La Salchichona
Aka woman in mantilla. Picasso painted this in 1917, aged 36. A wonderful painting. A smooth face, surrounded by points (pointillist technique).
Big girl
Saw this girlie one day at the MACBA. It was an open day for kids at the modern art museum. Cool! The kids loved her!
MNAC
This is the rather magnificent cupola at the MNAC, the national catalan art museum, on Montjuic hill. An absolute must see! The view upon Barcelona from up there is gorgeous as well!
The pond at the MMB
There is this lovely pond at the Museu Maritim de Barcelona, complete with statue, goldfishes and 2 turtles. A little haven, a perfect place to have a cafe solo and to watch tourist go by.
Magic!
It’s magic, and it’s every weekend in Montjuic, in front of the National Art Museum of Catalunya, the MNAC
Post 1701: beauty in the old shipyard
A bit of HDR today, as it brings this structure so well to the light.
This is the ancient shipyard, where they used to build galleons and other wooden marvels. It is now, centuries later, the marvelous maritime museum, aka MMB.
Now that’s how to make an entrance! Aka post 1648
This is the extraordinary entrance to the Cosmocaixa science museum. You actually have to spiral down, around a 30m/90 ft tall brazilian rain forest tree.
Elevators to go out…
And by the way, I almost forgot about it, but this blog celebrated it’s 5th blogaversy on may 10th. Hooray!!!!
Laia
The Santa Eulalia, part of the Maritime Museum, and named after the patron saint of Barcelona. Everybody calls them, the saint and the ship, Laia.
MEAM Barcelona
A few meters away from the Picasso Museum, there is this, the European Museum of Modern Art. Not been inside yet (well, we have about 99 or 100 museums in town, and this one is quite new…), but we will soon, as it specializes in modern figurative art (photography…). Here is the intriguing and inviting entrance.
Many museums in the same area, the mammoth museum, a motorbike museum, a museum of pre-colombian art, the museum of bizarre things…..
50 years!
The Picasso Museum is celebrating it’s 50th anniversary, so we went there on Saturday. Photos forbidden, but… Here is one of the beautiful ceilings. And also one of the paintings.
Water World Wednesday
The fountain with pond in the courtyard of the Maritime Museum, for Water World Wednesday.
Ritter Johann von Österreich’s Real
Ritter Johann von Österreich, aka Don Juan de Austria, in English John of Austria, an illegitimate son of Holy Roman Emperor Charles V, had this gem built here, in the Barcelona Drassanes shipyards. With its 60 meters lenght, the Real was the largest galley of its time, and Don Juan’s flagship in the battle of Lepanto, in 1571, when a fleet of the Holy League, an alliance of Christian powers of the Mediterranean, decisively defeated an Ottoman fleet under Grand Admiral Müezzinzade Ali Pasha.
In 1971, to commemorate the 400th anniversary of the battle, a replica of La Real was built and displayed in the Museu MarÃtim in Barcelona where it can be viewed today. The ship was 60 m long and 6.2 m wide, had two masts, and weighed 237 tons empty. It was equipped with three heavy and six light artillery pieces, was propelled by a total of 290 rowers and, in addition, carried some 400 sailors and soldiers at Lepanto. 50 men were posted on the upper deck of the forecastle, 50 on the midships ramp, another 50 each along the sides at the bow, 50 each on the skiff and oven platforms, 50 on the firing steps along the sides near the stern, and 50 more on the stern platform behind the huge battle flag. To help move and maneuvre the huge ship, it was pushed from the rear during the battle by two other galleys.
Befitting a royal flagship, it was luxuriously ornamented and painted in the red and gold colors of Spain. Its poop was elaborately carved and painted with numerous sculptures, bas-reliefs, paintings and other embellishments, most of them evoking religious and humanistic inspirational themes.
Elton John’s old bathtub
Well… Last Friday after work, we went out for dinner, to a place called the Happy Rock Grill. Had a nice dinner, paid, and then I went to the bathroom before leaving. Well, on the way back, I noticed this massive golden thing in the back of the restaurant. Strange, I said to myself, it looks like a golden bathtub, under a glass plate, with chairs around it.
Had a closer look, and the tag at the corner said, in English, Spanish and Catalan: Elton John’s personal bathtub, 1994.
