Plaça del Rei

This guide to Placa del Rei in Barcelona opens with a five-century-old local legend, that Christopher Columbus climbed these steps in 1493 to be received by King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella. You'll weigh that story against what historians can actually trace about the monarchs' whereabouts, then turn to the Gothic Salo del Tinell built for King Peter the Fourth and its later use by the Spanish Inquisition. Look up at the octagonal watchtower before you decide what you believe.