Barcelona (Spain)

Barcelona is the capital city of the autonomous community of Catalonia in the Kingdom of Spain. Barcelona is located on the northeast coast of the Iberian Peninsula, facing the Mediterranean Sea, on a plain approximately 5 km wide limited by the mountain range of Collserola, the Llobregat river to the southwest and the Besòs river to the north. Barcelona is one of the world's leading tourist, economic, trade fair and cultural centers, and its influence in commerce, education, entertainment, media, fashion, science, and the arts all contribute to its status as one of the world's major global cities. The Barri Gòtic is the center of the old city of Barcelona. Many of the buildings date from medieval times, some from as far back as the Roman settlement of Barcelona. Catalan modernista architecture, developed between 1885 and 1950 and left an important legacy in Barcelona. The Basílica i Temple Expiatori de la Sagrada Família is a large Roman Catholic church in Barcelona, designed by Spanish architect Antoni Gaudí (1852–1926). Barcelona has a great number of museums, which cover different areas and eras. Barcelona contains sixty-eight municipal parks, of which twelve are historic parks, five are thematic (botanical) parks, forty-five are urban parks and six are forest parks. Barcelona beach was listed as number one in a list of the top ten city beaches in the world according to National Geographic and Discovery Channel. Barcelona has a long sporting tradition and hosted the highly successful 1992 Summer Olympics as well as several matches during the 1982 FIFA World Cup. FC Barcelona is a sports club best known worldwide for its football team, one of the largest in the world and second richest football club in the world.