BARCELONA
SIESTA
Let the light guide you.
SIESTA is an invitation to slow down. Born in Barcelona, the collection is inspired by the shifting light throughout the day, the city’s architecture, and those quiet moments that remind us beauty is always close — we simply have to allow ourselves to notice it. The story continues with the Barcelona City Guide — a curated selection of places, details, and routes that invite you to experience the city as we saw it.
WHY DO WE LOVE THIS PLACE?
Because the most interesting stories are rarely born where they were planned. The best time to come is just before sunset, when the concrete still holds the warmth of the day and the sea feels only a few steps away.
BARCELONA BEACHFRONT
Av. del Litoral, 66, Sant Martí, 08005 Barcelona
This is where Barcelona becomes the city locals know and love: the sea, sun-warmed concrete, evening light, and the unhurried rhythm of the city gradually giving way to the beach. Nearby are the steps of the PAP Building — one of those places that has become part of Barcelona’s contemporary cultural history. Following the release of Palmen aus Plastik, they became a destination for those searching not for landmarks, but for atmosphere.
THE SAGRADA FOUNTAIN
Carrer de Sardenya, 318, Eixample, 08013 Barcelona
While most people look up at the towers of the Sagrada Família, we like to notice what often goes unseen.
This public fountain is one of those small details that reminds us Barcelona is shaped not only by its architectural icons, but also by its everyday rituals. Drinking fountains like this have been part of the city since the late nineteenth century. Once an essential source of water for local residents, today they remain a place to pause, refill your bottle, and experience the true rhythm of Barcelona.
WHY DO WE LOVE THIS PLACE?
Because the best memories rarely begin with famous landmarks. More often, they begin with a brief pause, cool water, and the warmth of the city all around you.
A NOTE
We have intentionally revealed some places only through subtle glimpses. Their true beauty is not found in photographs, but in experiencing them in person. We wanted to leave room for your own discoveries, so that your first impression of these places belongs not to us, but entirely to you.
PASSEIG DE GRÀCIA
Passeig de Gràcia, Eixample, 08007 Barcelona
Passeig de Gràcia is one of those streets you do not simply want to walk through, but to fully experience. Once connecting Barcelona’s old city with the village of Gràcia, today it is the city’s most iconic boulevard, where modernist architecture blends naturally with contemporary life. This is where we most strongly felt the way the city interacts with objects. Stone, mosaic, light, and texture become part of every frame. A few steps are enough to reveal a new perspective, where the architecture does not dominate, but instead draws attention to the details.
WHAT SHOULD YOU LOOK OUT FOR?
Lift your gaze from the shop windows to the façades, then look down again. Here, you will find the famous Panot Gaudí paving tiles, created especially for Passeig de Gràcia, alongside Casa Batlló, Casa Milà — also known as La Pedrera — and Casa Amatller. This is a place where architecture exists not only in the buildings, but also in the smallest details of the urban landscape.
CATALAN TILES
Passeig de Gràcia, Eixample, 08007 Barcelona
Barcelona is shaped not only by its grand buildings, but also by the details that appear again and again throughout the city. Catalan tiles are one of them. For more than a century, they have adorned façades, entrance halls, stairwells, and inner courtyards. Their patterns have become an inseparable part of Barcelona’s architecture, where decoration is never detached from everyday life. What draws us in is the way an ordinary material is transformed into art. Colour, rhythm, and geometry make even the simplest wall instantly recognisable, while each pattern becomes an extension of the city’s character.
WHAT SHOULD YOU LOOK OUT FOR?
Some of the most remarkable examples of Catalan tiles are found not on façades, but inside the city’s historic buildings. Look into the entrance halls and stairwells of the Eixample district, Cases Ramos, or the modernist buildings along Passeig de Gràcia. This is where many of the original early twentieth-century patterns have been preserved.
PARK GÜELL
Carrer d’Olot, 5, Gràcia, 08024 Barcelona
Every city has a place you want to return to for no particular reason. For us, it is a bench in Park Güell. Not the most famous viewpoint, nor a spot that appears in every tourist guide. Simply a place to sit, slow down, and look out over Barcelona from above. From here, the city feels softer. The rooftops gradually dissolve into the horizon, the sea appears between the hills, and Gaudí’s mosaics shift in colour as the light changes.
WHAT SHOULD YOU LOOK OUT FOR?
The trencadís technique — one of Barcelona’s most recognisable visual symbols. In the form we know today, it emerged in the late nineteenth century. Antoni Gaudí first used it consistently while working on the Güell Pavilions between 1883 and 1887, before perfecting the technique at Park Güell, where mosaic became an inseparable part of the architecture.
Using fragments of ceramic, porcelain, and glass, artisans created surfaces in which no two pieces are alike. Light completes the work: throughout the day, the mosaics continuously change in character, revealing new colours, textures, and details.
Admission is €18. We recommend booking your ticket in advance, especially during the high season, as access to the park’s monumental zone is limited.
