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Barcelona Visit 2025 Day 2

Our second day in Barcelona ended up being focused on animals and the water.
Five people, one man, two women, and two children, stand by a shark statue in front of a aquarium background at L'Aquàrium Barcelona.

Our second day in Barcelona ended up being focused on animals and the water.

We started the day by heading down Rambla de Mar toward L’Aquàrium Barcelona.

The Mirador de Colom monument, with a statue of Christopher Columbus atop a pillar in the centre of a roundabout.

We passed Mirador de Colom, and it was jarring to see a monument to Christopher Columbus. He has rightly become a reviled figure in the Americas, so seeing him on a literal pedestal felt wrong.

The white statue Miraestels by Robert Llimós stands in the water with a Barcelona shoreline in the background. It depicts a man staring skyward.
The white statue Miraestels by Robert Llimós stands distantly in the water with a Barcelona shoreline in the background. It depicts a man staring skyward.

Along the walkway we could see the statues Miraestels by Robert Llimós. The white statues of people staring skyward were striking.

Coral in an aquarium with fish swimming past.
Coral in an aquarium with fish swimming past.
Coral can be seen in an aquarium tank.
Fish cluster around aquarium coral.
A shark swims in an aquarium with other fish swimming nearby.
A pink axolotl sits on rocks in an aquarium tank.

The aquarium was impressive. It’s a well-maintained, engaging, and fascinating place. Celestine loved seeing all the fish and other sea life, and the axolotl was a highlight for her.

A child's hand holds a bottle of fish food and feeds koi.

One of the surprising attractions was feeding koi. Celestine was entranced by being able to feed many koi from a bottle of liquid food.

A man puts his arm around a child in front of an aquarium tank holding many fish.
A woman looks at the viewer in front of an aquarium tank teeming with fish. Other people can be seen beyond.
A child in a blue dress sits atop a large turtle statue.
A child in a blue dress sits on a large frog statue.

We had a wonderful time throughout our time at the aquarium and there was enough to experience that we could have stayed twice as long if we didn’t have other places to take in.

Two zebras stand with their heads at the ground near a box in an area with bare ground.
Flamingos stand in a pond. Behind them a large building can be seen in the distance.
A capybara is submerged in a small stepped pool.
A statue of a woman, a child, and a calf.
A ring-tailed lemur looks to the left with wide eyes in a zoo enclosure.
A ring-tailed lemur looks at the ground in a zoo enclosure.

Our next stop was Parc de la Ciutadella and Zoo Barcelona. We enjoyed our time at the zoo. It was a hot day so a lot of the larger animals were in indoor enclosures, but Celestine was excited to see a capybara, zebras, flamingos, and many insects in a dedicated building for them.

Celestine had a great time playing at a playground near the centre of the zoo.

After the zoo we explored the rest of the park. There are some stunning monuments, impressive architecture, beautiful water features, and wildlife.

Gaudi’s Fountain in Parc Ciutadella Barcelona. A griffin and stepped waterfalls can be seen in the foreground. A golden chariot can be seen at the top, and other statues are on the structure below.
Gaudi’s Fountain in Parc Ciutadella Barcelona. A water feature can be seen in the foreground, griffins behind that, and a large structure with stairs can be seen in the background.
Castell dels Tres Dragons, a castle-like square building in Parc de la Ciutadella.
A duck swims in a pond with green water.
A turtle swims in a pond with green water.
Two women and two children stand by a large mammoth statue.
The monument Tribute to the Universal Exhibition of 1888 in Parc de la Ciutadella, with large wheels, a collage-like metal canvas sculpture, and a moat around it.
A mural at Ant Hostel depicting halves of four people's faces in four panels.

Celestine was thrilled to be able to feed parakeets from her hands while in the park. The look of joy on her face as she held the birds was a highlight of our entire trip.

A child in a flowery dress holds out her arms while two parakeets eat sunflower seeds from her hands.

Next we stopped at the nearby Arc de Triomf, where other statues and monuments are displayed.

A monument featuring an angel, two children, and two other figures facing away from the viewer.
A statue of a knight holding a sword seen from below and to the left.
A statue of a knight holding a sword in front of a lightly clouded sky.
A statue of a gargoyle seen in front of a city street.

We headed back to the waterfront, where we did a boat tour to finish our day’s adventures.

An art installation can be seen along a dock. Sideroploide, to the men of the sea, a metal, abstract sculpture, can be seen from a boat.
A tugboat is docked while in the background a tower and gondolas can be seen.
A child and a woman look out from a boat at Rambla Del Mar

As we arrived back at the dock we could see Miraestels by Robert Llimós again, this time from behind.

The sculpture Miraestels by Robert Llimós seen from behind, with a red star on the person's hands. Rambla de Mar can be seen beyond the statue.
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