Christopher Columbus monument

This guide to Barcelona's Christopher Columbus monument traces how an 1888 World's Fair centerpiece got built on a legend the city wanted true — that Columbus stepped ashore near here to greet Ferdinand and Isabella after his first voyage. It follows nineteenth-century Catalans' insistence that Columbus was secretly one of their own, and the argument over which way that towering bronze arm actually points. A ride up the hidden elevator inside the column gives you a harbor-level view to judge for yourself.