An Idiot Abroad: Barcelona - Day 1
Boosibri
Posts: 12,164 ✭✭✭✭✭
4am in Dublin, waiting on my taxi to go to the airport for a week of work in Barcelona. My first goal of today is to leave the house without waking my 3 year old up. Doing so will incur the wrath of my wife whos anger would extend across continents let alone across Europe.
Sunday holds the weekly coin market in Placa Reial which I will visit today, those adventures, assuming they occur, will be reported here, tonight, Barcelona time.
On Monday I will lot view at Aureo and Calico before hitting some of the sites of the city. Not my first trip to Barcelona but the first where I had a numismatic interest.
End Prologue
I arrived in Barcelona a little before 10am into a quiet airport. Stepping outside I was greeted by the warm 60 degree weather and shining sun. I hopped into a taxi and headed for the heart of Barcelona, Las Ramblas near the Barrie Gotic where my hotel for the night is situated.
The Sunday coin market in Barcelona is held every week in Placa Reinal from 9:30am to 2:30pm, and a 15 minute walk down Las Ramblas, halfway between my hotel and the water. I headed out for the stroll walking down what is ordinarily a very busy and touristy street with restaurants and trees lining the sides. I stopped along the way for my second breakfast and for what would be one of four Iberian jamon encounters of the day, grabbing a sandwich and a coffee.
10 minutes later I made the left turn into Place Reical, a beautiful palm lined open air square with a fountain and café’s lining the exterior.
I spent a total of an hour in the coin market, walking table to table and back again looking through the mixture of books of world coins, trinkets and antiques. The market is actually a coin and stamp market, coins on the left, stamps on the right. It was a windy day, tough day for the stamp dealers with all the wind.
Walking through the tables I found little of interest. Cleaned or low grade coins, a few pillars, most all with problems. I found a surprising number of US coins. One dealer had a nice original 1915-D 50c in AU50 with nice luster and color but coated in PVC and at an asking price which was prohibitive. There were a surprising number of collectors at the market, young, old, very old. My high school Spanish served me poorly. Most people just asked where I was from and then started speaking English.
So I am sorry to say that I have no newps to report other than a cool 1970's "USA" pin I bought at one of the tables, only a nice day strolling through Barcelona, taking in the food, coins, and art, and looking forward to another day tomorrow of lot viewing and site seeing before heading to another hotel to begin work for the week.
P.S. I came back to my room to find a bottle of champagne and a few chocolates. Ate the chocolates, this post would be incomprehensible if I cracked the champagne after a few San Miguels.
Sunday holds the weekly coin market in Placa Reial which I will visit today, those adventures, assuming they occur, will be reported here, tonight, Barcelona time.
On Monday I will lot view at Aureo and Calico before hitting some of the sites of the city. Not my first trip to Barcelona but the first where I had a numismatic interest.
End Prologue
I arrived in Barcelona a little before 10am into a quiet airport. Stepping outside I was greeted by the warm 60 degree weather and shining sun. I hopped into a taxi and headed for the heart of Barcelona, Las Ramblas near the Barrie Gotic where my hotel for the night is situated.
The Sunday coin market in Barcelona is held every week in Placa Reinal from 9:30am to 2:30pm, and a 15 minute walk down Las Ramblas, halfway between my hotel and the water. I headed out for the stroll walking down what is ordinarily a very busy and touristy street with restaurants and trees lining the sides. I stopped along the way for my second breakfast and for what would be one of four Iberian jamon encounters of the day, grabbing a sandwich and a coffee.
10 minutes later I made the left turn into Place Reical, a beautiful palm lined open air square with a fountain and café’s lining the exterior.
I spent a total of an hour in the coin market, walking table to table and back again looking through the mixture of books of world coins, trinkets and antiques. The market is actually a coin and stamp market, coins on the left, stamps on the right. It was a windy day, tough day for the stamp dealers with all the wind.
Walking through the tables I found little of interest. Cleaned or low grade coins, a few pillars, most all with problems. I found a surprising number of US coins. One dealer had a nice original 1915-D 50c in AU50 with nice luster and color but coated in PVC and at an asking price which was prohibitive. There were a surprising number of collectors at the market, young, old, very old. My high school Spanish served me poorly. Most people just asked where I was from and then started speaking English.
So I am sorry to say that I have no newps to report other than a cool 1970's "USA" pin I bought at one of the tables, only a nice day strolling through Barcelona, taking in the food, coins, and art, and looking forward to another day tomorrow of lot viewing and site seeing before heading to another hotel to begin work for the week.
P.S. I came back to my room to find a bottle of champagne and a few chocolates. Ate the chocolates, this post would be incomprehensible if I cracked the champagne after a few San Miguels.
2
Comments
RMR: 'Wer, wenn ich schriee, hörte mich denn aus der Engel Ordnungen?'
CJ: 'No one!' [Ain't no angels in the coin biz]
Experience the World through Numismatics...it's more than you can imagine.
Latin American Collection
is amazing.
Coin's for sale/trade.
Tom Pilitowski
US Rare Coin Investments
800-624-1870
<< <i>If you have the time, and you have never been there, be sure to visit the Picasso Museum. Some of his early stuff
is amazing. >>
Thanks. Went a few years ago. Want to try and go again tomorrow.
Latin American Collection
Experience the World through Numismatics...it's more than you can imagine.
Had you woke your 3yr old and found a great coin would it'd be worth it???
Great transactions with oih82w8, JasonGaming, Moose1913.
Thanks for the report. Non-US reports are pretty rare and always appreciated.
<< <i>If you have the time, and you have never been there, be sure to visit the Picasso Museum. Some of his early stuff
is amazing. >>
Yeah, that is a great museum. As far as I'm concerned, his early, middle, and late stuff was all amazing.
Arguably the most innovative and prolific artist in history.
--------T O M---------
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RMR: 'Wer, wenn ich schriee, hörte mich denn aus der Engel Ordnungen?'
CJ: 'No one!' [Ain't no angels in the coin biz]
Post is from 2015.
Day 2 in Illinois
buried ass deep in snow