Fourth Field Trip- Rambla del Raval

For our fourth and final field in my Barcelona City class, Xavi had us go to the Raval area of Barcelona and we toured many of the streets. He explained to us that as recently as 15 years ago, this area was a kind of ghetto- run down and dangerous. But very recently, the Barcelona city council decided to renew the area and turn it into a nice place for all types of people. The area was basically set up into two different types of renewal, public and private. Huge structures, such as the Contemporary Art Museum, were provided by the government in order to attract more young people to the area and to sway the negative aspects of the area. On a personal note, I found the Contemporary Art Museum to be very interesting because it is an extremely modern looking structure built next to 17th century churches; the contrast is very apparent and visually stimulating. We continued our tour of the area by walking down various streets. Another example of public renewal were the pristine streets that have garbage systems that lay underground, out of the eye of the public. Xavi also told us that the government outlawed personal cars in the area, so it is a safe place for families with children. As we walked down the streets, it was easy to tell that the public waste system was working because the streets were perfectly pristine. As we neared the end of the tour, we came to Rambla del Raval, which Xavi said was one of the most run down places in Barcelona 15 years ago. Before the renewal, large amounts of drugs and violence were prevalent in this area. But today, the area is very nice and filled with 5-star hotels and nice restaurants. Xavi told us that this area was renewed by private companies, as opposed to the public works at the beginning of the field trip. As Xavi pointed out, although private works can be good for making large sums of money, they can turn locals away from the area. There is a delicate balance between achieving a profit and making a beneficial environment for the overall community. As a side note, at the end of the tour, Xavi bought me a cup of coffee.

Trobador

Out of all the restaurants in Barcelona, I have found one that is my absolute favorite. I actually found it by pure luck, no one gave me a recommendation or anything of that nature. When my girlfriend was here in early February, we were debating where to eat one random night. We were looking for restaurant reviews online when I just suggested that we take the metro to Catalunya Square and walk around until we found something. So we hopped on the yellow line and then the red line to Catalunya. As soon as we exited the metro station, there was a colorful restaurant directly in front of us. We looked at each other, both thinking the same thing- this couldn't be this easy, could it? We approached the restaurant, it was called Trobador and it looked very crowded from the outside. We stepped up to the front window and read the menu. We glanced over the menu and we were fairly impressed, but then we noticed a little piece of paper with the special on it. It included a glass of the house wine, six appetizers, two entrees, desert, and a glass of champagne; all for 25 euros a person. We couldn't believe our eyes, we thought there had to be some mistake. So we walked inside and inquired about the special, the waiter assured us that the deal was accurate. We were seated immediately and they brought us a bottle of wine, almost immediately followed by the appetizers. The appetizers included a lot of authentic Spanish cuisine, which I absolutely love. First was a large plate of tappas, with various meats and cheeses; then came a large salad; next was coquettes and french fries covered with fried eggs; next was raw calamari and cheese- that was just the appetizer. We were both pretty full before our meal even came and the bottle of wine was serving us well. Anyways, the rest of the meal went perfectly and we ended it by cheering a nice glass of champagne. Since that first experience, I have been back to Trobador four times and it is my absolute favorite restaurant in Barcelona. Even though it is relatively expensive, the amount of food is unparalleled. I would recommend it to anyone.

Barcelona Snow Storm

When my friends from Penn State came to Barcelona for their spring break, they were expecting beautiful weather and beach days. I guess they brought the horrible Pennsylvania weather with them because Barcelona received the worst snow day in 25 years. My friends were all very angry with me because I told them to pack jeans and button downs, not winter coats. I assured them that this was out of the ordinary for Barcelona, but that was still not good news for them. We were planning on heading to Parc Guell the day of the blizzard, but our plans soon changed. We ended up heading to the casino in Port Olympico for a snowed out day of gambling. As we strolled into the casino, three or four casino employees were outside taking pictures of the snow. That proved to my friends that this was a unique experience and that I wasn't lying to them the whole time. Anyways, we endured the day of snow and the weather was bearable for the rest of their trip. But they would not soon forget their Spanish snow day. Truthfully, I could not even believe that there was snow in Barcelona. The weather gets chilly every once in a while, but nothing serious. I find it hilarious that my friends from Penn State, the snow capital, came to Barcelona during the worst snow fall in 25 years. All in all, 476 schools were shut down in greater Catalonia, the northeast side of Spain is just not equipped to handle large amounts of snow fall. All though it ruined a day at Parc Guell for my friends and me, it was still such a unique abroad experience. (Picture is taken from http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7f/Snow_Barcelona_Diagonal_280205.jpg)

Iceland Volcano's Impact on Spain

Over the last week, a volcano erupted in Iceland and the volcanic ash has shut down airports across all of Europe, especially the northern parts. Great Britain and Germany have been especially hurt, with airports shut down for days at a time. Although Spain is relatively southern for Europe, it is still not unaffected by the volcanic activity. In a recent La Vanguardia article, the author states that Spain's tourist industry, which is a huge part of the economy, has already lost 252 million Euros due to canceled flights and the like. The vice president of a major airline, Jose Zoreda, is quoted as saying that the airline industry is losing 42 million euros per day that the airports are shut down. As the article points out, even though the volcanic ash is not in the Spanish air space, tourism is so crucial for Spain that canceled flights greatly hurt the economy. People flying from Britain, Germany, and Switzerland are unable to get into Spain, which creates major losses for Spain. This volcano has affected me personally because this last weekend we took a trip to Munich, Germany. On the first day of our trip, we got news that some volcano had erupted in Iceland and were sorely unaware of the consequences that this would have on us. The next day, we realized that the Munich airport was going to be closed the following day and our flight was going to be canceled. With one day left in Munich, we scrambled to find an alternate mode of transportation. Fortunately, we were able to charter a bus to take a large group of us home. Unfortunately, the bus ride was a nice and quick 17 hours. Although we made it home in time, the volcano really ruined the end of my Munich trip. But we were left with a unique memory of our European travels.

