Living and Travel
Although the capital of Catalan and a major city in Spain, Barcelona is still a village at heart and retains a strong sense of community. Even just on a short visit to the city you’ll catch a glimpse of its traditions and customs going on in the streets, and annual festivals and fiestas taking place all over the area. Head to the cathedral on a Sunday and you’re likely to see the locals performing the Sardana, a traditional Catalan dance. Catalonia is also renown for its castells which are extremely high towers made up of people - competition to see who can make the highest is fierce. You can still find a Barcelona apartment with an old-fashioned elegance amongst the narrow winding streets of the older quarter located right in the centre of all the activities and entertainment. Other traditional festivals that are fun to join in are Saint George’s Day, the patron saint of Catalonia, celebrated by giving out roses and books to loved ones, whilst the Eve of Saint John's features bonfires, firecrackers and fireworks and La Mercè festival is held in honour of Barcelona's patron saint, watch out for the fire-breathing dragons and the pyrotechnical music show at the Montjuïc fountains. One particularly pleasant tradition if you just want to relax is to simply sit at a terrace café sipping a cool drink and watching the world pass by.
Children will love the Les Festes de Santa Eulàlia 2012, which is held annually in Barcelona and is regarded as one of the biggest festival for the little ones. It takes place between the 11th and 12th of February and during the festival, many attractions in Barcelona are open to the public such as the Cathedral and more than 30 museums as well as … [Read more...]
Shop til you drop - Barcelona is a very popular destination for shopping enthusiasts. One of the reasons are for sure the accessible prices for the Spanish clothing brands like Zara (Inditex Group) and Mango. Zara copies all new trends and designs from fashion designers right from the catwalk almost immediately. Other shops which belong to the … [Read more...]
At this time of the year Barcelona has been warmly decorated with many lights in the streets of the city center. The Plaza Catalunya ( especially El Corte Inglés), the Ramblas and Portal de l´Angel are the most wonderful iluminated spots. In Barcelona Christmas and New Year are celebrated in a quiet atmosphere and most of the time with family … [Read more...]
Jamon Serrano is the delectable cured Spanish ham that any visitor to Spain is sure to have encountered at one time or another. In many bars you will see these serrano hams hanging from the ceiling and also displayed prominently on a special stand known as a jamonera in the perfect position for cutting. This in itself is something of an art as … [Read more...]
Every year in september Barcelona becomes a city of traditional spectacles side by side with the most contemporary artistic shows like theatre and independent musician. La Fiesta de la Merce is the cities most important festival of the year. The distant origin of the festival today: in the 17th century the city asked the Virgin of Mercy, la Mercé, … [Read more...]
August 15 to 21st 2010 The Neighborhood Festival of Gracia, celebrated during the last half of August, is an incredibly well-organized and artsy local fiesta. Gràcia's residents spend months planning parades, concerts, floats, arts & crafts activities and more. During the day, events are held in the area's brightly decorated streets and … [Read more...]
The 24th of June is the celebration of Sant Juan ( or San Joan in Spanish) in Catalunya and in some other places like Valencia. It´s a bank holiday, but more important is the ´magic´night of the 23rd of June when the beginning of the summer is celebrated. People have dinner at home or in a restaurant with afterwards a special desert … [Read more...]
Bullfighting is not very popular in Barcelona. The Barcelona regional government banned bullfighting in 2004 but the decision was overturned. Last bullfight in Barcelona on Sunday 25th of September 2011. 28 of July 2010 Bullfight to end in Barcelona with region's parliament to vote its ban, with the ruling coming into force on January 1, … [Read more...]
Deux jeunes francophones Adi et Sabino, découvrent Barcelone avec beaucoup d'humour et apprennent à cuisiner une Paëlla. Visite du marché de la Boqueria sur les Ramblas pour les emplettes. Ils achètent des fruits de mer, du riz, du safran, des légumes ... tous les ingrédients pour faire une bonne paëlla. Il faut aussi une grande poêle … [Read more...]
The Three Kings' parade, Melchior, Baltasar and Caspar or the Twelfth Night ( the day of Epiphany) through Barcelona on January 5 from 5.30 p.m. top 9 p.m.. It is a 5 km long parade through the city, from the Ciutadella Park to the Plaza Espana ( Montjuic fira). It is the bigger street event in Barcelona. Parents take ladders for their children … [Read more...]
Barcelona is, after Amsterdam and Paris, one of the most popular gay destinations in Europe. With it´s beautiful gay friendly beaches like Mar Bella, San Sebastian or, for the more older guys Chernobyl beach, you can enjoy a lovely summer. If you are staying a bit longer in town, don´t forget to visit Sitges. This friendly place is situated … [Read more...]
Typical, traditional Beer from Barcelona from 1856 : The ”MORITZ” . They started to brew it again since 2005.. They are renovating the old brewery with french architect Jean Nouvel carrer Casanova ( ronda San Antoni ) Worth tasting this beer … light and fruity, very fresh. You might see this small yellow Moritz car in the … [Read more...]
Every year in september Barcelona becomes a city of traditional spectacles side by side with the most contemporary artistic shows like theatre and independent music. La Fiesta Mercé is the cities most important festival of the year. The distant origin of the festival today: in the 17th century the city asked the Virgin of Mercy, la Mercé, to save … [Read more...]
November 1, All Saints’ Day, that’s celebrated as a holiday. And, since celebrating All Saints’ Day really means spending the day at a graveside, it doesn’t have the same kind of resonance in the imagination. Halloween in Spain , they eat pannelets, chestnuts, drink sweet wine … On the upside, there are treats. These are known as … [Read more...]
There is a very nice and strange Catalan tradition of setting up in the Nativity scenes, a special touch: a little guy, somewhere in the picture, squatting with pants down and depositing a healthy looking turd somewhere in the holy scene. He’s called the “el Cagador”—that’s so “the shitter”.... You can buy one Cagador (what an … [Read more...]