Catalan Railway Museum and a walk along the prom

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From Sitges we took a small drive down the coast to the town of Vilanova i la Geltru. We had expected to find an industrial town with little to see except the Catalan Railway Museum, the reason for our visit. How wrong we were and we ended up spending most of the day exploring a delightful seaside town.

First though, the museum. Walking through the entrance we were initially a little disappointed. It seemed small and poorly lit, but as we ventured deeper in we were soon very happy with our decision to go there. Kids are well catered for with some interactive displays, movie theatres showing train films, and train cartoons on big TVs. The main attraction wasn't inside the museum but outside in the old engineering yard. Inside the tower you can see an interesting timeline about the history of the railways in Spain, then out in the yard there is the biggest collection of steam trains, plus diesel and electric trains, that we have ever seen. One notable train was missing though, and it was one of the main reasons we visited. "La Mataró" was the first train in Spain and it ran between Barcelona and Mataró way back in 1848. It is away for maintenance at the moment.

Close to the museum is the pretty Biblioteca Victor Balaguer with its interesting facades and a curious statue of a pope looking up to the heavens. A stroll down the pedestrianised Rambla took us down to the sea front where we had a good wander along the promenade. You can always rely on the Spanish to build a nice prom along the seafront. For those who haven't yet had enough of trains in the museum, there is a small model railway to enjoy.

Along the seafront we took a detour out to sea on a boardwalk to get a closer view of Oscar Estruga's intriguing statue. It is a giant bull which has been hollowed out and a woman seems to be trying to escape from it entrails. You have to see it to believe it! Unfortunately (for us) it is a popular spot for families to sit around while the kids play on the statue which has a pretty negative effect on photos!

After our walk we were a little peckish so we sat outside The Dry Law for a beer and some patatas bravas which were on special offer. It felt somewhat ironic to be drinking beer from a bar full of pictures of The Prohibition! It was also the quietest of all the seafront bars and restaurants, perhaps because they didn't have a menu del dia but it suited us fine.

If you have enjoyed these photos you can see more from this trip at Flickr .

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