Jogging Your Memories

Want to see Barcelona and be back by breakfast? Owain Thomas warms up for a city tour with a difference. Photography by Jody Levitus.

The first time I ran across Barcelona’s La Rambla I wasn’t having much fun. Forty-five minutes away from a check-in desk that would be closing in 20 and laden like an old packhorse, I was part-sprinting, fully-sweating my way through a crush-hour tide flowing in completely the wrong direction – towards the sea.

Sure, I’d spent a highly enjoyable evening at a couple of El Raval’s liveliest bars. But when the reminder of the night before was a less-enjoyable pairing of heavy legs and a pounding headache, doing the obstacle course of mime artists, tourists and menú del día signs on the city’s legendary thoroughfare was far from entertaining.

So you can imagine that I didn’t exactly jump into my shorts and trainers when I heard about Sightjogging Barcelona – a small but energetic company proposing to take you on multi-kilometre guided runs through the most popular parts of the city. Even if the idea of taking a running commentary around the sights did immediately sound like a good way to burn off some excesses, I was simultaneously concerned about my fitness – simply thinking of that last pant across town caused a stitch. But I was intrigued, and I suspected their timetable would be a little less frantic.

Ideally suited to active city trippers and time-constrained business travellers, the majority of Sightjogging’s eight routes kick off around daybreak. This means you can wrap up a decent tour of the sights before the city fully wakes up, and still have the rest of the day to play with. They range from 8.5km–15km (60–90 minutes), and while this may measure dangerously close to a quarter-marathon on first inspection, you can – I was relieved to find out – always stop for a “historical run-down” (aka a breather) if something catches your eye.

THE RUN
Sightjogging Barcelona’s founder, qualified sports scientist Arnd Krüger, is warming up outside Café Zurich on Plaça de Catalunya when I arrive at 6am sharp. He’s chatting to photographer Jody (who’s trailing us on two wheels) about the 9km route he has in store. This bespoke tour is available to everyone and involves a brief email rally to ascertain the kind of things you might want to run into.

I am hoping to see a little bit of everything, starting at the top of a blissfully quiet La Rambla – just for old time’s sake. But you can get a bit more creative if you want. If you’re staying far from the start point they can also pick you up from your hotel. Right now, Arnd just wants me to pick up the pace.

After running almost the entire length of La Rambla, we turn left onto the palm-studded courtyard of Plaça Reial, where it strikes me we haven’t had to swerve a single thing. The florists haven’t yet constricted the flow of the sea-seeking artery with buckets of flowers, and the mime artists are obviously dreaming up the day’s show, leaving our route completely clear.

Even as Arnd evoked a bygone era when La Rambla was a vast city wall and the street to our right was a river of excrement, I was astonished at how good everything looked without the crowds. Through the stained-glass frontage of El Raval’s food market, La Boqueria, I saw stalls being readied to the far end and could almost imagine the turnout for the first opera at the magnificent Liceu theatre in 1847 as we jogged by.

After exiting a sleepy Plaça Reial, a shady square that usually heaves with people in the summer, we enter Barri Gòtic, the oldest part of the city. While starting a gentle climb up Carrer de Ferran towards Plaça de Sant Jaume, Arnd smoothly brings the commentary right up to date.

On top of being incredibly well versed in the history of Barcelona, Arnd devours contemporary novels and films associated with the city and relays his versatile knowledge fluidly as we run. For instance, he tells me that the long, straight road we’re jogging on right now was used in the film adaptation of fellow German Patrick Süskind’s best-selling novel Perfume. Protagonist Jean-Baptiste Grenouille had his first sensory overload here as it doubled as a bustling Parisian street market.

Because Barri Gòtic retains such a strong medieval essence, the film crew chose to spend a month here faithfully recreating every sight, sound and smell from the book, including apparently dumping about three tons of rotten meat and fish on nearby Plaça la Mercè as the setting for Grenouille’s unconventional market birth. I really liked the film, but I wonder if the locals looked at it in the same way after this little touch of “movie magic” during the height of summer. Before I ask where the famous orgy scene took place – Arnd later informs me it was in the Montjuïc area – I’m brought back to Barri Gòtic as we swerve to dodge a startled delivery man losing his load on the pavement up ahead.

Passing through our goal, town hall square Plaça de Sant Jaume, we hang a left and end up at the foot of Catedral de la Santa Creu i Santa Eulàlia – or “La Seu” if you’re short of breath. Which I am by now, so I ask Arnd for a “historical rundown” and why he feels this is the best way to discover the heart of Barcelona.

“It gives you a completely unique perspective. You can’t see everything in an hour, but you will see a side of the city that’s almost impossible to see when it’s busy – you get a good first impression of what Barcelona’s really like, and what it used to be like.”

I agree. Taking a slow lap around the cathedral before the hordes have descended is timeless. Aside from the hum of a motorised street cleaner trailing industriously behind us, there’s a calm that enables you to picture Antoni Gaudí wandering its geese-filled cloister when works on La Sagrada Familia were beginning to drag; or put the impact of the Civil War bomb scars in Plaça San Felipe Neri into context without standing in the way of a photo opportunity.

Refreshed by the fact my lagging fitness has been turned into an educational advantage, I’m able to find a new gear as we head through El Call towards the beach. After winding through the tight streets of this ancient Jewish quarter, suddenly Arnd hands me a miniature Picasso. Apparently the artist was so inspired by the “young ladies” of this street, Carrer d’Aviyó, he immortalised them in Les Demoiselles d’Avignon.

By this point, I’m in need of the fresh sea air. My head is spinning with dates, names, sex and the city, and it’s not even breakfast yet. It’s been enlightening and invigorating, but I’m physically relieved when the cramped back streets of El Call give way to a bright sea view and the last leg of our run.

All that said, as we start to pound our way steadily to the beach, and I secretly wonder if Arnd’s feet will rust if we get too close to the water, I seriously wonder if there is any better way to see the sights.

Hit the sights running
WHAT: Sightjogging is fun and informative, and not a test of personal endurance – but be prepared to run for at least an hour in total. Guides will always stop if you need a breather/history lesson. Wear good running shoes, as most of the terrain will be concrete, cobbles or paving stones.
WHERE: Most of the eight routes start from Plaça de Catalunya with some starting at the foot of Barcelona’s mini mountain, Montjuïc. Pick from Old Town meets Mediterranean, Gothic to Gaudí, or Montjuic by Night, among others.
WHEN: In summer, the majority of Sightjogs begin at daybreak with just one route beginning at sunset. The reason for this – to avoid the sun and hot-headed commuters.
HOW MUCH: Prices start from €70 for an individual one-hour run, getting cheaper per person with additional runners. Maximum four people to a group.
HOW: You can book a guide by email up until 4pm the day before, or later by phone.
TEL: +34 620 469 391, RUN@SIGHTJOGGING-BARCELONA.COM, WWW.SIGHTJOGGING- BARCELONA.COM