Seduced by Barcelona

While I am out gallavanting on a road trip (#OregonHo!), my friend Catherine Sweeney, of  Traveling with Sweeney volunteered to fill in today with this movie that inspired a trip to Barcelona. Cathy makes me want to see the movie AND go to Barcelona. How about you?

Destination: Barcelona

Movie: Vicky Cristina Barcelona

I’ve been a long-time Woody Allen fan, so I was eager to see a film he wrote and directed, Vicky Cristina Barcelona, when it was released in 2008. By the end of the movie, I couldn’t wait to visit Barcelona! When I finally got my chance in 2012 with the annual TBEX (Travel Blogger Exchange) conference set for Girona, a city about 65 miles north of Barcelona, it took me no time at all to decide to attend.

The Setting

The movie follows close friends Vicky and Cristina (played by Rebecca Hall and Scarlett Johansson, respectively) as they experience a summer in Barcelona, providing them both with personal awakenings largely due to the captivating characters of Juan Antonio (Javier Bardem) and his ex-wife, Maria Elena (Penelope Cruz). As the characters are drawn into situations typical of Woody Allen films – relationships, romance, love and angst — we get enticing glimpses of Barcelona, setting a mood of sultry allure.

Many of the scenes set my expectations high and indeed captured the essence of how I envision Barcelona now that I’ve been there. The narrow, stone streets winding through the Gothic Quarter, palm trees blowing in the breeze on a terrace, black and yellow taxis maneuvering down the boulevards alongside ubiquitous scooters, and so many other scenes of Barcelona. In addition to specific filming locations, I got much of my inspiration from key aspects of the film’s artistic ambiance, romantic mood, and characters’ emotions.

"Loewe's department store on Passeig de Gràcia, Barcelona"
Passeig de Gràcia

In various scenes, life in Barcelona is characterized by high-end shopping along the Passeig de Gracia, browsing the lovely flower stalls on Las Ramblas and lunch at outside cafes like Taller de Tapas on Rambla Cataluna. During our visit, we also experienced these and they made us feel part of the city. As in the movie, walking along the streets of the Gothic Quarter and Eixample District, it seemed there was something interesting in every direction. There’s also a wonderful scene at the amusement park on Tibidabo mountain, high above Barcelona with spectacular views overlooking the city. Our time was short, so this is an activity saved for my next visit.

Sultry Ambiance

" Passeig de Gràcia Fountain, Barcelona"
Passeig de Gràcia Fountain

Lively, sexy, sultry, romantic — that’s the character of Barcelona I felt, and Vicky Cristina Barcelona captured that well. We stayed in the Eixample District of Barcelona where I easily got that vibe with late night dinners of tapas and red wine in restaurants along tree-lined streets. In the movie, Vicky and Cristina are dining at midnight when they meet Juan Antonio, who they had seen at an art gallery party earlier in the evening. After brief introductions and some chit chat, he invites both women to fly with him in a private plane to Oveido (in the Asturias region of Spain) for the weekend, enticing them with lines such as:

“I’ll show you around the city, and we’ll eat well. We’ll drink good wine. We’ll make love.”

Indeed, they end up going with him to Oviedo where there are more romantic and humorous twists and turns. In those scenes, the film offers additional inspiration for traveling to that part of Spain with inviting scenery, wine, and sensual Spanish guitar music.

Back in Barcelona, the movie continues to intrigue and entertain with engaging dialogue, trademark Woody Allen humor, an outstanding performance by Penelope Cruz (for which she was totally deserving of the Oscar she won for the role), and with the romantic and thoughtful plot accentuated by the picturesque location.

Art and Architecture

Through Vicky Cristina Barcelona I also became aware of other aspects of Barcelona that I hadn’t considered before. I wanted to learn more about the Catalan culture and take in the beauty of the city’s architecture.

We learn through narration in the film’s opening scene that Vicky was completing her Master’s Degree in Catalan Identity, a subject in which she became interested because of her admiration of the designs of architect Antoni Gaudi in Barcelona, the Catalan capital.

"People walking on rooftop of Casa Milà rooftop, Barcelona"
People walking on rooftop of Casa Milà

Although I have an avid appreciation for architecture almost everywhere I visit, Vicky Cristina Barcelona was my first introduction to the architecture of Antoni Gaudi. In the movie, Gaudi’s works and his influence throughout the city are captured by Allen through frequent references and in scenes shot in and around Park Gruell, Sagrada Familia, and Casa Milà. In the movie, the friends also walk around the rooftop of Casa Milà (the far building shown in the photo above). On our visit, we got a wonderful view of Gaudi’s works on a walking tour, which also included Gaudi’s Casa Batlló on the “Block of Discord”, his building set between those of other prominent and competing architects of the time (with all three profoundly clashing).

The arts actually play an important role in the movie in general — Maria Elena and Juan Antonio are painters, Juan Antonio and Cristina meet with his circle of artistic friends in bars and cafes, and Cristina is a talented amateur photographer.

The film spurred my interest in learning more about Catalonia and its culture and history. At the time we visited in September of 2012, the efforts toward Catalan independence were at a peak because of a critical vote coming up in November, and there was much unrest due to Spain’s controversial anti-austerity measures. The news was full of related stories and events, and yellow and red striped Catalan independence flags were draped on balconies and windows everywhere. As we traveled throughout Catalonia, we met people who are very proud of their Catalan heritage and language and have a strong passion to keep it alive.

Seduction

Throughout the movie, Vicky and Cristina struggle with seductive choices. Until the end, you really don’t know which directions these two characters will ultimately choose. Being in Barcelona, you get a feeling of being in a place with exciting, possibly risky opportunities, much like Vicky and Cristina faced.

Our Barcelona experience was short, but long enough to indulge my senses with the sights and tastes of the city. I was initially inspired to visit Barcelona by the sensuality, history, architecture, and romance presented in the movie. By visiting, I was seduced.

Print Friendly, PDF & Email

About Vera Marie Badertscher

A freelance writer who loves to travel. When she is not traveling she is reading about travel. When she is not reading or traveling, she is sharing with the readers of A Traveler's Library, or recreating her family's past at Ancestors In Aprons . She has written for Reel Life With Jane, Life is a Trip and other websites. Also co-author of a biography, Quincy Tahoma, The Life and Legacy of a Navajo Artist. Contact Vera Marie by e-mail.

4 thoughts on “Seduced by Barcelona

  1. I loved Barcelona when we visited last December. My husband and I are architecture buffs and we were anxious to see the Gaudi buildings. His cathedral is the MOST beautiful and fantastic building I’ve ever seen. After we paid our entry fee (which I think was about $25) we learned that they were laying the floor and so we could only get access to one corner of the building. But it didn’t matter. It was still worth the money. It’ll take 100 years to complete Gaudi’s plan but the interior is now open and I can’t wait to go back again to see it.

    1. Barcelona is a must-see for architecture buffs! Even after seeing some of Gaudi’s work in the movie and then in photos, I was still totally amazed seeing his buildings in person. Next time, I’d like to tour inside Gaudi’s Casa Batlló on the “Block of Discord” that I mention in the article. Oh, so much more to see in Barcelona!

  2. Yes Barcelona is exciting and always filled with energy and things to do, the architecture and street life is amazing and well the food even more impressive, thanks for letting me re-live these wonderful experiences.

    1. Well said about Barcelona! Glad I could bring back good memories. There is so much more that I want to see and do in Barcelona. The city kind of grabs hold of you with all it has going on, including the food — love tapas!

Comments are closed.