BARCELONA: PEDRALBES MONASTERY

One sunny sunday afternoon (free admission from 3pm) of this early spring we decided to visit again the Monestir de Pedralbes. The environment of this monastery, located in a well-off area of Barcelona, is really peaceful. This gothic monastery, one of the finest examples of Catalan Gothic architecture, is well preserved and its cloister is really large and beautiful.

The monastery of Pedralbes was originally surrounded by a wall. However only two towers and two gates that gave access to the monastery are preserved.

On the left the apse of the church of Pedralbes Monastery and its bell tower appear and, on the right, a building belonging to the Conventet 

This street, called Baixada del Monestir, belonged to Pedralbes Monastery, so this door was its former entrance

The bell tower of the Pedralbes Monastery from its main entrance

A closer view of the Monastery of Pedralbes from one of its former gates

Baixada del Monestir street in Barcelona

Gothic window, buttress and the top of the bell tower of the church of the Pedralbes Monastery

Pedralbes Monastery Church

Bell Tower of the gothic church of Pedralbes Monastery from Plaça del Monestir (Monestir Square)

Bell tower and doorway of the church of the Monastery of Pedralbes

Main entrance to the church of Pedralbes Monastery, where you can see the gothic archivolts

Inside the gothic church of Pedralbes Monastery

Stained glass window inside the gothic church of Pedralbes Monastery

Pedralbes Monastery Cloister

This cloister of Pedralbes Monastery has three floors. I haven't ever seen this kind of cloister with so many floors

 Inside the cloister of Pedralbes Monastery in Barcelona

 Gothic cloister and bell tower of Pedralbes Monastery

  Orange trees inside the cloister of Pedralbes Monastery

A closer picture of the gothic cloister of Pedralbes Monastery with its gothic archs in the foreground

This cloister of Pedralbes Monastery surprises me because of its hugeness. It's bigger than the other cloisters I had visited before

In Baixada del Monestir Street there are the buildings that belonged to the walled monastery, like the Conventet. 

Baixada del Monestir Street in Barcelona. The Monastery of Pedralbes is on the left and the Conventet on the right

Conventet de Pedralbes

In the corner of Baixada del Monestir Street and the Monastery square is the building known as the Conventet, which currently remains outside the monastery.

Romanesque door to the garden of willows in Conventet of Pedralbes in Barcelona

It was built in 1329 to accommodate the community of friars who took care of the spiritual care of the nuns of the monastery. It is a simple building with a small cloister, which is the only original element preserved.

The Romanesque elements of El Conventet (windows, doors and the upper gallery) come from the collegiate of Sta. Maria de Besalú in Girona

It was reformed in 1919 by the architect Enric Sagnier incorporating elements from the former Romanesque church of Santa Maria de Besalú. Nowadays the Conventet is a private property, belonging to Gòdia family.

In the Conventet in Pedralbes, the architect Enric Sagnier adapted some old constructions next to the Pedralbes monastery

Besides Saugnier enhanced the modest facade with items brought from a great Romanesque building, the collegiate church of Santa Maria in Besalú (Girona)

Another view of the romanesque elements (upper gallery, windows and doorway) of The Conventet of Pedralbes

Conventet of Pedralbes in Baixada del Monestir Street

Some of the houses downhill from the monastery, facing the Conventet between the entrance and the lower gate of the wall, were a bakery or a butcher

Plaça del Monestir de Pedralbes

Courtyard of a house next to Plaça del Monestir de Pedralbes

Nice corner beside Plaça del Monestir in Pedralbes

Montserrat Abbey is another interesting visit to do near Barcelona (it's located 60 km away from Barcelona), especially if you like religious buildings. I also recommend visiting other beautiful monasteries in Catalunya, like:

• Poblet Monastery
• Santes Creus Monastery
• Vallbona de les Monges Monastery
• Montserrat Abbey
• Sant Joan de les Abadesses Monastery
• Santa Maria de Ripoll Monastery
• Sant Pere de Rodes Monastery
• Sant Cugat Monastery

Besides if you like gothic architecture, you would be interested in visiting the following religious buildings in Barcelona:

• Santa Maria del Mar church
• Barcelona Cathedral
• Santa Maria del Pi church
• Santa Anna church
• Sant Just i Pastor church
• Sant Pere de les Puelles church

- Useful information:

• Address: Baixada del Monestir, 9 (08034 Barcelona)
• How to get there: Metro L6 - Reina Elisenda Stop. Bus 22, 63, 64, 75 and 78 and Barcelona Bus Turístic, Blue Route, stop Monestir de Pedralbes.
• Web site: http://monestirpedralbes.bcn.cat/

- Opening time:

• From 1st October to 31th March: Tuesday to Friday, from 10am to 2pm. Saturday to Sunday from 10am to 5pm.
• From 1st April to 30th September: Tuesday to Friday, from 10am to 5pm. Saturday from 10am to 7pm. Sunday from 10am to 8pm
• January 1st, May 1st, Good Friday, June 24th and December 25th closed.

