Intercambio with local students

On Monday 22 October, BCEA students were joined by students from CETA, Girona College of Tourism Management to launch our Language Intercambio ( Spanish-English language exchange). This collaboration between BCEA and visiting students got off to a great start.

Although we felt nervous at first about our ability to express ourselves in Spanish ( and the CETA guys vice versa in English!), we soon relaxed and felt at ease with them. The Intercambio is a great idea, enabling us to meet young people of our age, with the same interests and motivations and creating a relaxed and educational environment from which we can develop contacts and make friendships.

The Intercambio as our Spanish language teachers have explained will be an ongoing project; Penfriend, and this week we received profiles written by the CETA students in English. Along with photos they sent information on what they like getting up to in Barcelona, and so we can take it from there, and get in contact with students we´d like to keep in touch and meet up with. We´ll now start exchanging emails written in English by them and Spanish by us, and we´ll correct one anothers emails.
The Intercambio has given me the confidence to start a conversation in Spanish, to not feel embarrassed to have a go and have a laugh. The CETA students are really friendly, really encouraging and it was great to make this contact with local people outside of the program. I really want to make the effort, because the results are really rewarding.

Costa Brava Weekend

BCEA students sampled the delights of Figueres, Girona and the Costa Brava on the weekend of October 20-21. We started bright and early, setting off at 9am, and reaching the town of Figueres in time to meet with Ana, our guide for the day. This weekend trip really catered to lots of interests, the first one being art and more specifically the surrealist art of Salvador DalíDalí was born and raised in Figueres, and as our guide explained, he quickly revealed himself to be a genuis with the paintbrush. What´s great about the Theatre-Museum Dalí is the eclectic collection of Dalí´s working, exhibiting his early paintings as a fourteen year until his last pieces in the early 1980s. The theatre which was given to him by the town of Figueres, enabled Dalí to express himself, and proveed to be the perfect location to explore the concepts that so fascinated him. It also became increasing clear in the repetition of themes, that Gala, his muse and wife was his inspiration not only for his work but also for life itself. When Gala passed away in 1982, Dalí stopped working, and died just seven years later in 1989.

When the Museum first opened Dalí prohibited the explanation of the works on exhibition, he believed that the visitor should explore and interpret as an individual. We were grateful however to Ana for helping to explain the many images hidden within paintings, Dalí´s techniques, and the influences in his life.

We all agreed Ana was a fantastic guide, passionate and informed on Dalí and his life, with a great voice which could be heard above the crowd of tourists and their acompanying guides.From Figueres, we moved on to Girona Catalonia´s largest city. We spent the afternoon on a guided tour of this beautifully conserved town with its impressive medieval centre. We explored the city walls, its many churches and the call ( the Jewish quarter). Until 1492, when Jews had to convert to Catholicism or leave Spani, Girona was home to Catalonia´s second most important Jewish community after Barcelona.The narrow streets of the old town climb above the east bank of the River Onyar, the magnificent Cathedral and the this area of the town allow the visitor fantastic views of the surrounding valley.
By six, we were finished with visits for the day and headed to the coast and our hotel in the town of Platja d´Aro. We thought this was a tease, the hotel was just so great, situated right on the beach. We all had great views, and within five minutes of checking in, some of the guys were already swimming!!! The rugged Costa Brava is great for photography, golden sand, tiny hidden coves and the pines which hug the cliffs. A couple of students headed out early the next morning to catch the beautiful sunrise and stroll along the beach. After a group dinner at the hotel, people headed out to check out the nightlife and Marta and Joanna (Student Services) joined us at a local bar. We were up and out of the hotel on Sunday morning and on the road again. This time inland to the two charming medieval towns of Peratallada and Pals. Truly quaint little places, we really felt like we were in Spain! We also got to see the guests arriving for wedding in the church of Pals. From Pals we could see across clearly to the Pyrenees and the Medas Islands.
Ana joined us again to explain the history behind these two villages.

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The afternoon was spent in the small white town of Tossa de Mar, situated in a curved bay ending in a headland protected by medieval walls and towers. The wall and watch towers on this headland, Mont Guardí, at the southern end of the main beach, were built in the 12th and 14th centuries to protect the town from pirate attack. Tossa is an enticing location. Artist Marc Chagall called it his Blue Paradise, attracting a artists community in the 1920s and 30s and it was the first place in Spain to establish a contemporary art museum.

Some of us decided to spend the afternoon on the beach reading notes and studying before the midterms, and others explored the old town and Vila Nova (New Town) with its tangle of 18th-century lanes full of restaurants, bars and shops. This weekend was filled with something for everyone, I truly think that each and everyone found something of interest. It was great to see Catalonia, and get an idea of it as a region outside of its capital, Barcelona. We were equally lucky with the weather, and were able to see the Costa Brava at its very best, spectacular!!

