Camino Barcelona Blog

Hi everyone!

Last week we had a really nice activity organised by Vahri and Cara: Language exchange.
All our students had the chance to practice Spanish with natives. Vahri has written a blog about this activity, so you have more information.

I personally was there last week and had so much fun! It is great to meet so many people from all over the world in one place and speak about different topics while enjoying a nice afterwork coctail.

Hello!

I hope you have all had a lovely Christmas and enjoyed New Year, especially if you were lucky enough to celebrate in Barcelona!!

Today I wanted to let you know about a new and exciting activity that the school is running – an English/Spanish language exchange!! We had (more…)

Hi folks,

Don’t you know what to do this weekend in Barcelona?

Hi again!

If you were wondering what to do this weekend or looking for something different besides the usual tourist attractions to discover, this week Barcelona has another special event lined up for you!

This weekend Barcelona is putting on an ‘Open House’ event which for all you architecture lovers or simply those interested in discovering some hidden treasures of this cities history, is an exciting opportunity to gain entry to buildings throughout Barcelona that would not usually be open to the public.

On the 22nd and 23rd of this month, for the second year running, Barcelona invites you to come and visit more than 130 historical and architecturally innovative buildings that will be opened up to the public for this weekend only and what’s more is that it is completely free!!

Many buildings will have their creators there ready to talk you through the inspiration for the buildings construction and any other interesting anecdotes or information relating to each building. The types of buildings on offer to visit vary from old libraries, private houses, hotels and much more, all dotted around the ten ‘barrios’ of the city.

Last year more than 25,000 visitors partook in this event along with over 100 architects at the ready to tell the story of each of their creations.

This is an unusual but worthwhile activity that should not missed, even if you are not normally an architecture fanatic, this is an event of interest to all who love Barcelona and want to discover more of what it has to offer! For more information on this event you can visit the following website: Open House Barcelona

Enjoy the rest of the week and keep checking this space for more events and information to come!

Vahri

Hi everybody,

Today Vahri, our new trainee has decided to write a post on one of the biggest celebrations in Barcelona: “La Merce”. Read it carefully. She will give you many tips.

Have a gorgeous sunny week-end if you are here in Barcelona!!!

Hi guys,

My name is Vahri, I’m the newest work experience recruit at Camino Barcelona! I arrived here about 3 weeks ago and I have loved every minute so far! Barcelona is one of the most welcoming cities I’ve been to; everyone I know who has been here raves on about how lucky I am to spend a year here so I hope there will be lots of good times ahead! I already feel at home here and I’m sure that you will feel the same if you decide to pay a trip to this amazing city! One thing that I LOVE about Barcelona is that you can never get bored! There is always some form of party to go to, a street festival or a cultural event going on. In my three weeks here I’ve already been to two massive street festivals and there are more to come!
 
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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…)

Hi everybody!!

Have you heard something about ´Sant Jordi’s day in Catalonia??

“Sant Jordi” (Saint George´s day) is on 23rd April, which is the remembrance day in Spain. It is a special day in Catalonia because it is the remembrance of the death of Jorge de Capacodia on the 23rd April.

On the 23rd of April, which is the festival day, you will see all the beautiful colours when you look down the streets, because of all the roses and smalls books, which are put in the centre of Barcelona.

“Sant Jordi” was considered by the east, as the protector of different nations and territories: England, Georgia, Ethiopia, Portugal and Bulgaria. He was also considered as the saint patron of the nations in Aragon and Catalonia. (more…)

Hello everyone!

This time I want to talk to you about the activity that was very successful last week: Barceloneta and the ICEBAR.

On Thursday 7th April we went for a walk through the Barceloneta neighbourhood, an old neighbourhood of fishers, which was La Ribera neighbourhood situated in Cuidadela but which was moved to Barceloneta when Felipe V decided to build the fortress in the form of a star that now accommodates the Ciutadella Park.

Barceloneta is a neighbourhood that has changed a lot and now, enjoys a sea view and the neighbourhood is very modern because we can find lots of other bars and restaurants, for example: The ICEBAR

This bar, which can also be found in other big cities throughout the world, is made completely out of ice. It has a temperature of -10°C, so it is best to come to the bar well prepared, with a coat and thick gloves.

Finaly, once inside the bar, enjoy a cocktail in an ice glass. It is an original experience and fun but above all, remember that the temperature outside of the bar, in Barcelona on that day, was more than 20°C.

Cheers,

Marta

Hi folks,

Becky is here with her tips about Barcelona, to give you some ideas on what to do:

Hello again

So, I have talked to you about what there is to do in Barcelona in general and now, I am going to talk to you about something that is a definite must during you stay in Barcelona. This is of course the famous ´Magic Fountain of Montjuïc´. Before I start telling you why you should go and see it, here is a bit of history.

When work on the Great Universal Exhibition of 1929 was well under way, the organizers felt that (more…)

Hi everyone,

This is my first blog here and I would like to introduce myself: my name is Marta, and I have been a teacher here at Camino since July 2007. As I used to work in the Tourist Industry as a Tourist Guide, I would like to tell you a little bit about the cultural activities we offer here at Camino.

The activities we offer aim to help our students get to know each other a little better at the same time as visiting and exploring some of the fascinating places which the fantastic city of Barcelona has to offer. We try to choose activities which have a good balance between the rich cultural life of Barcelona whilst being fun at the same time.

In today’s blog I am going to talk to you about an activity I have always wanted to do with Camino students: a language exchange. (more…)

Hi everyone,

Simon has prepared for you a blog about his passion “Hip-hop” dance. It is very interesting!