It seems to be what’s left of the Museum of Rock, which used to be next door, and is closed now.
Not quite sure who had this strange idea, putting someone’s old bathtub in a restaurant, basically in a dining room. But I don’t think we will go back there. And it definitely is one of the weirdest things I ever saw in a restaurant. What about you, what is the weirdest thing you saw in a restaurant or foodie place?
Smelly vials!
Among the 100 or so museums in Barcelona, there is also a perfume museum, which Mandy visited some time ago. Situated in the back of a … perfume shop on Passeig de Gracia, it must smell quite heavenly.
Photo courtesy of Mandy, of course.
The body electric
Back to the Cosmocaixa, Barcelona’s museum of science. I have no idea what this is called, but kids (and I) just love it!
Pretty granny!
She is 94 years old, and she is so pretty! The schooner Santa Eulalia, proud property of the Maritime Museum in Barcelona. She is usually moored nearby, this is the first time I’ve actually seen her sailing.
Poble Espanyol
One of the exits of the small museum in the Poble Espanyol museum village. A museum inside of a museum, if you want… Photos forbidden, as usual. As they were some guards around, I meekly followed the (silly) law. Me, a law-abiding citizen, yes Sir!
You want to see more? Just click on Poble Espanyol just below.
And don’t forget: it’s monthly Theme Day soon! Here‘s the link (not open yet). The theme is: people watching. On your cameras, go! See you all on September 1st!
100 years later….
 
Books, dragons and roses: la diada de Sant Jordi
La Diada de Sant Jordi (Catalan pronunciation: [É«É™ ðiˈaðə ðə ˈsaɲ ˈʒɔrði], Saint George’s Day), also known as El dia de la Rosa (The Day of the Rose) or El dia del Llibre (The Day of the Book) is a Catalan holiday held on 23 April, with similarities to Valentine’s Day and some unique twists that reflect the antiquity of the celebrations. The main event is the exchange of gifts between sweethearts, loved ones and colleagues. Historically, men gave women roses, and women gave men a book to celebrate the occasion—”a rose for love and a book forever.” In modern times, the mutual exchange of books is also customary. Roses have been associated with this day since medieval times, but the giving of books is a more recent tradition originating in 1923, when a bookseller started to promote the holiday as a way to commemorate the nearly simultaneous deaths of Miguel Cervantes and William Shakespeare on 23 April 1616. Barcelona is the publishing capital of both Catalan and Spanish languages and the combination of love and literacy was quickly adopted.
In Barcelona’s most visited street, La Rambla, and all over Catalonia, thousands of stands of roses and makeshift bookstalls are hastily set up for the occasion. By the end of the day, some four million roses and 800,000 books will have been purchased. Most women will carry a rose in hand, and half of the total yearly book sales in Catalonia take place on this occasion.
The sardana, the national dance of Catalonia, is performed throughout the day in the Plaça Sant Jaume in Barcelona. Many book stores and cafes host readings by authors (including 24-hour marathon readings of Cervantes’ “Don Quixote”). Street performers and musicians in public squares add to the day’s atmosphere.
23 April is also the only day of the year when the Palau de la Generalitat, Barcelona’s principal government building, is open to the public. The interior is decorated with roses to honour Saint George.
Catalonia exported its tradition of the book and the rose to the rest of the world. In 1995, the UNESCO adopted 23 April as World Book and Copyright Day.
 And yes, Mandy had her magnificent rose, and I got a sumptuous (cook)book.
Taking the sun
Some tourist… taking the sun, so to say. It is finally raining all over Spain, and God we needed it! Very dry spell so far this year. We had a massive thunderstorm here last night.
Message to all tourists in town: we have well over 80 museums! Enjoy!
Sardana
The sardana is a type of circular dance typical of Catalunya. The dance was originally from the Empordà region, but started gaining popularity throughout Catalunya during the 20th century. When you walk through Barcelona on any holiday, be it religious or not, you’ll almost automatically come across some groups of people dancing. And several statues across town celebrate it. This iron one is on the Fundacio Fran Daurel, in the Poble Espanyol, by Manuel Alvarez.
