Winter in Barcelona

Feb – April, 2015 —

It is hard to believe that as we write this update, we are staging to leave Barcelona, Spain to begin our second season in the Med.   Barcelona for the winter was not in our original plan.  As we crossed the Atlantic with “the big picture” in mind, we thought we would have the boat in Malta for the winter and we would live in an apartment somewhere else.  Well, a funny thing happened on the way to Malta.  We made a stop in Barcelona and fell in love with the city.  We looked into keeping the boat here and not only found out that many people wintered their boats here, but that the winters were mild and a number of the people lived aboard—a huge bonus to the cruising budget!  Barcelona has exceeded our expectations and we hope to come back for another winter before leaving the Med – whenever that might be.

Marina Port Vell, (pronounced “Port Bay”) where we are located, is right in the old town part of the city of Barcelona called Barcelonetta.   Just a few years ago it was home to almost 800 boats in small slips.   In 2011 the marina was bought by a Russian to be developed into an international 5-star super yacht marina.  When we arrived in September, security made us put on neon green construction vests to walk through the construction area to the office to sign in.  We have seen amazing changes.  bgDSC_3615.1The “new” marina is about 100 boats of the 35-80 foot range and the rest all superyachts.  The largest yacht we have seen there is a 345-foot yacht, owned by a Saudi Arabian billionaire.  We did enjoy learning that his launch, stored inside the yacht, is 90 feet long!  Most of the other super yachts range from 150-250 feet long.  There is now a new office building, housing a full gym, massage and other spa services, laundry, and crew lounge.  The marina staff is all young, beautiful, smart, and very friendly.  They each speak a minimum of four languages.  We would hire any one of them.  There is also a new restaurant/bar that just opened in February—Ocean One Club.  It is just four slips down from our boat and most Sundays we were treated to the full thumping base of its sound system.  bgDSC_5545Earplugs at hand, one evening we ventured forth to check it out.  Very upscale, very young and very expensive.  It is for “members only” but as slip holders we had free privileges.  Well, no money lost on us.  We only went once, but enjoyed (tolerated) the music from our boat for the rest of the season.  Rumor has it that the members include players on the Barcelona Football Club.  The valet parked cars alone gain one’s attention.  Porches, Ferraris, and Maseratis were the norm.

What did we like about Barcelona?  Barcelona is international, culturally diverse, tolerant, and fun.  Sara’s favorite part of Barcelona – the weather.  It is almost always sunny.  If it is cloudy in the morning, it is still likely to be sunny by afternoon as the clouds burn off.   It is also a walkable city.  We walk miles every day doing errands and getting exercise.  The metro system is very similar to Boston, routes color coded, and easy to navigate for longer trips.

Museums, guitar concerts, tapas bars, walking tours, opera, there is something for everyone.  Sara joined the Barcelona Women’s Network when we arrived.  It is a group of 280 women from 30 countries who all currently live in Barcelona and speak English.  They support three local charities and have a good time doing it.  On one morning’s walk we had 6 members representing Spain, Holland, Germany, Japan, and 2 U.S.  Along the way we ran into another member from India.  In that six degrees of separation concept, she had lived in Belmont, MA while her husband and son completed their doctorates from MIT.  Yes, the world is amazingly flat.   The ages in the group run from early 30s to late 70s.  It is a great group of women helping other women get settled, establish resources, and make new friends.

An amazing number of people in Barcelona speak English.  Multiple languages are natural as Barcelona is the capital of the province of Catalonia, which has its own language – Catalan.  Prior to the Dictator Franco taking over Spain in 1939, Catalonia enjoyed its own identity.  Located on the border of Spain and France, the Catalan language sounds like a blend of Spanish and French.  English is taught in schools from the early grades and movies and music dominate in English.  Barcelona is such an international city that it is common to hear it on the street.  Most waiters speak at least enough English to be able to communicate, and most people seem to like the opportunity to have a conversation in English.  It has certainly been to our advantage!

Once Franco was in power (1939-1973) the Catalan language and Catalan flag were forbidden.   The people of Catalonia were severely repressed by Franco for their separatist ideas.   Spanish was the only accepted language.  Children were not allowed to be given Catalan names.  Once Franco was gone, the patriotism for all things Catalan exploded.  Now, Catalan is the language taught in schools and spoken at home, along with Spanish.  bgIMG_4570All printed materials in this area are in dual language – Catalon first, Spanish second, and the Catalan flag is far more prevalent than the Spanish flag around the city.  We see the Catalan flag draped from many apartment balconies as a display of Catalan pride.

Catalonia is still trying to gain more independence from Spain.  Some people believe they should remain part of Spain but have more voice in their future.  Others would like to see Catalonia secede from Spain and become an independent country.  They closely watched the elections in the United Kingdom last year as Scotland attempted to secede.

bgDSC_5405And then there is the food…the advantage or disadvantage, depending on your perspective, of Catalonia being so close to France, is the bread.  Not just any bread, but the baguettes and croissants.  Yikes!  There are bread stores on almost every block – like coffee shops in the U.S.  But the best bread bakery in Barcelona is a mere three blocks from the boat, and right beside our central market.  DANGER!!!   We buy a fresh baguette almost every day.  Often they are still warm which means that the end is usually missing by the time the shopper gets back to the boat.  They don’t need butter.  Bob likes them dipped in a little olive oil.  And of course, not just any olive oil, but Spanish olive oil, which is fresh and amazing.  Over 40% of all olives in the world are grown in Spain.

Every neighborhood in Barcelona has its own central market.  The markets are filled with wonderful fresh fish, including dorada, tuna, salmon, squid, and octopus.  Bob has become proficient with the squid and octopus and his presentation of grilled whole fish would even impress Bobby Flay.

Jamon is on every menu in every restaurant.  The entire smoked pig legs hang on display in markets and shops.  They are aged anywhere from a few months to a few years.  Once cut into, however, they must be used within a few days.

Thirty percent of the world’s wine is from Spain.  House wine is generally less expensive than bottled water in restaurants, usually about 2.50 to 3.00€ per glass.  Some grocery stores and liquor stores have barrels of wine where you bring your own bottle to fill.  Our local store sells good wine from the barrel for 2.75€ per liter.  And, when you are done you take your jug back for a fill-up.  If you are buying wine by the bottle, also impressively economical, Barcelona makes recycling your bottle easy.  On every street there is a set of huge recycling and trash bins.  Everyone has to take their household trash to the bins.  There is no home collection.  Since you are going to the bins anyway, it is easy to separate the glass, paper, etc. and participate in recycling.

dgDSC_0758 bgDSC_5275Lastly, architecture around the city is another of our favorite things about Barcelona.  The works of architect Antoni Gaudi are a keystone of Barcelona.  His buildings are major tourist attractions for the city and certainly qualify as art.  His most famous and significant achievement is La Sagrada Familia, the huge basilica that is still under construction over a century after it was started.  It is due to finally be finished in another ten years.  It looks a bit like a very detailed birthday cake with the frosting just starting to melt.  The Catalan Modernism architecture movement from the last 1800’s to the early 1900’s has been compared to Art Nouveau in historical signifigance.  Other architecture greats with works through the city include the names of: Joseph Puig, Jean Nouvel, Frank Gehry, Norman Foster and Santiago Calatrova to name a few.  We find ourselves always looking up as we walk to absorb all of the great architecture.

While we think it will be difficult to top Barcelona we are looking leaving sight of this shore to explore new horizons.

 

 

 

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