Barcelona - Casa Fuster

One of my many reasons to fall in love with the magical Barcelona is because of Casa Fuster. But I like Casa Fuster not because Woody Allen stayed here while filming Vicki Christina Barcelona or plays the old Dixieland tune with his clarinet in the stylish and elegant Jazz lounge.

This incredibly beautiful and charming hotel is in the city center on Passeig de Gràcia, is the work of a remarkable modernist architect, Lluís Domènech i Montaner (1849-1923), he also designed the famous Palau de la Musica Catalan. Hospital de Sant Pau and a mail box of Casa de l'Ardiaca.  

 It was a pleasure to be able to look around Casa Fuster for her restoration, it is a cross over between the new and old, like a conservation with the past. Talking about the past, the history of this hotel also has an interest story: A gentleman name Mariano Fuster ,a wealthy man from Mallorcan high society, fell in love with Barcelona, also fell in love with the daughter of a Barcelona marquis. After they got married, Fuster wants to build a house, not only to her but also dedicated to Barcelona. The house became the city's most expensive house because of the quality of the materials used.

Between 40’s to the 50’s Casa Fuster ‘s lobby banquet hall was a popular  meeting place for the rich and famous. Around the mid 50’s Fuster’s business failed , he had to give up his business and the building and on his deathbed he said he was sorry to his family but he wasn’t sorry to Barcelona because of the building. 

In 1962 the electric company bought the building and was going to demolish it to build a skyscraper, but the whole city rejected this so the electric company had to give up the idea and back down, in 2005 this building became the Hotel Casa Fuster.

In now a days. there are many modern hotels around the world. Sure they all look good and comfortable to stay but one thing they are lacking is a story. Many people said, usually there will be a ghost in an old building because they don’t want to leave.
I have not see Fuster’s Ghost but I am sure he must be somewhere here , listen to Woody Allen playing and slipping a glass of Cava, and think to himself, I am not sorry Barcelona and I will never leave this beautiful house because it is Casa Fuster.

Life is short, hotel like this might not exist for long, I hope someday you can spend sometime here to be part of the romantic history and you might meet someone here  and never want to leave, after all we all have our own Casa to build for love.