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Tarragona was the capital of Hispania Citerior during the Roman empire (former Tarraco), and we can still enjoy many buildings from this period (old city center declared World Heritage by the Unesco) . The
walls were built in the third century BC.. We can also visit the Roman amphitheatre (second century), where combats between gladiators and wild animals used to be a very popular event with more than 10.000
people.
Tarragona also had, during the Roman Empire, a theatre and a circus. The theatre was outside the walls, but today we can visit it on the Archaeological Walk. And the circus, where chariot races were
so popular, was very near Plaça de la Font, where you casn visit the vaults that supported the terracing of the circus.
From Medieval period we can visit the Cathedral of Santa María, constructed on the site
which firstly was a Roman temple and later became a muslim mosque. An interesting promenade must also include the arcades of Calle Merceria (middel ages), Casa dels Concilis and Casa de la Ciutat. And among
Modernist buildings, you can visit Casa Ripoll, Central Market and Gaudi's chapel of Colegio Jesus y Maria.
Coming back to present time, after enjoying Rambla Vella we can visit Tarragona's Rambla Nova, which
arrives at Balcón del Mediterráneo, where you can enjoy a nice view of El Miracle beach. Here we can also understand why Tarragona is one of the most important ports of the Mediterranean Sea, and visit El Serrallo
(port district).
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