I’m working on a book, and I’d like to place one of my flashback scenes in Barcelona, somewhere around 1985-1990. This would have been pre-1992 Olympics and all the urban beautification that must have followed.
Anyone who lived in / traveled to Barcelona during this period: What was it like? Where did you hang out? Are there street-side cafe’s where a couple could sit and have an intimate conversation, or is it more urban and loud, like New York City?
Also, are / were there apartments and family dwellings downtown, or would it be more likely that someone would have a house / ranch outside of the city limits?
I’ve always wanted to go to Spain, but have not yet had the opportunity. Anything you can offer to make the setting more authentic would be greatly appreciated!
Thanks!
I want to recommend that if you are writing a book, your setting ought to be some place where you actually have BEEN. It lends a more authentic air.
To be honest…I was there in 1981. I don’t really remember that much…I don’t think the Ramblas was quite as pretty as it is now. i think they have repaved the whole thing.
Outdoor cafés have also been the norm, and, yes, a couple might have spent a quiet tête a tête at the cafés along the Ramblas, then, as well.
The Templo de la Sagrada Familia was a bit smaller…or at least had fewer towers/spires. I’m pretty sure there were only four at the time.
Yes. People lived and still live in the city. The old cities in Spain are generally the more expensive/more desirable places to live. The whole concept of "house" is so different there. For the most part, the big house with a nice, green lawn, as you see in suburban USA really doesn´t exist. Houses in the outskirts of cities are much smaller, with little land. Ranches outside the cities are either for weekends or the very wealthy (or both). Most people live in small homes in small towns, smallish houses in the outskirts, or apartments in cities. Sometimes something akin to a townhome, adjacent to the whole street, but one owner has the entire, three or four floors.
You should go…spend a couple of months, doing research, so you can make it more authentic. Write it off of your taxes….:)
You might want, if your characters are pretty well off, to think of putting them in one of the very fashionable "Moderniste" apartment buildings in Eixample district.
I want to recommend that if you are writing a book, your setting ought to be some place where you actually have BEEN. It lends a more authentic air.
To be honest…I was there in 1981. I don’t really remember that much…I don’t think the Ramblas was quite as pretty as it is now. i think they have repaved the whole thing.
Outdoor cafés have also been the norm, and, yes, a couple might have spent a quiet tête a tête at the cafés along the Ramblas, then, as well.
The Templo de la Sagrada Familia was a bit smaller…or at least had fewer towers/spires. I’m pretty sure there were only four at the time.
Yes. People lived and still live in the city. The old cities in Spain are generally the more expensive/more desirable places to live. The whole concept of "house" is so different there. For the most part, the big house with a nice, green lawn, as you see in suburban USA really doesn´t exist. Houses in the outskirts of cities are much smaller, with little land. Ranches outside the cities are either for weekends or the very wealthy (or both). Most people live in small homes in small towns, smallish houses in the outskirts, or apartments in cities. Sometimes something akin to a townhome, adjacent to the whole street, but one owner has the entire, three or four floors.
You should go…spend a couple of months, doing research, so you can make it more authentic. Write it off of your taxes….:)
You might want, if your characters are pretty well off, to think of putting them in one of the very fashionable "Moderniste" apartment buildings in Eixample district.
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