orange trees, a pond and students reading on the stone benches. The single best free sit-down in this part of town, and almost nobody who isn't enrolled knows to come in.

   ◉Street View
3. 03

   3

   Mercat del Ninot

   The neighbourhood's everyday food market, restored and glassy, with fishmongers and a clutch of counter bars at the back. Less of a spectacle than the famous markets, which is the point — this is where the *Esquerra* actually shops and lunches.

   03

   Mercat del Ninot

   The neighbourhood's everyday food market, restored and glassy, with fishmongers and a clutch of counter bars at the back. Less of a spectacle than the famous markets, which is the point — this is where the *Esquerra* actually shops and lunches.

   ◉Street View
4. 04

   4

   Escola Industrial

   An old textile factory — the Batlló works — turned into a campus a century ago, its brick courtyards now open to walk through. The *Paranimf* and the chapel are the set pieces; the wide courtyard is the calm.

   04

   Escola Industrial

   An old textile factory — the Batlló works — turned into a campus a century ago, its brick courtyards now open to walk through. The *Paranimf* and the chapel are the set pieces; the wide courtyard is the calm.

   ◉Street View
5. 05

   5

   An Eixample interior garden

   Several blocks here have had their courtyards opened to the public — a quiet pocket of green hidden inside the grid, exactly what Cerdà intended before the developers built over them. Step into any open one you pass; permission is the whole idea.

   05

   An Eixample interior garden

   Several blocks here have had their courtyards opened to the public — a quiet pocket of green hidden inside the grid, exactly what Cerdà intended before the developers built over them. Step into any open one you pass; permission is the whole idea.

   ◉Street View
6. 06

   6

   The Gaixample by day

   The blocks around *Carrer del Consell de Cent* are the city's gay quarter — loud at night, easy and ordinary by afternoon, with good coffee and unhurried terraces. End here, then drop to *Hospital Clínic* for the metro.

   06

   The Gaixample by day

   The blocks around *Carrer del Consell de Cent* are the city's gay quarter — loud at night, easy and ordinary by afternoon, with good coffee and unhurried terraces. End here, then drop to *Hospital Clínic* for the metro.

   ◉Street View