CASES RAMOS
Plaça de Lesseps, 30, Sarrià-Sant Gervasi, 08023 Barcelona
One of Barcelona’s most beautiful modernist buildings, hidden away on Plaça de Lesseps. Built in 1906, it still preserves the atmosphere of the early twentieth century: high ceilings, marble staircases, ceramic details, and light that feels almost made for cinema. Scenes from Pedro Almodóvar’s iconic film All About My Mother (Todo sobre mi madre, 1999) were filmed here. Penélope Cruz starred in the film, which went on to win the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film. The building has since become part of not only Barcelona’s history, but also the history of world cinema. What draws us to this place is the effortless way architecture and memory come together. Every detail — from the staircase to the door handles — seems to preserve a trace of time, making the building feel almost unchanged.
WHAT SHOULD YOU LOOK OUT FOR?
The stairwell, ceramic tiles, brass door handles, and the light that fills the space. These details shape the character of the building and are what made it a place where architecture and cinema came together so naturally.
PLAZA DE TOROS MONUMENTAL
Gran Via de les Corts Catalanes, 749, Eixample, 08013 Barcelona
Thousands of people once gathered here. Today, all that remains is silence, soft light, and traces of time across the walls. Plaza de Toros Monumental was the last major bullring in Catalonia. After bullfighting was banned, the space lost its original purpose, yet retained the atmosphere of a place where human stories had unfolded for decades.
What draws us here is not the history of bullfighting itself, but the way the architecture exists today. Empty stands, faded ceramics, old posters, and a silence that only deepens the sense of time. Here, the past does not disappear — it becomes part of the space.
WHY DO WE LOVE THIS PLACE?
Because here, you can hear the silence. There is only light, open space, and the sound of your own footsteps. Admission is €8 — one of the best investments you can make in discovering Barcelona at a slower pace.
WHAT SHOULD YOU LOOK OUT FOR?
Choose castanets made from natural wood using traditional methods. The type and density of the wood, its shape, and the precision of the hand-finishing all determine the instrument’s tone and sound. With authentic castanets, the value lies not in decoration, but in the quality of the craftsmanship and the tradition behind it.
ONE THING TO BRING HOME
Carrer de València, 316, Eixample, 08009 Barcelona
If we could bring home only one thing from Barcelona, we would choose castanets. Since 1928, AUDENIS has remained one of the city’s oldest music shops.
For four generations, the same family has dedicated itself to music — from tuning pianos to selecting instruments, sheet music, and objects that preserve Spain’s craft traditions. This is where we found the castanets featured in this guide. Castanets are among the oldest musical instruments in the world. Their history spans more than three thousand years, and in Spanish culture they have become a symbol of rhythm, dance, and craftsmanship. A small object that carries the rhythm of Spain within it. A reminder that journeys stay with us not only through photographs, but also through sounds, gestures, and small details that gradually become memories.
BARCELONA BEACHFRONT
Av. del Litoral, 66, Sant Martí, 08005 Barcelona
This is where Barcelona becomes the city locals know and love: the sea, sun-warmed concrete, evening light, and the unhurried rhythm of the city gradually giving way to the beach.
Nearby are the steps of the PAP Building — one of those places that has become part of Barcelona’s contemporary cultural history. Following the release of Palmen aus Plastik, they became a destination for those searching not for landmarks, but for atmosphere.
WHY DO WE LOVE THIS PLACE?
Because the most interesting stories are rarely born where they were planned. The best time to come is just before sunset, when the concrete still holds the warmth of the day and the sea feels only a few steps away.
THE SAGRADA FOUNTAIN
Carrer de Sardenya, 318, Eixample, 08013 Barcelona
While most people look up at the towers of the Sagrada Família, we like to notice what often goes unseen. This public fountain is one of those small details that reminds us Barcelona is shaped not only by its architectural icons, but also by its everyday rituals. Drinking fountains like this have been part of the city since the late nineteenth century. Once an essential source of water for local residents, today they remain a place to pause, refill your bottle, and experience the true rhythm of Barcelona.
WHY DO WE LOVE THIS PLACE?
Because the best memories rarely begin with famous landmarks. More often, they begin with a brief pause, cool water, and the warmth of the city all around you.
PASSEIG DE GRÀCIA
Passeig de Gràcia, Eixample, 08007 Barcelona
Passeig de Gràcia is one of those streets you do not simply want to walk through, but to fully experience. Once connecting Barcelona’s old city with the village of Gràcia, today it is the city’s most iconic boulevard, where modernist architecture blends naturally with contemporary life.
This is where we most strongly felt the way the city interacts with objects. Stone, mosaic, light, and texture become part of every frame. A few steps are enough to reveal a new perspective, where the architecture does not dominate, but instead draws attention to the details.
WHAT SHOULD YOU LOOK OUT FOR?
Lift your gaze from the shop windows to the façades, then look down again. Here, you will find the famous Panot Gaudí paving tiles, created especially for Passeig de Gràcia, alongside Casa Batlló, Casa Milà — also known as La Pedrera — and Casa Amatller. This is a place where architecture exists not only in the buildings, but also in the smallest details of the urban landscape.
