Fiesta time in Barcelona...

Well, it's been quite the month, with everything from a huge protest march to massive street parties and all sorts in between. Here's a snapshot of what we've done so far.

We watched the people of Catalunya march for independence from Spain in a protest on their Diada Nacional de Catalunya. This is a highly emotive subject for both sides and I won't go into it here but I will say that the sheer scale and the peaceful atmosphere was something to behold. 

We watched the fireworks for the end of La Mercè 

Got slightly spooked in El Raval by the Gegants. 

Took walks to the top of Montjuic at sunset.

Mooched around La Ribera checking out the street art.

Saw the amazing Madrid band Luger for free as part of La Mercè. Make sure you give them a listen if you're in to psychedelic krautrock (I'm sure you all are).

Oh yes, we also walked down Via Laietana with fire breathing dragons and demons. Par for the course in Barcelona. Nothing quite like a brisk Correfoc to get the adrenaline flowing. 

Don't worry, some lovely firemen (or Bombers as they're known here) came and soaked us all later to be safe. 

We're having our local Festa Major in Barceloneta this weekend so I'll let you know all about that. After that, I need some time to relax. Although as every weekend in October has something good happening and I also have to go to work in between, I'm not sure how or when that's going to happen. 

Hasta luego! 

A chilled weekend in Barcelona...

Hola a todos! This last weekend was pretty chilled, we have quite a lot of stuff planned in the next few weeks so decided to take this one easy. 

We had lunch at El Filferro on Saturday washed down with some claras (otherwise known as a shandy).

 Mooched along to the market run by Demanoenmano at CCCB on Sunday.

Then we finished off the weekend with an evening walk through Parc de la Creueta del Coll. This park is extremely hilly, so it's much better to do this kind of walk when the temperature is a bit lower, as it has been this weekend. I never thought I would see the day when I'd be praying for a bit of cloud but after the heat wave we've just had, it's not surprising that I was doing just that. Sorry for the dark photo, it was pretty late when I took it. 

As I mentioned before, there's a lot of stuff happening in September so I'll be back with more in the coming weeks. 

Hasta pronto!

Summer 2012 in Barcelona...

There’s been quite the long radio silence on this blog of mine, for which I can only blame the amazing weather and huge amount of activities that I’ve been going to this summer in Barcelona. Not to mention the busy work schedule I’ve had.

I’m going to resume a more regular service now, but in the meantime, here are a few snapshots of what we’ve been doing and where we’ve been this summer.

Walking on Tibidabo

Hanging out with mannequins in Palau Reial de Pedralbes for 080 Barcelona Fashion Week

Catching amazing sunsets on the beach at Gavà

Partying with DJ Sneak at the Piknic Electronik 

Celebrating my birthday with Orson Welles in The Third Man, one of my favourite movies, at the open air cinema in Montjuic 

Going to a festa in Llorenç del Penedes to celebrate the annual return of the Perseids, or the Llàgrimes de Sant Llorenç (Tears of Saint Lawrence) as they are known here.

And last but not least, going to see the street decorations at the Festa Major de Gràcia 

All of this without even mentioning Sonar and Off Sonar, which gave us many hours of fun. There’s still plenty of good stuff to look forward to in September, I’ll be keeping you all informed.

Hasta luego!

Nails from the Block, Barcelona...

Recent piece for miniguide magazine about new Barcelona nail salon Nails from the Block. Click on the picture to see a bigger version. 

I'm going to go and get my nails done there soon so I'll take some photos and post them here as soon as I do. Hasta luego!

Cream Espai Creatiu, Barcelona...

The madness of Sonar has finally abated and life is returning to normal (or as normal as possible in tourist season). 

Last night saw us take the opportunity to get a culture fix by popping along to check out the latest exhibition at the Cream Espai Creatiu, a compact space for exhibiting and selling work by up and coming artists. At the moment they're showing the work of artist Maria Herreros, whose illustrations of well known people past and present, and interpretations of iconic photos, are intriguing and a little bit disturbing. 

If you're here in Barcelona go along and check it out. We had a quick look last night as we got there late, but I'm very tempted to go back and even to buy a print of her work, which doesn't often happen.


Besos!

Festa Major Barceloneta...

Last weekend we had the annual Festa Major Barceloneta. The streets were decorated with flags and the marching bands were out in force. Music and people filled the narrow streets and much fun was had by all. His Nibs filmed the closing fireworks to give you all a taste of our local celebrations. You can check out his video on Vimeo here....

Check out his video of a band playing outside our building earlier in the month... 


Hasta luego!

Summer so far in Barcelona….

May is one of my favourite months in Barcelona. The sun starts to shine and everyone comes out on the streets to socialise and gossip. We also start to see a lot more events being organised and of course, the chiringuitos (beach bars) open up for summer.

We kicked off the month with a visit to the Feria de abril de Cataluña . The event is Barcelona’s version of the Feria de abril de Sevilla and takes place over the last week of April and first week of May every year. It’s a great opportunity to see flamenco dancers and singers as well as eating some amazing food. There’s a funfair as well so lots of good entertainment all round. 

I also took a trip to Sitges with my friend Bryan for a lunch by the sea at La Concha. The lunch was good and the fixed price menu was great value. Possibly the best thing about it was the view of Sant Sebastià beach. Sitges is one of my favourite towns and I love the beaches here, as well as the friendly people and the beautiful church and old buildings. I recommend a day trip (or longer) to anyone who comes to Barcelona, it’s well worth it. We had a stroll through the town after lunch, did a spot of birdwatching of the numerous Swifts flying around the church and ended up having a swift drink at a chiringuito.

Another great thing about this city is the amount of free events that they have here. His Nibs and I popped along to a free one day music festival called La Plaça Odissea that was held at Maremagnum, a big shopping centre in the port.  We went to see the Icelandic band FM Belfast who are worth catching live if you get the chance. Their shows are always energetic and fun, check out the video below for a taste of what to expect from them. The hot weather caused them some grief, with the whole band taking their trousers off to cool down halfway through their set.

There’s more to come from May (I told you things start kicking off this month!) but I’ll tell you about it in my next post. Hasta luego!