The shark was cruising half a metre or so above me and for a moment we came eye to eye. Or so it seemed to me. In fact it was displaying no interest either in me or the hundreds of other fish swimming close to it and its two fellow sharks following behind. Soon it was just a bluish shadow in the distance. I looked at the conveyor belt scratching its way beneath me and at the two little girls a short way away. Their eyes shone with delight and excitement. I suppose my wife and I were in the same state. This was Aquarium, said to be the largest marine zoo in Europe. We were passing along a transparent corridor inside a gigantic pool filled with a thousand and one types of fish and marine life. It had been worth coming so far just to see this, and Barcelona still had much more to offer.This was our first visit to Spain, but we did not want to watch bull fighting or listen to flamenco music, which was why we chose Barcelona rather than Madrid.

This city did not fit our preconceived ideas about Spain. Instead it rather resembled one of the modern cities of northern Europe, with the advantage of superb sea, palm trees and the mild climate we were familiar with.I had first made the acquaintance of La Sagrada Familia, virtual symbol of the city, not from a serious book on architecture or a documentary on Spain, but from the Alan Parsons Project’s Gaudi album. And a few words heard on a radio programme had stayed in my mind. Now the building was before me in all its magnificence, quite unlike any of the other classical Gothic cathedrals in Europe. It was more like a gigantic castle made of sand by a gifted wizard. But to call Gaudi a wizard was less than he deserved. He had created an incredible work of art. We walked around it and got into the lift which goes up one of the towers on the southwest façade. There was a small click and all of Barcelona began to slide into view beneath us. When we got out we climbed the flight of stairs, rubbing shoulders with tourists of all kinds, and reached a little platform. The view was spectacular, and right beside us were other towers covered with sugar candy designs.When it was time to descend we gave way to a childish sense of discovery and eschewing the lift plunged down the dark stairway. Suddenly we were alone on the famous staircase resembling the inside of a screw shell.

We began to get the same pleasure from Gaudi’s other buildings as we had from the cathedral. Casa Batlo resembled not so much an apartment building as a haunted castle made from gigantic old bones with a dragon living on the roof. The balconies were like the iron mask in the Phantom of the Opera.

Casa Mila was equally fascinating but far more charming. We had intended to go around the building, but discovered that there was an art exhibition on the ground floor. What we saw on entering was a huge collection of Dürer’s famous engravings. It was like winning a lottery without even buying a ticket. From there we headed for Parc Güell. We had our photographs taken with the monsters adorned with colourful ceramics - more sugar candy associations. We looked at the park and its buildings, and drank in the sight of sunset over Barcelona. We were delighted to see that the man who had imagined these a century ago continued to give pleasure to people.

Apart from Gaudi’s extraordinary creations there were also other very beautiful buildings. And we liked the streets for their grid arrangement which made it simple to find our way without getting lost, and their spacious breadth which made walking a pleasure. But even these streets had to have a king among them, as we saw when we emerged onto La Rambla. Imagine two separate asphalt roads carrying traffic in opposite directions, and a milling crowd of people who had been drawn here to watch others selling skills of every kind. There were live statues which stood without moving for hours, only winking thanks when someone threw money into the bowls at their feet, street artists, musicians, strong men who broke chains, and innumerable others. We walked up and down La Rambla on both sides time after time.

We travelled to the hilltop of Montjuic, situated roughly at the southernmost tip of the city, by funicular railway. As we walked towards the Olympic stadium we found ourselves outside the foundation of Joan Miro, symbol of modernism. Here we found many paintings which had seemed like ghosts glued to the pages of art history books in vivid reality before us. The excitement of the paintings themselves and seeing them in the flesh so to speak was overwhelming.

We were not able to display the same courage food wise as we had with the city’s works of art. We looked with interest mingled with dismay at the paella containing every imaginable sort of seafood, and moved on. Moreover, when we calculated the cost in Turkish lira the prices were alarming. Finally, near La Rambla, we found a restaurant whose menu suited us, but it did not open until 8.30 in the evening. When we arrived at around 9.00 there was a 50 metre queue outside the door. So instead we ate ‘tapas’ in a chic cafeteria, and that was really the most logical solution. Tapas are small slices of bread with mayonnaise, cheese, smoked fish or meat, and you can order them one at a time until you are full. After a large bottle of red wine and so many tapas that you would be astonished at the number, we found all the colours warmer in tone and the Catalan language began to sound far more melodic to our ears.

In my view the essential characteristic of Barcelona is neither its position on the coast, nor its scores of wonderful museums, nor its well designed city plan. All these can be found in lesser or greater measure elsewhere in Europe. Instead Barcelona is distinguished by being a smiling city. In no other European city can you feel so at home and smile so much.

* By Haldun Aydıngün
* Haldun Aydıngün is a photographer.