Spain Trip #7: Barcelona Bike Tour: Oldest Hospital and a Ghost!

In today's blog of our Spain trip we'll take you along on the city bike tour!  Our guide, Marit, was amazing. She's from the Netherlands and moved to Barcelona. She knew Spanish and the city amazingly well. In this first stop, we'll take you to the oldest hospital in the city, where someone famous died, and where we encountered a ghost!

WHAT IS THE HOSPITAL DE SANT PAU I DE LA SANTA CREU? It an early-16th-century building in Barcelona. It was a hospital and hospice in the past. Today, it is the home of the medical faculty and the Catalan State Library.  It is an Historic and Artistic Landmark of National Interest.

Stairway statue

WHEN BUILT? In 1401 the Council of One Hundred (Concell de Cent), the former government of Barcelona, decided to build the Hospital de la Santa Creu. It was built to bring together 6 city hospitals. Construction and reconstruction continued throughout the centuries. During the 16th and early 17th centuries, one of the four wings was demolished, two more wings were added and another court was built adjacent to the first. 

plaque stating Antoni Guadi died here

WHEN DID IT STOP BEING A HOSPITAL? By the end of the 19th century, the hospital had become outdated because of the growth of the city and advances that had been made in medicine and hygiene, so it was moved to a new site at the Hospital de Sant Pau, built between 1902 and 1930.


WHAT FAMOUS PERSON DIED HERE? A month before the hospital was closed down in 1926, Architect and Artist Antoni Gaudí died here three days after he was hit by a tram. Gaudi had gone mad before he was hit by a tram. He was brought here where he died shortly afterward. You'll learn about Gaudi as we continue with the blogs. Hint: He helped design Europe's most visited Cathedral in Barcelona (which you will see in later blogs). There is a plaque on one of the walls that states that "Antoni Gaudi died here." 

Courtyard entrance where Rob saw the ghost

ROB SENSED A GHOST! Since we both have the ability to sense Earth bound ghosts or spirits (who have crossed over), it was no surprise to me that I sensed a ghost lingering in the courtyard. It was the ghost of a man who was a former patient. He died in the hospital several hundred years ago. The man was standing near the entrance to the courtyard. He passed from a severe fever and was confused when he awoke in the afterlife. He decided to go to the courtyard where he would spend time during his hospital stay, and wound up getting stuck Earthbound as a ghost. He continues to linger in the courtyard today. 

NOW A UNESCO SITE - In 1978 the UNESCO cataloged the new campus of the Hospital de Sant Pau as a World Heritage Site due to its artistic beauty and construction singularity. 

NEXT: Raval's Lucky Cat and Superstition