A Storybook Christmas in La Plaça de Sant Jaume

This year's nativity scene at La Plaça de Sant Jaume

Each December Christmas takes to the streets and plazas of Barcelona in the form of markets, lights, trees and pessebres (nativity scenes). The word pessebre means crib in Catalan and most of the nativity scenes which can be seen in Barcelona follow the traditional format of stable, manger, 3 kings, cows, shepherds etc… One notable…

The World Begins With Every Kiss (The Kiss Mural)

El Món Neix en Cada Besada (The World Begins With Every Kiss) by Joan Fontcuberta

Approaching the Kiss of Freedom mural in Plaça d’Isidre Nonell you’d be forgiven for assuming it’s a large graffiti. As you get closer, you’ll realise that it is, in fact, a mosaic made up of thousands of tiny ceramic tiles. Each individual tile is printed with a photo of a person, a place, a moment,…

Enriqueta Martí – The Vampire of the Raval

Enriqueta Marti

With a population of approximately 50,000 people, Barcelona’s El Raval neighbourhood has always had a rather dodgy reputation. Despite being the home of one of the world’s most famous food markets (the Boqueria), Barcelona’s grandest theatre (El Liceu) and two of my favourite museums (the MACBA and the Maritime Museum). Not to mention loads of excellent restaurants…

The Best Ice Cream in Barcelona

"La Campana" - Possibly the best ice cream in Barcelona

What better way to cool off when it’s hot and sunny than a delicious home made ice cream? The best ice creams that I’ve found so far in Barcelona are served at “La Campana” on “Carrer de la Princesa”. “La Campana” is a small shop with over a century of history ! When it’s not the…

L’Ou Com Balla: Dancing Eggs !

Dancing Egg Number 5 - The Cloisters of Barcelona Cathedral

If you like quirky and unusual traditions then you’ll love L’Ou Com Balla aka The Dancing Egg which takes place every year as part of Barcelona’s Corpus Christi celebrations. Basically the idea is that an egg is placed in a fountain and dances suspended by a jet of water. There are a total of 12 eggs…

The Roman Temple of Augustus

The remains of the Temple of Augustus

Tucked away inside a medieval building in Barcelona’s Gothic Quarter, there stand four, nine metre high Corinthian columns that are nearly as old as the city itself. The Roman Temple of Augustus dates back to the first century BC and was part of the Forum at the centre of the Roman city of Barcino. During…