Watery Wednesday at the Cosmocaixa science museum
HA!Boys just love this!!!
What about you, girls?
Watery Wednesday, as every Wednesday.
Cosmocaixa science museum impressions
Some interesting light effects at the entrance…
A Tyrannosaurus Rex on a diet.
Oh yeah, met Albert.
And yes, the submarine outside. Surprising place.
The sunken forest, Brazil in Barcelona
1000 square meters of a Brazilian sunken forest… Unexpected, even in a science museum. Complete with the animals I named yesterday, plus ants, anacondas, venomous giant spiders, leaf-cutters…
Watery Wednesday in the sunken forest
Inside the Science Museum, there is a sunken forest, populated with fishes, birds, snakes, a capibara, etc…
 Watery Wednesday, right here.
Cosmocaixa: the tree
No, not some futuristic ark-kind of spaceship. It is the tree in the Science Museum, aka Cosmocaixa.
What tree is it, will you ask?
Here is some more about it, as seen in HDR.
Cosmocaixa (so called because it belongs to a local bank, the Caixa), is an absolutely fantastic place. You actually enter the museum by going down the long ramp around the tree.
I’ll show you more this week.
Singing the body electric
Another take on this month’s theme day, electricity. Well, you can play with it, as these kids did at the Cosmocaixa, Barcelona’s science museum. Click here to view thumbnails for all participants
Barcelona ROCKs!
This is the MACBA, the Barcelona Museum of contemporary art, yesterday evening. In front of it is a big square, very popular with skaters. And next to it, says the Norwegian Dagbladet, they want to build the Rock!
This would be (yes, would, as I have some doubts about its feasibility) a hostel, complete with bar, fitness center, spa, swimming pool, cinema, and some … climbing facilities. If your Norwegian is not too bad, read more about it here. It is an idea of the Polish architectural company Ugo, for the Barcelona 2011 Bohemian Hostel for Backpackers International Competition
Sounds a bit like a joke to me, but hey, this being Barcelona, everything is possible!!!
And big TAK to our friend Gunn in Stavanger for letting us know. Feel free to visit her blog, Stavanger Daily Photo.
Woodstock/Barcelona
According to the press, we have here in town Europe’s only museum of Rock. Many interesting artifacts in there, this poster, for example. Mandy took the photo, but it brought back some nice memories to me, Rob.
I mean, get the picture a bit bigger, and read the names of the bands present! The best ever concert, ever,ever! No?
Should you want to go there, it is in the Arenas shopping mall on Plaza de Espana.
Colors
Extremely bad weather here, didn’t go out much lately. So here is an old archive photo, taken… can’t remember where.
Our World Tuesday
Second post about the Museum of Ideas and Inventions. This is a dunk-mug. Fabulous!
The sun is moving, your plants don’t get enough light? This is the solution!
This is supposed to be, believe it or not,a bicycle. Yes.
The Museum of Ideas and Inventions – MIBA
We spent a very entertaining hour at the tiny but great Museum of Ideas and Inventions…
Now, did you ever wonder how they do the weather report??? Here it is!
What would you call this? A mop-rophone?No, we didn’t buy one.
Take a boiled egg, put it in the egg cuber, push the thinggie on top…
Last (for today) but not least…. This is a seat you can use when you need a suppository. Just pull the lever.Â
Just another museum.
Fed up walking around in the sun, too hot for the beach? Here is an idea: the Museum of Erotica, in front of the Boqueria market. You get a free drink,and Wifi, how’s that?
Welcome, strangers!
Had some visitors yesterday, officials from the wax museum on planet Spielberg Beta 3 Omicron… Welcome, strangers, this is my world!
Photo courtesy of Mandy
The Big Blue Museum
I showed you an inhabitant of this place a few days ago, a lovely stuffed goat. Well, this is where the goat lives. It is an equilateral triangle 180 meters on each side, 25 meters high. It was built in 2004 by the architects Herzog and De Meuron. It hosts now the Museum of Natural History, aka the blue museum.
A few random pictures from in- and outside.
This is for James’s Weekend Reflections. Have a look!
