Fourth Field Trip- Rambla del Raval

For our fourth and final field in my Barcelona City class, Xavi had us go to the Raval area of Barcelona and we toured many of the streets. He explained to us that as recently as 15 years ago, this area was a kind of ghetto- run down and dangerous. But very recently, the Barcelona city council decided to renew the area and turn it into a nice place for all types of people. The area was basically set up into two different types of renewal, public and private. Huge structures, such as the Contemporary Art Museum, were provided by the government in order to attract more young people to the area and to sway the negative aspects of the area. On a personal note, I found the Contemporary Art Museum to be very interesting because it is an extremely modern looking structure built next to 17th century churches; the contrast is very apparent and visually stimulating. We continued our tour of the area by walking down various streets. Another example of public renewal were the pristine streets that have garbage systems that lay underground, out of the eye of the public. Xavi also told us that the government outlawed personal cars in the area, so it is a safe place for families with children. As we walked down the streets, it was easy to tell that the public waste system was working because the streets were perfectly pristine. As we neared the end of the tour, we came to Rambla del Raval, which Xavi said was one of the most run down places in Barcelona 15 years ago. Before the renewal, large amounts of drugs and violence were prevalent in this area. But today, the area is very nice and filled with 5-star hotels and nice restaurants. Xavi told us that this area was renewed by private companies, as opposed to the public works at the beginning of the field trip. As Xavi pointed out, although private works can be good for making large sums of money, they can turn locals away from the area. There is a delicate balance between achieving a profit and making a beneficial environment for the overall community. As a side note, at the end of the tour, Xavi bought me a cup of coffee.