Adventures in Barcelona

Last week, Jan and I took a little vacation to Barcelona, Spain. What an amazing city! Full of history and culture from around the world, Barcelona is truly a global city.

Barcelona is the "capital" of Catalonia, an autonomous community in Spain, and is the second largest city in Spain. Contrary to what you might think, the predominant language in Barcelona is NOT Spanish, but rather Catalan. While everyone speaks Spanish, they choose not to when dealing with other Catalonians and when going about their day-to-day business.

The history of Barcelona (from Wikipedia):

The foundation of Barcelona is the subject of two different legends. The first attributes the founding of the city to Hercules 400 years before the building of Rome thus the name Βαρκινών; . The second legend attributes the foundation of the city directly to the Carthaginian Hamilcar Barca, father of Hannibal, who named the city Barcino after his family, in the 3rd century BC.

About 15 BC, the Romans redrew the town as a castrum (Roman military camp) centred on the "Mons Taber", a little hill near the contemporary city hall (Plaça de Sant Jaume). Under the Romans, it was a colony with the surname of Faventia, or, in full, Colonia Faventia Julia Augusta Pia Barcino or Colonia Julia Augusta Faventia Paterna Barcino. Mela mentions it among the small towns of the district, probably as it was eclipsed by its neighbour Tarraco (modern Tarragona); but it may be gathered from later writers that it gradually grew in wealth and consequence, favoured as it was with a beautiful situation and an excellent harbour. It enjoyed immunity from imperial burdens. The city minted its own coins; some from the era of Galba survive.

Some important Roman ruins are exposed under the Plaça del Rei, entrance by the city museum (Museu d'Història de la Ciutat), and the typically Roman grid-planning is still visible today in the layout of the historical centre, the Barri Gòtic ("Gothic Quarter"). Some remaining fragments of the Roman walls have been incorporated into the cathedral. The cathedral, also known as basilica La Seu is said to have been founded in 343. The city was conquered by the Visigoths in the early fifth century, by the Moors in the early eighth century, reconquered in 801 by Charlemagne's son Louis who made Barcelona the seat of Carolingian "Spanish Marches" (Marca Hispanica), a buffer zone ruled by the Count of Barcelona.

The Counts of Barcelona became increasingly independent and expanded their territory to include all of Catalonia. In 1137, Aragon and the County of Barcelona merged by dynastic union by the marriage of Ramon Berenguer IV and Petronilla of Aragon and their titles were finally borne by only one person when their son Alfonso II of Aragon ascended to the throne in 1162. His territories were later to be known as the Crown of Aragon which conquered many overseas possessions, ruling the western Mediterranean Sea with outlying territories in Naples and Sicily and as far as Athens in the thirteenth century. The forging of a dynastic link between the Crowns of Aragon and Castile marked the beginning of Barcelona's decline.

During our stay in Barcelona we were lucky to stay in a wonderful guess house called Casa de Billy. Owned by an American and Mexican gay couple, it was a thoroughly fabulous place. From the time we arrived, Billy was a font of information and advise. He gave us a map of the city, showed us where all the interesting things to see were, and most hardily welcomed us. Our room, as you can see by the picture, was very comfortable and clean. If you ever find yourself in Barcelona be sure to stay with Billy and Joaquin.

I'm going to post a slideshow of the photos becuase there are over 300 pictures, and it would be incredibly time consuming to post all the photos individually. With that said, as the slideshow plays, click on any photo you want to see, and you'll be taken to my Picasa website. If you have any questions about the photos please leave a comment and I'll respond. Thanks, and enjoy!

Raging Apartment Fire

Across the street from us, an apartment burst into flames. Ok, maybe not an inferno, but it was certainly dramatic.

Ivan is Going Crazy

Here's a fun video of our little Jack Russell going crazy. I forgot that I shot this video, and the quality is not that great (it was done with my cell phone); it's still funny. :-)

Summer in Antwerp (Zomer van Antwerpen)

The "Summer in Antwerp" is a season long celebration of cultural events in Antwerp. There are programs of music, art and theater.

One of the events was some kind of artistic trapeze performance. The performance was entitled "The Angular Horizon" performed by a Chilean troupe of acrobats. The synopsis, as stated on the website, says:

A delicate structure consisting of four pylons is the support for a metal construction. At the height of eight metres six trapezes have been attached.

Up there - in the bottomless "twilight-zone" of possible human relations - six apparently shapeless "bodies" are thrown into a "frozen" world.

Resembling puppets on a string they hang in the air - without motion.

Gently they begin to breathe. Everything up there starts to breathe - all is one and the unity moves. It is of one sound and one movement.

Individuals start to peel themselves out of this something. They begin to live.

Aware of themselves they discover their own abilities, their boundaries and conditions. They try to escape.

But escape is impossible - they depend on each other - they discover each other. Within this limited habitat they develop skills, options of playing and moving that open up their world. They use their skills for fighting and later on for playing games. Playing the games makes them lose their world. A disconnection that blossoms in the strange conditions of the "twilight-zone" and allows the creation of its very own world .

A world in its own conditions, always above the abyss and united in the smallest of space, on a tiny metal bar held by two ropes.

