Puente del Diablo (The Devil’s Bridge), Martorell, Catalonia

“A compelling and eclectic narrative full of the unexpected”, is how Nick Inman from Rough Guides describes Barcelona journalist Brett Hetherington’s new book, “Slow Travels in Unsung Spain“.

Reading the book, I myself felt like a bird sitting on his shoulder, seeing all that he sees in wonderfully vivid detail. Because the following paragraphs are also funny as well as entertaining and informative, I chose them from near the end of the book where Brett tells us about what he finds after leaving Barcelona Sants station on RENFE’s Line 4… Read the rest of this article…

Pica pica tapas and vermouth tour

We meet Esther, a Barcelona native, outside El Cafetó, a bakery on Ronda de Sant Pau in Sant Antoni. This is purely our meeting point, I wouldn’t necessarily recommend it, and so after introductions amongst our group we’re on our way.

I’m on a tapas tour organised by Context Travel. We are experiencing the local tradition of “pica-pica”, enjoying small plates over a glass of vermouth (or wine) before a meal. Our guide is Esther, who grew up cooking with her mother and grandmother. Catalan traditions and cuisine are in her blood. She is bubbly, and clearly very passionate and proud of Catalan produce and cooking. Read the rest of this article…

I believe that most of us, foreigners, will agree that we’ve been drawn by local lifestyle, more than anything else. 300 sunny days a year – that says it all! Even if the bathing season is pretty limited (at least for my liking, it’s around 3 months only), but the mere fact of seeing people play beach volley in February makes my heart beat with joy!

Barcelona tends to make people open and explore new hobbies and passions. I have friends who have taken up Latin American dancing or handicrafts, for example. Well, my newly-found passion was interior design. When you move to a new place, most of the times you are faced with a task to set up a comfy living space for yourself, whether you decide to buy a house or just rent a room. In my case, the moment I dove into the world of home design blogs, Pinterest and furniture shops, there was no way back for me. I started a blog of my own, and one day, hopefully, will even make a living out of it.

Olga at Déjà Vu

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Running up the steps in Montjuïc

As an exercise fanatic I was thrilled to find out about the Spartan obstacle race that comes to Barcelona every year. Loving a new challenge, I made Spartan my excuse to get “out of my fitness comfort zone” in 2019. As a trainer it is important to shake it up as every discipline has its benefits and something to take away.

On sign up I assessed my fitness routine. Like most people I am better at certain types of physical activities than others and I stay with what I know, what I tend to be good at. The type of fitness needed for an obstacle duration course is not my forte so I got to thinking about my training routine and how I could add or change it to get myself all round fit.

My fitness route normally consisted of…Monday yoga, Tuesday trapeze, Wednesdays Pilates, Thursday rest. Friday Pilates, Saturday weights, Sunday rest. I realise that to get myself up to speed I would have to ramp up and change my routine adding at least 2 HIT training and a cardio training to my week…BUT WHEN was my first reaction! And cardio, yuck, was my second.

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Restaurante Suchart’s [credit @streetartebcn]

Restaurante Suchart’s, just a hop, skip and a jump from Gran Via 2 shopping centre and Fira Barcelona, deserves each and every one of its glowing five-star reviews.

Suchart’s is an unpretentious restaurant where you’ll feel at home, like one of the l’Hospitalet locals – while enjoying premium quality food at an extremely reasonable price.

The staff are wonderful and attentive, and make a real effort to give their customers a great experience.

Upon arriving we were seated at a table opposite the long bar, and we opted for a selection of tapas followed by the Suchart’s XL gourmet burger. Read the rest of this article…

I’ve been in and out of Barcelona for the last few years – it’s my second home right now. Ok, so I do have a fair few places in the world in which I instantly feel at home. But right now, my most regular flight-path is LDN-BCN.

I’m a highly creative and energetic person, so what I love in Barcelona is that I can walk and cycle everywhere – and reach a multitude of contrasting destinations in no time, be it to spontaneously meet someone for a drink, climb up a green peak, catch the end of a gig or head to a casting. My perfect day would avoid going underground or being inside during daylight hours if at all possible. (I get plenty of tube and bus-travelling in when I’m in London, and as you know, the weather is not quite so consistently sunny and conducive to outdoor activity there!)

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The beach at Barceloneta

Hi my friends! I am the French guy!

Firstly, I want to warn you that not only I am French, but I am also from Paris. I prefer to say it before you get so dazzled by my talent and my top attitude. I understand this puts me directly in the top races of the world but please, let’s try to forget it.

It’s a pity that you are not able to hear my fucking French accent (in English and Spanish). Ok, ok, my mother tells me that I speak like a Spanish cow. This isn’t nice Mom! But it is true. Even if I don’t really understand this expression. According to me, my accent would be closer to a kind of German monkey.

So, so, so… Rob (the webmaster) is the type of guy who thinks you must deserve your likes and you have to write him something (more than 800 words). How dare you give me orders Rob? This guy created a website where all the content is created by others [Ed. not all of it!]. The guy is the Uber of the web. Ok, ok, so let’s go for it Rob. Read the rest of this article…