Camino Barcelona Blog

Hi folks!

Hope you are all fine!

Here comes Aldaïr’s las tip before leaving Barcelona

Hey everyone!

Today, I actually realised I have two weeks left in Barcelona, and that I’d have, once back home, to start thinking about what my next steps will be. Now that my Spanish is getting better, I guess my English and Spanish class at school can be sufficient, and I will keep on “trying”, for the eighth year now, to learn some German. As my school does not give Spanish AND German lessons, I guess I will just have to learn it on my own, after school.

To be honest, Camino Barcelona made me think about that possibility. I’m not saying I didn’t know that evening language lessons exist; but that when I was starting to explain how our evening lessons work to a student visiting our school, I realised that it would be foolish of me to wait until the end of my studies to practice a language, if I could do it while I’m studying.

What Camino proposes here is a course targeting different types of people, that have one thing in common: they need to have short lessons in the evening.

The school proposes part-time Spanish evening lessons, starting the 26th of September, to people who want to come to Barcelona and just try something new. From students to working people, this option allows you to come, two evenings per week, and learn some Spanish with other people and professional teachers, yet still having the whole day for you.

In my case, I actually did that when I lived in London one year ago. Every week, for two months, I was having English classes with other foreigners, to improve my communication skills. I think it really helped me find my job there!

So, whether you’re in Barcelona or planning on coming here at some point, don’t forget that you can still keep on improving, even if your days are filled.

Aldair

Hi folks,

Our new work placement Cara has some nice activities for you during this week:

Hola a todos!

For those of you who have been in Barcelona over the last week, I´m sure you will remember the amazing Fiesta de Gracia, and if you missed out, or if you feel like you want to do it all again then do not worry! You´re in Spain now, and there is always another party just around the corner.

This time, we´re heading over to Sants for the yearly festival that lasts for one whole week from sunday the 21st of August until sunday the 28th. As a celebration of the patron saint, Bartholomew the Apostle, this festival is an absolute must! There are many things to see, but the main feature is fire. The communal bonfires and firework displays are a source of pride for Sants, and despite recent controversy over the government attempting to restict the displays, the week long programme of events remains full to the brim with things to see.

Apart from the fire displays, I am happy to say that the other main components of the festival are food, drink and music, the perfect combination for a good festival! There´s communal paella, sardinadas, butifarradas (catalan sausages to you and me!), and best of all there´s a chocolatada- where everyone drinks and eats chocolate together.

So now the food´s covered, what about the entertainment for the week? It seems to me that there really is everything, from water fights to dances, discos to orquestras, kareoke and even a conffeti fight! The streets are proudly decorated by the locals and all of this is finished off on sunday by the Castellers de Sants. This team famously builds human towers, and these can reach up to 9 levels! You have to see it to believe it, and the atomosphere is incredible as everyone gathers round to support the team as they build higher and higher, with young kids on top!

If you fancy something a little different, there is also an alternative festival which is really popular. This consists of concerts of every type of music, including Ska, Punk, Heavy Metal and Rap….with all this choice all in one place there´s bound to be something you like! So, if you feel like coming along to a great festival, then this one is not to be missed. Join in on wednesday night and come along with us…

See you there!

Cara

Hi folks,

It has been a while since we have updated our blog with the latest cultural activities in Barcelona.

Now in August and until the end of September, different district in Barcelona will have parties and concerts every day as they celebrate the Fiesta Mayor. Aldair has written a blog about the biggest of the Fiestas Mayor in Barcelona, which is the district of Gracia (before it was a village outside Barcelona).

Hey there,

It’s me again, and this time I’m here to talk about this particular event starting the 15th of August: the “Festa Major de Gràcia”!

Every year – it has been going on for more than fifty -, Spanish people, accompanied by people from all over the world just meet up and enjoy this neighbourhood that gets crazy for one whole week.

During this time, you can see (more…)