Street Name? What's That?
In U.S. cities and towns there's an invention that has facilitated life enormously. It's the street sign. Reach any corner, look up at the top of the pole stuck there, and you'll see at least two signs, each reaching down a different street, with the names of those streets. Searching for an address is child's play.
Don't expect that in Spain. If it's difficult enough to find a road sign that will tell you what town you're in, it's impossible to find a street sign that will allow you to pinpoint a location. What has been done is to affix plaques on the corners of the buildings with the names of the streets.
Normally, you just have to look up at the building on the corner and search for a plaque that looks like it has the name of a street. Which is not always easy, because some streets are named for people. With that person's entire name. So sometimes you might not be too sure if you're looking at a street plaque or the sign of an establishment with the owner's name on it. And the design of the plaques change by town, sometimes even by neighborhood. Even worse is when you find yourself at a corner with empty lots. No plaques, no names, no luck.
To find an exact location I must travel to in a town I don't know, I first find good street maps with as much information as possible on them. If I can't find an old-fashioned paper map, I'll download a detailed one from the Internet and print it out. I will make note of any landmarks, such as banks, hotels or parks, and the design of street intersections, such as whether they intersect at an angle, or I have to count cross-streets. That is how I found our way when we stopped in Barcelona to meet up with my brother-in-law at the beginning of our vacation to France two years ago. We got to our meeting spot without a hitch, but the names of most of the streets we drove on remain a mystery.
Mostly, I just remember landmarks. I know the names of a couple of scattered streets in the cities and towns I sometimes go to. But sometimes I'm not sure just where they are. Whenever a tourist or someone comes up to me and asks me for a street, I have to reply I don't know. If they ask me for directions to a spot I do know, I will explain using landmarks. For example, "Continue up this street and at the corner past the Gadis supermarket turn right. What you're looking for is just after a pretty boutique of children's clothes. But if you continue past the chic grocery store with the expensive fruit outside, turn back because you've passed it."
Over the years, I've learned to defend myself and at least know which way to go to get to my destination. But don't ask me what street it's on.
Don't expect that in Spain. If it's difficult enough to find a road sign that will tell you what town you're in, it's impossible to find a street sign that will allow you to pinpoint a location. What has been done is to affix plaques on the corners of the buildings with the names of the streets.
Normally, you just have to look up at the building on the corner and search for a plaque that looks like it has the name of a street. Which is not always easy, because some streets are named for people. With that person's entire name. So sometimes you might not be too sure if you're looking at a street plaque or the sign of an establishment with the owner's name on it. And the design of the plaques change by town, sometimes even by neighborhood. Even worse is when you find yourself at a corner with empty lots. No plaques, no names, no luck.
To find an exact location I must travel to in a town I don't know, I first find good street maps with as much information as possible on them. If I can't find an old-fashioned paper map, I'll download a detailed one from the Internet and print it out. I will make note of any landmarks, such as banks, hotels or parks, and the design of street intersections, such as whether they intersect at an angle, or I have to count cross-streets. That is how I found our way when we stopped in Barcelona to meet up with my brother-in-law at the beginning of our vacation to France two years ago. We got to our meeting spot without a hitch, but the names of most of the streets we drove on remain a mystery.
Mostly, I just remember landmarks. I know the names of a couple of scattered streets in the cities and towns I sometimes go to. But sometimes I'm not sure just where they are. Whenever a tourist or someone comes up to me and asks me for a street, I have to reply I don't know. If they ask me for directions to a spot I do know, I will explain using landmarks. For example, "Continue up this street and at the corner past the Gadis supermarket turn right. What you're looking for is just after a pretty boutique of children's clothes. But if you continue past the chic grocery store with the expensive fruit outside, turn back because you've passed it."
Over the years, I've learned to defend myself and at least know which way to go to get to my destination. But don't ask me what street it's on.
Barcelona is a nightmare to drive in. They will give a direction, you'll come to a round about or intersection and there's no more information.
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