My overseas assignment for The D&O Diary continued this week with a stop in the Catalan city of Barcelona, nestled between the mountains and the sea in coastal Spain. I was very happy to be back in Barcelona again, because I know from prior experience that the city’s combination of great weather, splendid setting, excellent food, and architectural richness is pretty hard to beat.

The primary purpose of my most recent visit to Barcelona was to participate in a roundtable with the international Financial Lines underwriting team at Tokio Marine HCC’s Barcelona office. It was an enjoyable afternoon session, enhanced by the conference room’s view of the Mediterranean Sea. In addition to the 25 or so who attended the session live in the conference room, another 25 or so attended remotely. It was an interesting session and I enjoyed the opportunity to interact with the TMHCC Financial Lines professionals. My thanks to everyone who attended, whether in person or virtually; to Sebastian Gemberg-Wiesike, for organizing the session; and to Pim van der Drift, for inviting me to attend. (Pim was not able to attend the event but his initiative made it happen.)

Here’s a picture of the live audience at the Tokio Marine HCC event. It was an enjoyable, interactive session, with even the people attending virtually joining in for the exchange of ideas. One feature of the room where the session was held is that it afforded a view of the sea, from the room’s rear window. It would be pretty hard to beat the Tokio Marine HCC Barcelona office’s location, literally right on the Mediterranean beach.

An informal gathering at the Toko Marine HCC offices after the educational event. I enjoyed the chance to meet and talk with many of the financial lines professionals who attended the event live.

A picture taken after the event in the Tokio Marine HCC offices with Sebastian Gemberg-Wiesike. Sebastian was such a good host for me while I was in Barcelona. I am grateful to Sebastian for all of his help.
With Eduard Blanxart Raventós. Eduard not only attended the event at the Tokio Marine HCC Barcelona office, but he also attended the event in which I participated in Madrid the preceding week.
Out for an evening dinner at Casa Amàlia, near my hotel in the Eixample neighborhood in Barcelona. It was a thoroughly enjoyable meal and I am grateful to my dinner companions from TMHCC for taking time out of their evening to dine with me. From left to right: Sandra da Silva; me; Sebastian; and Guy Everingham, who was in Barcelona on business from the TMHCC London office.

While I had scheduled business meetings during my time in Barcelona, I also had a chance to look around a little bit while I was in town. The high point of my city touring was on Sunday when I walked from my hotel to Park Güell and then on to the famous Barcelona basilica, La Sagrada Familia. It was a great day, although in coming up with the plan to walk to the sites, I had overlooked the fact that the park is essentially straight uphill from my hotel, and I had also overlooked the fact that the temperature, a comfortable 76 degrees when I set out, was well into the mid-80s by the time I reached the park.

Park Güell is famous for its hillside views of the sea, as well as for the architectural designs of the Catalan architect, Antoni Gaudí. It was well worth the effort to reach the park, though the experience was somewhat diminished by the crowds of people in the park. The feeling that Barcelona in general is being spoiled by its own success as a tourist destination proved to be a recurring experience during my visit. Even with the crowds, though, it was great to see the park and Gaudí’s fabulous designs again.
This is Gaudí’s famous mosaic dragon (or lizard) on the dragon staircase at the Park Guell. I would have preferred to get a little more perspective on the dragon for picture-taking purposes, but the crowd around the sculpture was close to impenetrable.
From the park, I walked on to La Sagrada Familia, Gaudi’s famous sculptural church. I know from prior visits that the interior of the church may be more interesting than the famous exterior, but this time I was simply unable to get tickets. Here’s a pro tip for anybody planning a visit to Barcelona any time soon — start early to try to get advance tickets. I tried to get tickets a month in advance and none were available. It was still great to see the church’s beautiful exterior.
On a separate morning while I was in Barcelona, I made it to the top of Montjuïc, the prominent hill overlooking both the port and the city center of Barcelona. At the top of the hill is Castell de Montjuïc, which affords great views of both the city and of the port area.
The view of seaside area of Barcelona viewed from Montjuïc.
Just to complete the picture, here’s the view back toward Montjuïc from one of Barcelona’s beautiful beaches. (That’s Montjuïc in the upper right hand corner of the picture.)
One of Barcelona’s other most famous features is the Rambla de Catalunya, a tree-lined pedestrianized boulevard, located in the Eixample neighborhood. It is another one of Barcelona’s sites that is a spoiled by the tourist crowds. Also, the strech of the boulevard downhill from the Plaça de Catalunya (the portion of the street known as La Rambla) is also now under construction. However, the stretch of the Rambla de Catalunya uphill from the Plaça de Catalunya is less crowded, not currently under construction, and considerably more pleasant.
The famous Rambla de Catalunya attracts the tourist crowds, but there is an alternative that is not as touristy and even more pleasant. The Rambla del Poblenou, in the Poblenou district, lacks the more famous boulevard’s tourist crowds. Instead, the people strolling along the boulevard in the evening are locals, out seeing their friends. Not as crowded and a better vibe.
Barcelona is in any event a city that rewards just walking around. On my arrival day, I was just killing time until my hotel room was ready and I came upon Casa Milà, popularly known as La Pedrera, another one of Gaudi’s architectural treasures. The building is known for its undulating facade and its twisting wroght-iron balconies.
Also located near my hotel was the block-long series of modernist buildings known locally as the Block of Discord. The row of radically different buildings designed by competing master architects (including one by Gaudi, among others). The block’s name is drawn from the fact that the buildings’ styles clash with each other, as well as the surrounding buildings.
In the city’s Old Town, known as the Barri Gòtic, there is this very agreeable square, the Plaça Reial, with its bright facades and palm trees, a pleasant place for an afternoon beverage on a sunny afternoon.

My visit to Barcelona was all too short. Barcelona is a city that rewards exploration and roaming. So many things to see and to discover. The city deserves more time. I have to go back.