A NOTE
We have intentionally revealed some places only through subtle glimpses. Their true beauty is not found in photographs, but in experiencing them in person. We wanted to leave room for your own discoveries, so that your first impression of these places belongs not to us, but entirely to you.
CATALAN TILES
Passeig de Gràcia, Eixample, 08007 Barcelona
Barcelona is shaped not only by its grand buildings, but also by the details that appear again and again throughout the city. Catalan tiles are one of them. For more than a century, they have adorned façades, entrance halls, stairwells, and inner courtyards. Their patterns have become an inseparable part of Barcelona’s architecture, where decoration is never detached from everyday life. What draws us in is the way an ordinary material is transformed into art. Colour, rhythm, and geometry make even the simplest wall instantly recognisable, while each pattern becomes an extension of the city’s character.
WHAT SHOULD YOU LOOK OUT FOR?
Some of the most remarkable examples of Catalan tiles are found not on façades, but inside the city’s historic buildings. Look into the entrance halls and stairwells of the Eixample district, Cases Ramos, or the modernist buildings along Passeig de Gràcia. This is where many of the original early twentieth-century patterns have been preserved.
CASES RAMOS
Plaça de Lesseps, 30, Sarrià-Sant Gervasi, 08023 Barcelona
One of Barcelona’s most beautiful modernist buildings, hidden away on Plaça de Lesseps. Built in 1906, it still preserves the atmosphere of the early twentieth century: high ceilings, marble staircases, ceramic details, and light that feels almost made for cinema. Scenes from Pedro Almodóvar’s iconic film All About My Mother (Todo sobre mi madre, 1999) were filmed here. Penélope Cruz starred in the film, which went on to win the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film. The building has since become part of not only Barcelona’s history, but also the history of world cinema. What draws us to this place is the effortless way architecture and memory come together. Every detail — from the staircase to the door handles — seems to preserve a trace of time, making the building feel almost unchanged.
WHAT SHOULD YOU LOOK OUT FOR?
The stairwell, ceramic tiles, brass door handles, and the light that fills the space. These details shape the character of the building and are what made it a place where architecture and cinema came together so naturally.
PARK GÜELL
Carrer d’Olot, 5, Gràcia, 08024 Barcelona
Every city has a place you want to return to for no particular reason. For us, it is a bench in Park Güell. Not the most famous viewpoint, nor a spot that appears in every tourist guide. Simply a place to sit, slow down, and look out over Barcelona from above. From here, the city feels softer. The rooftops gradually dissolve into the horizon, the sea appears between the hills, and Gaudí’s mosaics shift in colour as the light changes.
WHAT SHOULD YOU LOOK OUT FOR?
The trencadís technique — one of Barcelona’s most recognisable visual symbols. In the form we know today, it emerged in the late nineteenth century. Antoni Gaudí first used it consistently while working on the Güell Pavilions between 1883 and 1887, before perfecting the technique at Park Güell, where mosaic became an inseparable part of the architecture. Using fragments of ceramic, porcelain, and glass, artisans created surfaces in which no two pieces are alike. Light completes the work: throughout the day, the mosaics continuously change in character, revealing new colours, textures, and details. Admission is €18. We recommend booking your ticket in advance, especially during the high season, as access to the park’s monumental zone is limited.
PLAZA DE TOROS MONUMENTAL
Gran Via de les Corts Catalanes, 749, Eixample, 08013 Barcelona
Thousands of people once gathered here. Today, all that remains is silence, soft light, and traces of time across the walls. Plaza de Toros Monumental was the last major bullring in Catalonia. After bullfighting was banned, the space lost its original purpose, yet retained the atmosphere of a place where human stories had unfolded for decades.
What draws us here is not the history of bullfighting itself, but the way the architecture exists today. Empty stands, faded ceramics, old posters, and a silence that only deepens the sense of time. Here, the past does not disappear — it becomes part of the space.
WHY DO WE LOVE THIS PLACE?
Because here, you can hear the silence. There is only light, open space, and the sound of your own footsteps. Admission is €8 — one of the best investments you can make in discovering Barcelona at a slower pace.
ONE THING TO BRING HOME
Carrer de València, 316, Eixample, 08009 Barcelona
If we could bring home only one thing from Barcelona, we would choose castanets. Since 1928, AUDENIS has remained one of the city’s oldest music shops.
For four generations, the same family has dedicated itself to music — from tuning pianos to selecting instruments, sheet music, and objects that preserve Spain’s craft traditions. This is where we found the castanets featured in this guide. Castanets are among the oldest musical instruments in the world. Their history spans more than three thousand years, and in Spanish culture they have become a symbol of rhythm, dance, and craftsmanship. A small object that carries the rhythm of Spain within it. A reminder that journeys stay with us not only through photographs, but also through sounds, gestures, and small details that gradually become memories.
WHAT SHOULD YOU LOOK OUT FOR?
Choose castanets made from natural wood using traditional methods. The type and density of the wood, its shape, and the precision of the hand-finishing all determine the instrument’s tone and sound. With authentic castanets, the value lies not in decoration, but in the quality of the craftsmanship and the tradition behind it.