Las Ramblas

Las Ramblas is one of the most popular places in the city of Barcelona and it is definitely one of my favorites. Although it is a big tourist attraction, I also feel that it is an important part of the Barcelona culture and the Spanish culture in general. Las Ramblas is a street that extends from the ocean into the middle of Catalunya square (the heart of the city). The street is lined with all kinds of different shops, ranging from sex shops to the Nike Store and H&M. Along with the stores are all different types of restaurants, you can basically get any type of food you want. There are scwarma stands and there are extremely high class restaurants. Las Ramblas is a two lane street with the lanes separated by a wide-stretch of pavement in the middle. It is the middle of the street that really gives the heart to Las Ramblas. The middle of the street is lined with street performers, cartoon artists, painters, souvenier stands, and all kinds of interesting people. Although there are places similar to this in the United States, it is the unique mix of people that gives a visitor a feel for Spanish culture. The first time I went to Las Ramblas, I was overwhelmed with the amount of people and the various types of street performers. Over my time in Barcelona, I have been to Las Ramblas on a weekly basis, shopping or just enjoying the attractions. Every single one of my friends that has visited has loved Las Ramblas. My girlfriend could not get over the fact that the street is lined with outdoor pet stores, selling everything from chickens, to gerbils, to lizards. At every stand we passed, she tried to convince me to buy her a little mouse. I gently had to explain to her that if I brought it back to my apartment with my roommates, it would be killed within the first hour. There is certainly nothing like that in the United States, an interesting Spanish twist. It is just such a unique stretch of the city, there is really nothing else like it.

El Classico

Last week, something huge happened for FC Barca that drove the city into celebration. The match up between Real Madrid is a heated rivalry that has been brewing for many decades, called "El Classico" ("The Classic" for the Spanish challenged) by all Spaniards and Catalans alike. This rivalry started many years ago when the Spanish Dictator, Fransisco Franco, chose Real Madrid as his favorite team and made them the elite Spanish team, basically banishing FC Barca. Since the collapse of the Franco Regime, FCB has made leaps and bounds and is now considered one of the most prestigious teams in the world. Unlike Real Madrid, Barcelona has a home grown mentality, bringing their local players up through an academy and using them to build an unstoppable team. By contrast, Real Madrid contracts the best players from all over the world and will pay ungodly amounts of money to do so. For example, they recently bought Cristiano Ronaldo for $94 million Euros, the most expensive players in history. The rivalry between these two teams is well documented and there is a huge amount of pride at stake whenever these two teams play. This year was an especially close race, with the two teams neck and neck for the top stop, well above any other team. This last week, El Classico was played in Madrid, and the winner was destined to win La Liga, the Spanish League. Barca came out and basically dominated Real Madrid, right in front of their home crowd. It was fantastic. Messi, arguably the best player in the world, started the game with a magnificent goal where he bounced it off his chest and then rocketed a shot into the back of the net. Barca went on to score one more goal and shut out Real Madrid, 2-0. Barca took La Liga and basically embarrased Real Madrid in their own stadium, simply stunning. Go Barca. Barca Barca Barca!!!!

Barcelona Aquarium

After my girlfriend had already been in Barcelona for three days during her spring break, we had already hit all the major sites- Sagrada Familia, Parc Guell, Las Ramblas, etc. I was struggling with what to do with our remaining free time; and then it hit me, I should take her to the Barcelona Aquarium. I figured that would be perfect because she is an animal science major and she loves aquatic life. So we got on the subway, headed to Catalunya Square, then walked down Las Ramblas and across the port to where the aquarium is. We waited in a short line and bought two tickets for the entrance fee. We headed in to the aquarium and found ourselves in an exhibit that was mostly small fish and eels. We were both fairly unimpressed and hoped that something more impressive was up ahead. We preceded through the hallways of colorful fish and strange creatures, wondering when we were coming to the main attraction. We were pleasantly surprised when we turned the corner and found ourselves staring at a gigantic tank; a tank so big that we could not see any fish. It was a huge circular tank and we started making our way around the circular path way. I almost lost it when, out of no where, a huge shark came into view out of the abyss. My girlfriend and I sat there transfixed as the shark cruised past us, seemingly eying us up for dinner. After we saw the first shark, many more came into vision and we realized that we were basically surrounded by the deadliest creatures on earth. One of my greatest fears is sharks and I was so excited to be able to see these creatures so up close. Anyways, my girlfriend and I sat there watching the sharks for over twenty minutes and she had to convince me to leave. We left the aquarium very satisfied with our experience and I now have a new appreciation of sharks.