To be 100% honest, both Jan and I found this performance way too esoteric and 'artsy'. I had no idea what the purpose of the piece was, or what the overall theme was. Here are some pictures and a video (neither is the best quality due to the time of day) that will give you some indication of the show.

Guantanamo in Belgium: Tunisians Face Extradition

By Andy Worthington
The Public Record

In the Obama administration’s campaign to persuade other countries to rehouse prisoners from Guantánamo who have been cleared for release, but who cannot be repatriated because of fears that they will be tortured if returned to their home countries, progress has been slow.

Why European nations are reluctant to accept cleared Guantánamo prisoners

Despite an apparent accord being reached on June 15, when the European Union and the United States made a joint statement in Luxembourg on the closure of Guantánamo, which, as the Guardian described it, “cleared the last hurdles for up to 50 Guantánamo detainees to be accommodated in EU countries,” no one has been released in Europe in the last two months, and the number of prisoners welcomed into any European countries since Obama came to office is just two: Binyam Mohamed, the British resident, notoriously subjected to “extraordinary rendition” and torture, whose release in February appears to have been designed (not entirely successfully) to fend off further legal challenges and embarrassing revelations regarding his treatment; and Lakhdar Boumediene, an Algerian cleared by a US judge in his habeas corpus hearing last November, who was resettled in France in May....(Remainder.)

Controversial Advert Uses the Word 'Flamand' as an Insult

By Le Soir
Expatia.com

The publicity campaign for the online operator Mobile Vikings uses the word for Flemish people, ‘les Flamands’ alongside adjectives such as ‘cretin’, ‘pig’ and ‘bimbo’ and ‘moron’.

The jury for ethical advertising has called for the company to withdraw its ten advertisements.

On Mobile Vikings posters and beer mats, slogans such as “Free, its for the morons” or “Free, its for the Flemish” can be found. In the north of the country, the word ‘Flamands’ is replaced by ‘Hollandais’.

“The advert is controversial, but Mobile Vikings is unlike other mobile operators”, explained Koen Delvaux, head of the company. “Our image is a little bit more daring and our adverts reflect this.”

The company have since agreed to remove the more offensive slogans. “We respect the decision of the jury, but it is a shame that a single complaint has the power to block a whole advertising campaign such as ours. We have only received one complaint from a person in the Wallon region who felt discriminated against”, Delvaux added....(Original.)

Sagrada Familia in Barcelona.

Unemployment Continues to Soar in Europe

By Renata Goldirova
EU Observer

Jobs in the European Union continued to disappear in June, with unemployment reaching a four-year high and putting extra pressure of the bloc's coffers to help laid-off workers back into employment.

According to fresh data released by the EU's statistics office, Eurostat, on Friday (31 July), some 21.5 million people - or 8.9 percent - were out of work in the 27-nation EU in June. The figure was 9.4 percent in the 16-member euro area - the highest in 10 years.

Spain, hit hard by the collapse of its construction sector, recorded the highest jobless rates at 18.1 percent, followed by Baltic States, Latvia (17.2 percent) and Estonia (17 percent).

On the other hand, labour markets in the Netherlands and Austria seem to be in the best shape. The two countries have just 3.3 percent and 4.4 percent unemployed respectively.

The European Commission has tried to put a positive spin on the new unemployment numbers, saying that the pace of job losses in the EU as a whole is slowing down.

Compared with May, the number of people unemployed increased by 246,000. "This is much less than monthly increases that we recorded in previous months," commission spokesperson Amelia Torres told journalists (31 July).

She added that "the peak appeared to had been reached in March" when unemployment went up by 646,000....(Remainder.)

Brussels, Atomium, Mini-Europe and Gwen's Visit

It has taken me a while to get around to finally doing this post. Why? I can't really say, as I've nothing to do all day. Ho, hum.

---

Our good friend Gwen came to visit us from the Prague last month for an extended weekend. It was GREAT seeing her again, as we haven't had a chance to "hang out" since Bangkok. While Gwen was here we decided that it would be great fun to take a little day-trip to Brussels.

While in Brussels we wanted to do somethings that none of us had done before. Jan and I have been to Brussels more than a few times. We settled on going to see the 'Atomium' and 'Mini-Europe'. The weather was nice, for the most part. We did have a 20 minute downpour, but it in no way ruined our day. We began our journey at Antwerp Central Station, catching the train to Brussels Nord station. the journey from Antwerp is a quick 30 minute jaunt via rail, and before you know it you're in, what seems like, a totally different country. The overwhelming majority of people in Brussels speak French, eventhough Brussels is technically in Dutch speaking Flanders. That being said, all signs in Brussels are in Dutch and French, and occasionally English.

Brussels is a typical European capital city. There are buildings dating back to the 1300s juxtaposed against the modernity of the EU Parliment.

I will try to explain what is in all the pictures where I can. If I don't know, well you'll just have to make your best guess along with me. So sit back and enjoy part 1! (As always, click on the thumbnail for a larger image.)

Our journey begins in Antwerp Central Station:

Antwerp, and all of Belgium for that matter, is a cycling city. As you can see from all the bikes under the station, many people prefer this mode of transport.

