Sally at the Barcelo 360 Bar

“One of these days, the city of Barcelona will be but an entry in my memoirs. A mere peppercorn in the mill of my life as a whole, but what a glorious little peppercorn it is! Packed with punch, bite and heat. I shall sit in my rocking chair, cast my gaze over the misty English hills and remember a time when I was all over Barcelona like a flannel. I shan’t remember things exactly as they were, rather, I will compose a golden day drawn from all my favourite elements so very perfect that I will almost believe that it was true and tell anyone who will listen that once, I lived like a queen. Read the rest of this article…

Casa Batlló

“I have to thank Rob for letting me share on his blog one of the routes I’ve done on more than one occasion when I go to Barcelona. We usually go alone my Nikon camera and I, from now on I will have the feeling that you’re all accompanying me, it will be a pleasure.

I have the great fortune to live 30 km from this fantastic city, which allows me to get there any day of the week. I don’t know why, but I usually choose Wednesdays. I suppose that even though the city is always crowded with tourists and local people, you can still breathe the calm of the beginning of the week.

First of all a good breakfast and if it can be Pa amb tomaquet i pernil (Bread with tomato and ham) all the better. I know! It is very typical, but… the roots are the roots. Once I have the batteries fully charged I start the route. I advise that if you want to follow me you’d better wear comfortable shoes, because the whole journey is by foot. Read the rest of this article…

I am very grateful to all the people who have written for this blog. They, more than I, have made it what it is. But I’m very proud to have the French illustrator, Lapin, take the time to write something. His wonderfully reprinted old accounting books full of illustrations are beautiful objects. I have the Barcelona one. If you appreciate his style, I urge you to get your hands on one via the link below – but first…

The view from Lapin’s apartment – © Lapin

I woke up around 7:30am, that’s the price of being a father ;). I still felt a little bit sleepy. I made myself a cortado and stepped out onto my terrace. There I had all of Poblenou lying beneath and fulfilling me with its energy. The weather was usual for Barcelona. That’s one of the crucial reasons I fell for this city.

One of my favourite buildings on C/ Pere IV, 63-67 – © Lapin

I had to go to Mercat dels Encants to look for some second-hand accounting books to use for drawing and it’s a perfect day to wander and do some doodling of course!

I took Bicing. Strangely I found one right away! Sometimes it really drives me nuts finding empty Bicing stations or not finding any proper working bicycles. Arrghh! Anyway I still like it and it was my lucky day! I passed all the graffiti of Poblenou and one of my favourite buildings on Carrer de Pere IV, 63-67. Read the rest of this article…

A fab article from illustrator, Kat Cameron, on the delights of sketching in Barcelona (including some of her even fabber illustrations).

Barcelona Landscape – © Kat Cameron

A mosaic of green, blue, and red emerges in my mind when I visualise Barcelona. A city of flat terracotta roofs, encircled with the olive-green forests of the Collserola rolling down to the aqua Mediterranean. From first touching down in the glass airport to a wander through the textured gothic alleyways or a glance at the modernista architecture, you know you have landed in a city of art. Miro, Gaudí, Dalí and Picasso all spent time here, and as you meet the locals you discover that Barcelona is filled with architects, designers, graphic artists and illustrators, so really it is the perfect city to go for a stroll with your sketch pad and pencils, find a spot and record your surroundings. Read the rest of this article…

Café Marti, c/ Consell de Cent, 369

“Of all the most beautiful, perfect days I’ve ever had in my life, I think it’s safe to say that a fair number of them have happened in the incredible city of Barcelona. On its best days, Barcelona is like a dream and you keep thinking “I can’t believe this is actually happening to me.”

So what are the ingredients for having such a perfect day? Well, I don’t know what they are for you, but here’s my idea of a perfect day in my favorite city.

The perfect Barcelona day is beautifully warm, and somewhere between April and September, as long as it’s hot enough to gently warm your skin up as soon as you step into the sun.  After having a relaxed lie-in, I’d stroll down to the corner and visit my favorite café, the gorgeous Café Marti, (c/ Consell de Cent, 369) to indulge in a café con leche and perhaps one of their delicious whole-wheat croissants over a newspaper. Mmm…a gentle start to the day. Read the rest of this article…