3

Jardins de Ca n'Altimira - Barcelona, Spain

Josep Altimira was an eccentric millionaire who in 1860 returned to Barcelona from Cuba. He created unusual gardens on his private property, including subterranean galleries, a zoo, a pillared hall and a hypostyle room. Rumours about the millionaire’s life included a story that he had trained an orang-utan as a waiter to serve drinks at his parties. The Freemason stock market investor had many businesses in Cuba, where he was known as the Count of Monte Cristo.