Ramblings from La Rambla

Is Spain the new Italy?

I think it may be. I am finishing up a 10-day cruise out of Barcelona, ending in Lisbon, where I will try to answer a rather fascinating question: Why has tiny Portugal become the second-largest retirement destination for Americans after Mexico? (Do Americans over the age of 65 really like anchovies that much?)

This is actually the first of two Turen family vacations this year. We boarded our ship in Barcelona for some downtime and restful bliss as we prepared to explore the southern Mediterranean. We were, as is our habit, accompanied by 58 clients.

In case you have not been paying attention, a small anomaly is associated with tourism in Spain. After France, Spain now hosts more tourists than any other country. I suspect that has something to do with the fact that, to American ears, any village in France sounds sexier than a similarly beautiful village in rural Spain.

I found Spain unique from a great many perspectives, but the stereotype that requires immediate debunking concerns the matter of cuisine. Spain has an obsession with food and regionality that equates to always fresh everything no matter where you order it. Spain is a foodie destination, but some would say that it is now the foodie destination.

One of my favorite travel writers, a chef named Bourdain, described it this way on his CNN series, “Parts Unknown”:

“Any reasonable sentient person who looks at Spain, comes to Spain, eats in Spain, drinks in Spain — they’re going to fall in love. Otherwise, there’s something deeply wrong with you.”

The food thing is a bit odd, but you have to start with the fact that Spain has the fourth-longest life expectancy in the world and the highest in Europe. They must be doing something right when it comes to diet.

It is sometimes hard for an American to get past the front door in a Barcelona restaurant populated by locals. Spanish people have a weird little custom of leaving their napkins, toothpicks and food wrappings on the floor near their seats to demonstrate just how very much they enjoyed the experience. So if you are walking the back streets of the Gothic District, you may want to seek out the bistro with the most accumulated trash on the floor. Gordon Ramsay might not like it, but what does he know of Spanish haute cuisine?

Barcelona is, along with perennial winner Venice, among the leaders of the anti-tourism European cities. If you brave the shoulder-to-shoulder crowds along La Rambla you will pass El Liceu, a stately opera house with expletive-filled graffiti scrawled across its walls urging tourists to “Go Home.”

Barcelona’s far-left mayor was seeking a third term just before my arrival. She tried to restrict cruise ship arrivals and forbid most ships from using the berths at the end of La Rambla, forcing them to dock about 45 minutes out of the center city. But she also favored converting hotels to social housing. She did not win re-election, and our ship berthed at the foot of the intensely crowded city center.

Barcelona is Spain’s second-largest city, with 1.6 million residents. It expects to host an estimated 32 million visitors this summer. You don’t need to be an urban planner to see the problem.

As the concierge at the Hotel Majestic advises guests: “Always walk in the opposite directions of the tourist crowds. You will discover an incredible series of colorful neighborhoods and, if you’re lucky, some excellent small restaurants with empty seats.”