Museu Blau
One of the friendly exhibits at the brand new Museu Blau, the blue museum, aka the Museum of Natural History. The building itself is…a weird dark blue ‘floating’ triangle and so built that is is a bit of a challenge getting good pictures of it. Well, I tried, you’ll see the result…soon. Meanwhile, you can always have a look here.
Doesn’t he look real???
The bullring
Right. We’re in Spain. In Spain, we have bullrings. Here is a different kind… After being built in the early 20th century, after a long onslaught, it closed down, and was remodeled into what it is now, a brand new shopping center, Las Arenas. It wasn’t easy. Due to the worldwide economic crisis, the works stopped for almost a year. But it finally opened 3 weeks ago. Inside? The same high-street shops you can find everywhere else, plus the first ever museum of rock in Europe. And a great view over Barcelona from the top, or so they say: too many people when we tried to go there.
Here is what inside looks like.
About the museum of rock, I will show it to you when it will be possible to enter the place without having to queue for endless hours. Soon!Weekend Reflections 79
Entering the Caixaforum museum. Owned by a bank called Caixa Catalunya, which explains the slightly weird name.
Weekend Reflections number 79 already! Wishing James a fast recovery! Click here, as usual.
Who’s that guy?
Superman is in town!
 We’re not, off on holidays till the end of the week. See you soon!
Cosmocaixa 3
And back to the science museum. It has it’s own sunken jungle, believe it or not, an indoor jungle! Above…
… and below. You can actually walk around and through it, meet the inhabitants, some funny birds, a capibara, big fishes… And it’s pretty warm in there!
Photos reworked with a program I discovered recently, something called Luminance HDR. More magic photos on my other, more experimental photo blog, right here.
Cosmocaixa 2
 
Cosmocaixa
We had some fun at the Cosmocaixa yesterday afternoon, Barcelona’s science museum. An amazing place, where you can actually touch things and experiment, and with it’s own sunken indoor jungle. More about it in the next days. The photo above was reworked with a touch of magic, you can see the original below. A few more HDR photos on my other, more experimental blog, right here.
If you’re going to Barcelona, be sure to wear a dolphin on your head.
And who might that be?
Well, Salvador Dali, of course!
Our little cat Rio posted some new photos on his blog. He is very clever!
Weekend reflections
The sky, as reflected on the MACBA, Barcelona’s contemporary art museum. I left the guy in the picture to give an idea of the size.
This is for James’s Weekend Reflections meme. Click here to see more lovely photos.
Salvador Domingo Felipe Jacinto Dalà i Domènech, Marquis of Dalà de Púbol
 
MNAC
One of the more unexpected items to be found in the Catalan National Art Museum, the MNAC. Painting by John Hassall, sometime between 1893 and 1924.
Zoological museum
Let’s stay in the Ciutadella area a little longer.
Among other nice buildings in the Park, there is the zoological museum. And you can have an idea of the content of the museum even before entering it!
Oh yes, I just added the possibility to either send a free ecard of our pictures, or even to buy some prints! Don’t hesitate!
Caixaforum
This is a turret on top of a former textile factory (yes, even factories are nice here). The factory became a warehouse, then stables and garages for the national police force.
It is now one of the many (73 at the last count) museums in town, the Caixaforum. Modern art, temporary exhibitions (right now one about the great Federico Fellini).
Puig i Cadafalch completed the Casaramona factory in 1911, culminating his art-nouveau period with it. The building features the simplicity and clarity of the thoroughly worked-out masterpiece: its bare brickwork is topped by Catalan vaults resting on castiron columns and enclosing light-filled, spacious workshops. Its response to the triumph of the horizontal that was characteristic of the local Gothic style is presented through the rhythm of its battlements on the one hand, but also and more particularly through the bold aspect conferred on the building by its two slender towers. It was awarded the City Council’s prize for the best industrial building in that same year.
The architects Arata Isozaki, Francisco Javier Asarta, Roberto Luna and Robert Brufau all played their part in the refurbishment and extension work.
Lamps
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A couple of lamps at the MNAC, with a very distinctive modernist style, what they probably would call Art Nouveau in Paris, I suppose.
Theme day: wood
Today is CDP theme day, with the theme: wood.
This is replica of the submarine Ictineo 1, launched in the port of Barcelona on September 23rd, 1859.
More info here.