- Clicking on the next link, a Pedralbes Monastery location map.

Finally, clicking on the next link you will find links to more beautiful and interesting places of Barcelona, among them, the Gothic Quarter.

BARCELONA: PEDRALBES GARDENS AND PALACE

Revealing both English and French influences, romantic bridges and verdant green areas, a walk along the gardens of the Pedralbes Royal Palace,  one of the most beautiful parks and gardens in Barcelona,  will transport you to a time when serenity and majesty were determining elements of the landscape.

When you pass through the magnificent forged-iron entry door, a large space will welcome you. There is an elegant oval pond in the middle with the sculpture of a woman in its centre. In front, flower beds and, behind, a slight slope covered with grass and well-tended bay trees and orange trees, replete with a small waterfall.

The pond at the Pedralbes gardens entry is presided over by a marble female nude

There are crushed rock footpaths on both sides of the pond, which are interwoven throughout the entire park so that you can get lost and meander along them. It doesn't matter if you select the left-hand path or the right-hand one, they will lead you to a central passage where the lime trees play a leading role. This is a shady space, like the areas flanked by benches on both sides of the path, with dense and exuberant vegetation.

If you continue up the path, the shady lanes will take you to the Royal Palace, located at the back of the park. The path opens up onto a semicircular square in front of the palace, surrounded on both sides by a large balustrade decorated with busts sculpted from white marble. Since the railing is located under the shade of the trees, this is a perfect place to sit for a moment and gaze upon the building

The semicircular square is sunny and presided over by a white marble sculpture of Isabel II holding her son Alfons XII in her arms and a pond in the middle surrounded by flowerpots filled with geraniums

The palace is the fruit of the modification of the Güell tower to become the residence of the royal family. The ancient tower comprises the central body of the building and new rooms were built to both sides of it

The balustrade in front of the building is decorated with white marble busts

There are many unique elements throughout the park, which you will discover as you walk along the crushed stone footpaths that cross the park in all directions, always surrounded by splendid vegetation, sometimes wooded, always shady and fresh, with birdsong filling the air

Your meandering will take you to two works by Antoni Gaudí: a parabolic pérgola covered with climbing plants -indeed, a shade-filled paradise- and, in a small corner, the fountain of Hercules, with the water bubbling up from a forged-iron dragon's head

In the small bamboo forest, there is a fountain of Hercules created from wrought iron and stone. The work is by Antoni Gaudí (1884). The dragon head is a spout from which the water bubbles and under is a stone spout with four bars on its front. There is a bench carved from stone on both sides and a marble bust on the pedestal from which the dragon head emerges

Another nice image of the Pedralbes gardens in Barcelona

Flags near in Avinguda Diagonal near the main entrace of El Palau de Pedralbes

Of course, you can visit more fantastic parks in Barcelona like:

• Laberint d'Horta Park
• Park Güell
• Ciutadella Park
• Montjuïc - Joan Maragall Gardens
• Montjuïc - Mossèn Cinto Verdaguer Gardens
• Montjuïc - Mirador Gardens
• Montjuïc - Mirador del Migdia Park
• Joan Miró Park
• Cervantes Park and Rose Garden
• Castell de l'Oreneta Park
• Collserola - Sant Pere Màrtir leisure area
• Collserola - Carretera de les Aigües
• Collserola - Pantà de Vallvidrera
• Torreblanca Park in Sant Feliu de Llobregat
• Can Vidalet Park in Esplugues de Llobregat
• Can Mercader Park in Cornellà de Llobregat

Finally, clicking on the next link you will find links to other beautiful places in Barcelona, among them, more nice places in Pedralbes like the Pedralbes Monastery or La Finca Güell and more beautiful parks and gardens in Barcelona.