Walking in the pedestrian zone of Sitges is like going on a catwalk. Dozens of pairs of eyes follow your ass with every move you make. And you can literally read their minds: Is he single? Is he gay?
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Sitges' landmark - the baroque church of "San Bartomeu i sta Tecla"
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Sitges, once a small fishing village and now one of the best known seaside resorts in this area, is situated about 40 km southwest of Barcelona. It's linked to Barcelona by frequent local trains (a 35 minutes ride, 4 times an hour) and by bus to Barcelona airport (30 minutes, once an hour). Everything here is in walking distance, including the train station and the beach. Between those points is the old city, which still retains an original style and breathes some of the fin-de-siècle atmosphere of the 19th century. It was here where the modernisme movement largely began and artists and writers like Salvador Dali, Miguel Utrillo and Santiago Rusiñol met. It was here where Dali signed and published the Manifest Groc (Yellow Manifest) with Lluís Montañyá and Sebastià Gasch.
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| Favourite spots: |
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Museu Cau Ferrat with its large collection of wrought iron
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Santiago Rusiñol, more than any other, helped to establish Sitges as a resort of artistic and cultural integrity. His house on the sea front (located right behind the church) is now the Museu Cau Ferrat. The museum mostly shows paintings and drawings from local artists and a large assembly of wrought iron objects, which Rusiñol collected during his life time.
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| What's really great: |
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Paseo de la Ribera (seafront promenade)
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Sitges has been one of Spain's most unconventional, anything-goes resorts since the 1960s. But it offers something for everyone from jet-setters to young travellers, honeymooners to families, Barcelona night owls to the international gay community. The beach is long and sandy (and crowded on weekends), it has countless restaurants and bars where the nightlife thumps until breakfast and there are lots of cool shops. If you need to brush up your wardrobe with something fancy, it's the right place for a spending spree
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| Sights: |
The baroque church of San Bartomeu i sta Tecla
The old city
On the right: A view from the seafront promenade through Calle San Pedro. The apartment in the foreground is for sale ('Venta'). 80 sqm for 297.000 Euros, a bargain in Sitges...
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| Nightlife: |
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Mont Roig Café on the "Catwalk"
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Plenty of clubs and bars on the 'catwalk'. I don't remember the street name but you cannot miss it - it's the street with the most discos and bars. Many of them are open 'till dawn. The best spots there: Cafe Mont Roig with a very interesting combination of old and new architecture (ask for fruit shakes) and Pay Pay (best longdrinks). The Parrots Club is gay only, so I cannot comment on this one.
My personal favorite is 300 meters around the corner: Cafe-Bar Roy (Calle Perellades, 9 - don't confuse it with Cafe Mont Roig above), for a Cortado (Espresso with milk) before and another one after dinner. A small and charming coffee house, less cool but absolutely unique.
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| Hangouts: |
The Bull Pub (the only Irish pub that I found), Calle San Pedro. I am not a fan of Irish beer, just mention it for the sake of completeness.
By the way: English is widely understood in hotels, restaurants and bars. No problem to order in English, but if you want to find the 'real' hot spots, you'd better have some Spanish skills, or even better: Catalan. The people here are very proud of their own language!
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| Restaurants: |
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Tou Tou - another very interesting shop that offers everything from clothing to furniture
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Many good and exclusive ones. We tried some restaurants on the seafront promenade and in the old city but always came back to La Santa Maria (Paseo de la Ribera, 52 - that's the promenade). Next to the seafront, it's perfect for lunch or dinner at reasonable prices (fish plate for two: 24 Euros). It's ALWAYS full, no matter when you come! To get a free table, wait 15 minutes while you enjoy a cupa di cava at the bar.
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| Other recommendations: |
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Xocolatl - Chocolate and tea shop
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Spain isn't especially known for it's icecream. So if you are like me, go for the really best-in-town Dino Italian Icecream only (on Paseo de la Ribera, 100 m away from La Santa Maria) and don't try anything else.
And, before I forget to mention it: Xocolatl is THE chocolate and tea shop (L'Estrella, 31). If you need a gift for the beloved left at home, don't miss it!
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Published on Saturday June 12th, 2004
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Sun, Jun 13 2004 - 03:25 AM
 by britman
| Great report - you cover everything - although Sitges does not sound like the kind of place I really want to visit! |
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