CosmoCaixa Museum

Standing where blind children once lived in a red brick asylum, you're now at Spain's pioneering interactive science museum. Nestled in the peaceful Sarrià district near the Collserola foothills, this modernist building has transformed from a place of shelter into a gateway for scientific discovery. Architect Josep Domènech i Estapà, who also designed the Palace of Justice and Fabra Observatory, built this masterpiece between 1904 and 1909.

Originally called Amparo de Santa Lucía, it served as an asylum for the blind for 70 years. When the institution closed in 1979, the building found new purpose. In 1981, it reopened as the Museu de la Ciència, becoming the first hands-on science museum in Spain where visitors could touch, experiment, and learn through direct interaction. The real transformation came in 2004 after a massive 100 million euro renovation. While preserving the original brick facade, architects expanded the museum underground, quadrupling its size to 30,000 square meters. Renamed CosmoCaixa, it won European Museum of the Year in 2006. Inside, a flooded Amazonian rainforest with over 100 living species thrives alongside geological walls displaying 100 tons of rock formations. Visitors descend 30 meters in a spiral around a towering tropical tree to explore exhibits on physics, biology, and the cosmos.