Camino Barcelona Blog

Hello everyone!

So, the rain has stopped at last and Barcelona is now back to its usual sunny self!  Hurrah!!!  And, well, anyone would think we had not seen sunshine in years judging by the amount of scanatily clad sun-worshipers lining the parks and beaches yesterday!  I have to admit that I was one of them and headed straight to the Parque de la Ciutadella after work.

If you haven’t already been, you should definitely make time to see this park which is like a little oasis of calm in the middle of the city.  Lying under the palm trees and dozing off to the ducks quacking on the lake, you can easily imagine that you are on a little desert island and not in a bustling city the size of Barcelona!

(more…)

¡Buenas tardes!  Pues hoy me toca a mí explicaros un poco sobre las actividades maravillosas que os hemos organizado para la semana que viene :)…  Clases de baile, tarde de pelí­culas, comida en un restaurante típico….¡sigue leyendo para más
información!

Hello all! Today, it’s my turn to tell you about the wonderful activities that we have
organised for you next week :)….  Dance classes, a film afternoon, lunch in a
typical restaurant…read on for more info!

Lunes/Monday: 15:00  (¡Gratis! Free!)                                      
Copa de bienvenida/Welcome drink

¡Hoy hay copas y cosas para picar en el jardí­n par dar la bienvenida a los
nuevos estudiantes! Como siempre, están invitados todos los alumnos de la escuela
entonces ¡no os perdáis esta oportunidad para conocer a todo el mundo! 

Today we have drinks and snacks in the garden to welcome the new students! As
always, all our students are invited so don’t miss this opportunity to get to know everyone!

(more…)

Good afternoon all!

Have you noticed anything strange this week? Something that’s just not quite right? Yes, correct. It has rained for 2 days running! It hardly ever rains in Spain, well at least not in Barcelona, so you can be forgiven for feeling upset about the whole thing. But don’t panic! It won’t last. It never does. And in the meantime there are loads of fun things to do in the city without getting the least bit wet!

Continuing the ‘wet’ theme, for example, you could have a day out at Barcelona’s aquarium. It is one of the biggest in Europe and makes a really good day out. I’ve been twice but wouldnt mind going again as they are constantly changing the exhibitions. The entry costs around 15 euros - a bit pricey but well worth it I think!

Then there is the long list of museums that Barcelona has to offer. Some particularly interesting ones are the Picasso Museum, the Catalan History Museum (Museo de Historia de Catalunya), the Chocolate Museum and the Miró Foundation.Make sure that you check the school activity list at the beginning of the week though because we regularly visit museums as part of school excursions!

(more…)

Good afternoon all!

If you have not yet lived the ‘Camino Barcelona experience’ you might well be wondering what an average day is like as a student at our school??  Well, let me give you an idea of a student’s daily routine, the best places to grab a coffee at break time and great sites to see nearby after class!  For those of you who are already here at the school…read on…you might just learn something :) 

9am - Classes start for the group courses! Wakey wakey! Don’t worry, Rosanna our work-experience assistant is in reception to greet you with a big smile and to make the morning a bit more bearable!

9.50am - 5 minute break. Time to go to the toilet, get a drink or sign up for the activity of the day! 

10:45am - The 30 minute break! After an hour or so of classes, you should have woken up by now! But if you need a caffeine injection and some food to keep the brain cells functioning, this is the perfect time to fuel up! You can get hot and soft drinks as well as a variety of snacks from machines in the school gardens.

(more…)

Hi everyone! 

Yesterday I discovered something very exciting - there are plans to turn the bull ring outside my house into a massive flea market!!!  Great news all round! I can’t say I’ll be sorry to see the bull-ring go and I’ll have Barcelona’s best flea market on my doorstep!!! 

For those of you who also like a good bargain, Barcelona is a great place to be!  The city has a number of really good markets, selling anything from furniture, antiques and craftwork to fruit and vegetables!  The majority are situated outdoors so you can spend a day in the sun whilst you browse.  The atmosphere is also really fun- a whirl of people bustling around in search of that vintage bag or an old record.  Many people also go just for a nice day out with no intention of buying anything…rarely do they go home empty-handed though!

(more…)

For those of you who didn’t know, tomorrow is Saint Patrick’s Day!  You know, that day we all head outside wearing silly hats and horrible bright green clothing, even if we don’t have a drop of Irish blood in our veins!  But it’s fun, isn’t it!!!!  In fact, it’s so much fun that St Paddy’s Day is celebrated in places all over the world…and Barcelona is no exception!

As we all know, Spaniards are good at partying in general - it seems like they invent national holidays for any old excuse and when they celebrate, they really do it with style!  So, when it comes to celebrating another country’s patron saint, they are equally as enthusiastic!  In fact, I think the best St Patrick’s celebrations I have experienced have all been in Spain!  There’s lots of Irish music, singing, dancing and drinking in the bars and the fun carries on in true spanish style till the early hours! (more…)

Good afternoon all! 

I think we all agree that Spain has some wonderful culinary offerings…those famous cured meats and juicy paellas… mmmmm!  But if you have eaten tapas every night for the past week, maybe it’s time to try something a bit different and introduce your tastebuds to the many wonders of Latin-American cuisine!

I have quite a few Latin-American friends here in Barcelona and so have now become quite familiar with all these wonderful new tastes and smells….boy can they cook!  But if you don’t happen to know any Mexicans and fancy trying some authentic ‘enchiladas’, don’t worry - there are lots of really good Latin-American restaurants in Barcelona!

(more…)

Hi everyone!

Last night I made an interesting discovery - I realised that I have friends in Barcelona from 16 different countries!!!  I have just moved house and was writing a list of all the people to invite to our housewarming party when I realised just what a multicultural bunch we are!  

Back in England, virtually all of my friends are English…the Irish friend in our group is as about as ‘foreign’ as we get!  Here it is a different ball-game altogether!  My housemate is Argentinian, my new neighbours are Russian and my friends come from all over the world - Italy, Chile, Germany, Brazil, France, Luxemburg, Sweden, Holland… and the list goes on!  (more…)

Hello again everyone!

Today I have a very shameful confession to make! I have been living in Barcelona for 3 years and on Tuesday I had my FIRST EVER experience of the Sitges Carnaval!  I know, I know….unforgivable! But don’t worry, on Tuesday I did lots of catching up! 

Before the big event I had read reports by Rocio (school director) and Laura (one of our favourite students :)) but I still wasn’t prepared for what I saw!!!  I have to agree with Laura - there were LOTS of men dressed very convincingly as women…all a little too convincing for my liking…most had better legs than me!

(more…)

Imagine this:- you are walking down the street, minding your own business, when a voice appears from nowhere, proclaiming to the world: ‘The day you were born an angel fell from the sky’!!!  Welcome to Spain, ladies! 

This kind of terribly indiscreet- but really quite poetic - flattery is just unheard of in many countries. For example, I can’t imagine it happening in England. If you are lucky, you might get an admiratory grunt or whistle, but little more!!!

The Spanish, however, really do it with style and it is not just bored builders who take part!  The traditional Spanish ‘Piropo’ (chat-up line) is generally a lot less aggressive than the image we have of chat-up lines today and it is genuinely designed to please - not embarrass - the object of desire.  (more…)