area from the Pyrenees mountains and sparkling Mediterranean coves to crisp cava and world-renowned cuisine. Although Barcelona, with its Gaudi architecture, may be the best-known destination, the rest of Catalunya generates the identity of which local residents are so proud. Although officially a semi-autonomous comunidad, Catalunya feels like a separate country as arguably befits its history as a medieval kingdom that ruled parts of southernmost France, the Balearics and even what is now the Italian island of Sardinia.