alisonboston.com

Updated: October 31,scroll down past the pics

Barcelona lights up its waterfront at night…

While on the walking street Las Ramblas, the living statues create a unique theatre…

More pics to come…

…I have just completed the first two legs of the Barcelona triathlon: Accomodation, Work, Residency

The Accomodation and Work were done in reverse order: work then accomodation. Now I have to get the NIE number (residency), though there seems to be conflicting opinions on that necessity. Some say I need it, others say my U.K. passport and Spanish social security number are sufficient. And lawyers disagree.

In any case, I’ve been here now 6 weeks and it has been an exhausting process. The accomodation is challenging, and although I will move tonight to a new place and hopefully sleep in my fifth bed, the flat doesn’t have internet and it will take a month for the local communications mafia to install the lines and activate the service, and then they will charge double what the company where I have been for the last month charge.

So, although my posts have not been frequent for the past several months, they will probably become non-existent for the next month unless I get lucky and access an unsecured WIFI in the new place. Otherwise, I’ll be schlepping this very heavy old laptop to the local library where the WIFI is free, and hence very slow due to abundant users.

Otherwise, just thought I should let you know there is a two-lane, divided cycling path along the waterfront here. It is all lit up at night so I can cycle home in the wee hours. In fact there are divided, two-lane cycling paths all over this city. You can also put your bike in the metro and the suburban trains (not at rush hour) and even some night bus drivers will let you put it on the bus. The car drivers seem accustomed to two-wheelers because there are a lot of motorbikes and scooters, and they don’t get all bent out of shape because a bicycle is on the road. So I find it a cycler’s paradise after the insanity of Budapest - which I called the Cycling Steeplechase because I was always jumping over the wheelchair-unfriendly almost foot-high curbs.

Barcelona is light years ahead in that department; I haven’t yet found one wheel chair-unfriendly curb - even in the old part of the city. Though there are some underground stations that need better wheelchair accessibility.

There seems to be a music scene and I’ve written about one place for the local English glossy, Barcelona Metroplitan - the story is supposed to run in December. The jazz festival started last weekend with a free concert in front of the Cathedral, featuring a 12 year-old trumpet player, and Llibert Fortuny’s Electric Big Band. Local MC and vocalist Aurelio Santos* teamed up with Llibert on a closing number. The festival is called The Project and is spread out over a six week period.

When I asked the Artistic Director Joan Cararach why they do that he said: “Because we are crazy.” But the festival only gets 10% of its budget in grants from the government, with the balance of money coming from sponsorship and ticket sales, so they probably spread out the concerts so they can sell more tickets. In any case, they have a good line-up, and even Hungary is represented by vocalist Gabor Winand.

What else…oh, yeah the temperature is most agreeable - though I do find it a bit humid and the Mediterranean is still warmer than the Pacific around Vancouver Island, but I’m not sure if I will ever get used to the palm trees. After a summer on Vancouver Island and four years in Hungary, Barcelona is kind of like a Hollywood film set. Though some locals call it the Gaudi Theme Park.

*It’s actually Arelio’s WTFjam session which runs every Monday night at Jamboree that I have written about for the Metropolitan. It is worth checking out if you want a good dose of experimental music mixed up with good musicianship. Starts at 9:30 and goes late, very, very late….