Arizona Republic from Phoenix, Arizona • Page 89

T( SUNDAY, Jl 21. 2002 Tub Arizona Rkpi'dmc TIIAVKL fith charges about $10 to draw portraits. Colorful fruit and vegetables nearly spill out of I Ho- Barcelona magic Any time could be a good time to visit Biiicelona, with everthaiiging cultur.il events like loc.il liestns and tins year's "Year ol Gaudi," celebrating the 150th birthday of the tamed Catalan architect, Catalonia's capital thrives on all things contemporary BARCELONA fromTl The Picasso Museum, in the Ribera district, is a dark, damp-feeling building that was once a medieval palace. Though its collection of cassos isn't the best, the temporary exhibits usually are worth seeing. The National Museum of Catalan Art, which houses a rather mundane collection of Catalan Romanesque and Gothic art, has a prominent spot in the National Palace on a hill overlooking fountains, the lower part of the city and the sea.

But Barcelona's real love affair is with everything contemporary, and more than half of the city's museums are dedicated to piodern art. The Joan Miro Foundation shows the surrealist's works in an airy white building on Montjuic, a small mountain on the edge of the city. Tem- Sec BARCELONA Page T7 Catalan Music), the Modernist work by IJuis Domenech i Montaner that glitters with glasswork and mosaics. The mostly drab streets surrounding the Palau once housed textile factories, but inside the concert hall, fantasy takes over. A huge stained-glass dome lets in natural light; statues of musicians playing violins literally emerge from the tiled wall behind the stage.

I'd trip over museums and galleries proving that art is alive and well in this cosmopolitan city. The street artists on Las Ramblas could have been inspired by one-time denizens Pablo Picasso, Salvador Dali, Joan Miro or An-toni Gaudi. For its relatively small size (about 1.5 million people), Barcelona has an impressive cultural agenda, featuring everything from high art to contemporary. and ready to embrace whatever is new. I have made it my mission to prove this "allegory" theory.

Ramblas is an icon of Barcelona, the one must-see thing for each of the 3 million tourists who pass through this port city each year. But does everything represented on it exist in the real Barcelona? The artists and musicians are easy. That guitar player I mentioned was sitting just in front of El Gran Teatre del Liceu, the emblematic'opera house that burned in 1994 and was reopened in all its ornate glory a couple of years ago. I wouldn't have to go far from Las Ramblas before finding L'Auditori, the Barcelona Symphony Orchestra's modern, acoustically correct home, and the Palau de la Musica Catalana (Palace of queria, Barcelona's original fresh market. I wander inside to peek at the novelties: a goal's head, pig's ears and hooves, fish, whose names I've never heard of, dying on ice shavings.

Hack on the main drag, stands offering dyed blue roses, kumquat trees, mice and parrots dot the concrete, sharing space with outdoor cafes and kiosks that sell hot-off -the-press local papers in the wee hours of the morning. Las Ramhlas is a perfect allegory for the capital of Catalonia itself full of energy and movement, commerce and culture. Barcelona is not the Spain of bullfights and flamenco; for that, head south to Andalusia. Barcelona is a working city, busy Bayol Biscay tHANlt SPAIN Meditetunean Sea Jo Anne The Anona Republic the sea, an artist showing off charcoal drawings of Penelope Cruz and Melanie Grif Barcelona Madrid yf head to earn a few coins. Across the way, a one-legged man sits beside a newspaper stand and plays mournful ballads on his guitar.

He's actually pretty good, but his voice gets drowned out by the shrill motorbikes passing on the street. A human statue of Barry White (he's painted all white and has a name tag) stands still until someone drops a coin into his mug and he strikes a new pose. Closer to JT 77fr. I .7 To Advertise on these pages call Fenno 602.444.8034 or e-mail: ft- I it 4. Tropicana eatery has new menu VEGAS, from Page T5 vue with a modern spin that is supposed to open at the Venetian on Sept.

29. Tropicana steakhouse The Savanna Steakhouse at the Tropicana has a new look and a new menu. The entryway features finished travertine tile and new carpeting. All the chairs and booths have been reupholstered and new linens complement the china. One of the new menu items is the Seafood Spectacular appetizer, which includes a tray of oys- Specialty Publications department For more call Jim Williams at (602) 444-4874 or e-mail him at jim.williamspni.com.

I LSS vif. WPTT i.jt.Jl,-m.Wl...,.i.J.J..-A'..Jli.," i.L.,iM-,.,'.....,A iEXCALIDUR, MONTE CARLO CIRCUS CIRCUS jpMWwawwWIW PffWtWB MBIT mi TIT inillltWIrililrlliiiiilmiiMlillIi riillllllliHlilllWlWIIIIWIIMHWHI MMMMMMMWMMniMHHHMMMHMMHMMl Mi ters, shrimp, crab and several other seafood delicacies. The restaurant located on the Mezzanine Level is open nightly from 5 to 1 1 p.m. For reservations, call 1-(702)-739-2222. PavarottJ at Mandalay Bay Opera superstar Luciano Pava-rotti will sing at the Mandalay Bay Events Center on Oct.

26. Tickets are $50, $100, $200 and $300; call 1-(702)-632-7580. 'Doo wap' group Street Wise is a five-member doo wap singing group featuring 15-year old McKenna Medley, the daughter of Bill Medley of the Righteous Brothers. McKenna debuted with her father at the Nugget Hotel in Reno in 1994. Street Wise has enjoyed many exciting experiences in less than a year of being together.

They recently performed with the Righteous Brothers and have opened for such acts as The Smothers Brothers and Frankie Avalon. They have also been the warm up act for the CBS television show Everybody Loves Raymond. Tickets to see Street Wise perform at the off-Strip Suncoast Please see VEGAS, Page 17 from $34 IHC i I STAR-TACULAR GETAWAY $22' Per person, per night Z4li- jJ -I ftp If i See etc SOUTH SEAS! i a 3 I f' I r'i ---wi ir 1 1 1 A I 1 i i "in ri 1 (I 1 1 v- Mil till ikJ -j r-. Jl Fromjuj- FAR-FLUNG LOCALES. EXOTIC DIVERSIONS.

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