Gracia District Tour

What better way to see the Gracia district than with local resident and BCEA Student Services Coordinator Marta Nieves? We joined Marta on the evening of October 10 for an insight into the home of Barcelona´s bohemian and arty crowd, Gracia. Barcelona’s
districts, or “barrios”, each have their own distinctive features, and nowhere is this more true than in Gracia. This can largely be accounted for by its history, as it used to be a separate village on the outskirts of the city. Gracia was traditionally a working class district, the location for much industry, particularly textiles, and small scale artisans. As Barcelona grew, Gracia became part of the bustling centre.

We stopped off in `A Casa Portuguesa´, a Portuguese delicatessen and café, and tried some sweet and savoury specialities. Marta pointed a variety of great places to eat and go out in and around the Plazas that characterise the Gracia district, the most famous square is the Plaça del Sol, which is always busy both by day and by night. The district is peppered with a mix of diverse restaurants, there really is something for everyone; Japanese, Arabian, Mexican.
The district also has its fair share of impressive modernist buildings and is a fascinating place to walk around and photograph.

As we found out on this walkaround, it is definitely worth spending some time in Gracia, both by day and night, and there is plenty to discover.

Montserrat

On Friday 5 October, we took a coach and headed out of Barcelona for a BCEA Day Trip to the mountain of Montserrat, about an hour North West of Barcelona. We were accompanied by two guides, giving us the chance to have a guided tour in english or spanish.

There was lots to take in as Montserrat is a place of great religious significance, and natural beauty. The great views and spectacular rock formations and sheer drops make it popular with climbers and walkers. We took a mini hike to Lovers´ Cross ( see photos).
As one of the guides explained to us `Montserrat´ literally means `jagged mountain´, this peculiar rock formation is visible from a great distance. Montserrat is the site of a Benedictine abbey, Santa María de Montserrat. Montserrat is also home to one of the oldest boys´ choirs (Escolania) in Europe. These World Famous Choir boys sing Gregorian chants and religious choral music. We were lucky enough to hear one of their recitals in the basilica.
After a busy morning we got tickets to up to the top of the mountain on the Funicular Sant Joan, and enjoyed the view while we ate a picnic lunch.
Some of us bought typical local products that locals were selling from market stalls, there was a selection of sheeps´and goats´cheese honey, fig and date cakes! All delicious.

Highly recommended.

Degustación de Pintxos

Wednesday, October 3, 2007
Last night we were introduced to the world of pintxos, the Basque equivalent to tapas. This delicious and extremely attractive `finger food´ was great fun. With a refreshing glass of Txakoli, (Basque white wine) in one hand and a pintxo in the other, laughs were guaranteed!!
One of the magic things about pintxos is the variety, and all the truly amazing combinations of flavours. The table was covered with plates, each carrying an impressive collection of beautifully presented pintxos. Marisco (seafood), jamón (ham), quesos (cheeses) combined in different ways and mounted on slithers of bread. We were then served with morcilla and chistorra, typical Spanish meaty delicacies. The evening coincided with Cassidy´s birthday, and she was absolutely delighted when the waiter brought out pastelitos decorated with birthday candles.

Una noche muy divertida!!

The Magic Fountain of Montjuic

On thursday, September 19, 2007 we visited the Magic Fountain of Montjuic, the fountain first spouted on 19 May 1929 during the Great Universal Exhibition and continues to thrill and delight visitors to Barcelona today. In the summer months, the fountain delivers a spectacular display of colour, light, sound and water acrobatics. We went along with our trusty BCEA guide Marta Nieves. As she explained the history and background to the fountain we took in this impressive sight. It´s a must see!!

Tarragona Day Trip

On Friday, September 15, BCEA had an included day trip to the Roman town of Tarragona.

We spent a beautiful and sunny day in this coastal town.

In the morning we had a very interesting guided tour of Tarraco, the old Roman city. We visited the Archeological Boulevard and the Roman Walls, the Pretorium, the Roman Circus and the amphitheatre. We were even able to see a typical religious Spanish wedding in the cathedral of Tarragona!! As they came out of the church, the bride and groom were showered with rice ( instead of confetti)!!

The town was in the midst of celebrating the Santa Tecla Holiday, ( Santa Tecla is Tarragona´s patron saint) and many activities were taking place around downtown.

For lunch we had some spanish specialities, such as paella, seafood and tapas.

We spent the afternoon on the beach, swimming and laying about the sand!! It was just a perfect day!!!