Many people who fancy themselves "experts" where it comes to architecture, consider the main hall of Central station to be one of the nicest in the world. I would have to agree.

---

Many people back in the States, when they hear the term "Red Light District" automatically think of the notorius and infamous district in Amsterdame. However, Brussels has its own "red light district". These pictures were taken of the "district," more of a run down street really, from the train as we were pulling into Brussels Nord Station.

---

Atomium

The Atomium was built for 'Expo '58', the 1958 Brussels World's Fair. Designed by Andre Waterkeyn, the structure rises 335 feet above the parkland below. The nine steel spheres are connected so as to represent a unit cell of an iron chrystal magnified 165 billion times.

---

Mini-Europe

Mini-Europe has the reproductions of the most attractive monuments in the European Union on show, at a scale of 1:25. Roughly 80 cities and 350 buildings are represented. The park is renowned for the quality of its models, some of which cost as much as €350,000 to make (the Brussels Grand-Place). The park contains numerous live action models (train, mills, eruption of Mount Vesuvius, Airbus, cable cars, etc. A guide gives the details on all the monuments. At the end of the visit, the “Spirit of Europe” exhibition gives an interactive overview of the European Union in the form of multimedia games. The park is built on an area of 24,000 m². The initial investment was of €10 million in 1989, on its inauguration by Prince Philip of Belgium.


The Berlaymont, European Commission Headquarters.


Here we have an oil tanker, the P&O Ferry that crosses the English Channel, and a Total North Sea oil derrick. Mmmmm, what's that I smell? Corporatism?


Yes, I'm a Viking, and I'll take over your village! *Insert evil laugh here*


Trelleborg, Denmark


This is a miniature of a gay cruise on the canals of Copenhagen. I'm not kidding. Look closely at the pictures, and you'll be able to pick it out.


Copenhagen, Denmark


The Exchange in Copenhagen, Denmark


Amsterdam, Holland


Not really 100% on where this is. I think it's the Netherlands.


The town hall in Maastricht, Netherlands.


Hoensbroek Castle, Hoensbroek, Netherlands.


Dolelenkade Houses in Hoorn, the Netherlands


City Hall in Stockholm, Sweden


Olavinlinna Castle in Finland


The Fat Margareta in Tallinn, Estonia.


The Monument to Freedom in Riga, Latvia.


The University of Vilnius, Vilnius, Lithuania.


Veves Castle in Celles, Belgium


The Curtius House in Leige, Belgium.


Our Lady of Dinant, Dinant, Belgium




Grote Markt, Brussels, Belgium.


The town hall in Antwerp, Belgium


The town hall in Leuven, Belgium


Some randomness from Belgium.


The Commandery in Alden Biesen, Belgium.


Jan is gonna save the queen, or something to that affect.




Houses of Parliament, London, United Kingdom.


Longleat House, Bath, United Kingdom. The Longleat House is the country estate of the Marquis of Bath.



The Circus, Bath, United Kingdom.


St. Patricks Rock, Cashel, Ireland.


P&O Channel ferry which runs from Calais, France to Dover, England.


Dover Castle, Dover, England


Eiffel Tower, Paris, France.


Centre du Pompidu, Paris, France.


Arc du Triumph, Paris, France.


Sacre-Coeur, Paris, France.


The Chapel of Notre Dame du Haut, Ronchamp, France.


Clos Vougeot Castle, France.


Well clearly it's a port. Where? I'm not sure.


Castle of Chenonceaux, France


This is supposed to be a representation of the Chunnel (Channel Tunnel).


The Ocean Pavillion, Lisbon, Portugal.


Torre de Belem, Lisbon, Portugal.


Cais da Ribeira, Porto, Portugal.




El Escorial, Madrid, Spain.




Plaza de Toros, Seville, Spain


Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela, Santiago de Compostela, Spain.




Campanile, aka "The Leaning Tower," Pisa, Italy. Also the obligitory holding up the tower shot. Also pictures, Piazza del Duomo.


Alberobello, Italy.


Palazzo Publico in the Piazza del Campo, Sienna, Italy. Just a note, the Atomium in the background is the real thing.


Palazzo Ducale, Venice, Italy.


Villa Rotunda, Venice, Italy


Holstentor, Lübeck, Germany




Brandenburg Gate & the Berlin Wall, Berlin, Germany.


Spire Cathedral, Spire, Germany.


Eltz Castle, Eltz, Germany


Porta Nigra, Trier, Germany


Artus Court, Gdansk, Poland.


Three Crosses (Memorial to Fallen Shipyard Workers), Gdansk, Poland




Astronomical Clock, Prague, Czech Republic.


The Blue Church, Bratislava, Slovakia


Ljubijana, Slovenia




The Szechenyi baths, Budapest, Hungary.


Monastary of Rila, Bulgaria


Melk, Austria


Temple of Mnajdra, Malta.


Kourion Theater, Limassol, Cyprus.


The Acropolis, Athens, Greece

---

Along the tram route heading from Atomium back to Brussels, there is some pretty impressive "graphiti." I would tend to think of this more as art, as it was fully authorized by Brussels.