Stairs with peacocks
Last sunday, we saw this absolutely fabulous picture as well, at the Museu Nacional d’Art de Catalunya. And it remains a mystery to this day: the description was missing. Does anyone know anything about it?
Latest news from our adventures in XTML land… Hope you like the new favicon, and there is now a random post widget in the sidebar.
250th post: Names and dolls
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Art nouveau
I am starting today a small series about the MNAC, Museu Nacional d’Art de Catalunya. The Museum is celebrating it’s 75th anniversary, with an exhibition called ‘Convidats d’Honor’, guest of honor. It’s a kind of best of the museum’s pieces, and it is worth the visit, believe me!
The first piece we want to show you is this wonderful catalan art nouveau dressing table, the finest we’ve ever seen. Wouldn’t you love to have it in your boudoir??? We would! Without the people in the mirror though.
The header, by the way, is another rendition of the museum’s cupola. The best way to see it is to sit down on one of the too comfortable sofas put there for this purpose. Lean back and enjoy, in other words!
Barcelona wedding a la japanese
For some reason, japanese couples absolutely LOVE getting married in Barcelona. And the photoshoot is always on the steps of the Museu Nacional d’Arte de Catalunya, aka MNAC. Every time we go there, there is at least one japanese wedding, sometimes more.
And here are their limos.
We can only wish them anonymously a very happy life. And may they come back to Barcelona!
MMB
One of my favorite places in Barcelona is the MMB, Museu Maritim de Barcelona. Actually, mainly for the museum shop, a fantastic place for a photographer. I just love what can be done with a maritime theme. And I could buy the whole shop! OK, I confess, I was a fanatic model boat builder as a kid, and I feel suddenly much younger in this shop!
Museu Nacional d’Art de Catalunya
You might remember earlier pictures of this museum on the flanks of Montjuic Hill. Here is the central cupola, absolutely magnificent!
Much more info about this museum here.
Transports of all kinds again. This time no big boats, cars or helicopters… This is the oldtimer way, the slower way, when traveling was still traveling. Says a traveler!
This beautiful 19th century coach is at the entrance of the Museu Romantic, or museum of the romantic times, in Sitges.
Floating candles
Floating candles, from the Maritime Museum shop.
Copito de Nieve
Ladies and gentlemen, allow me to introduce the very unique Copito de Nieve! AKA Floquet de Neu, or Snowflake, he was for many years one of the most famous inhabitants of Barcelona (zoo).
Snowflake was the only known albino gorilla. He was born around 1964 in today’s Equatorial Guinea, and unfortunatelydied of cancer on November 24th, 2003. In human terms, he was around 80 years old. During his life, he had 22 offspings, none of them albino. The famous Catalan primatologist Jordi Sabater Pi discovered him in 1966, and brought him to Barcelona, where they were received by the Mayor himself.
Sabater Pi died last wednesday, this is the reason for this posting.
The photo itself…. was taken in the Barcelona Chocolate Museum, one of my favorite museums here (hehe!). Snowflake’s statue is entirely made of white chocolate. Yummy!
For more info, click on the links in the text. And to see photos of the real Snowflake, just google Snowflake Barcelona.
MY BLOGS OF NOTE
Please have a look at the marvelous photos on Thessaloniki daily photo blog. Kostas truly has the eye of an excellent and gifted photographer.
La Niña de la Constitucion, a bronze statue
The time between 1975 and 1982 in Spain is called the Transition Time. It took the new Spanish government 3 years after General Franco’s death to start rebuilding democracy and to establish a Constitution.
In 2003, to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the Constitution, 25 Spanish artists created these pictures you see on the wall. And, the same year, an artist, whose name is, I believe, Carlos Lopez Hernandez, created the Niña de la Constitucion, the bronze statue of a little girl you can see looking at the paintings, the daughter of the Constitution.
Art Nouveau detail
This is a detail of a folding screen I saw in the MNAC, or Museu Nacional d’Arte de Catalunya, a while ago. Somptuous, isn’t it?
Art Nouveau at the MNAC
We went to the MNAC, Museu Nacional d’Arte de Catalunya, a while ago. Very fine museum, absolutely not to be missed!
Among many other beautiful things, I discovered this Art Nouveau furniture. I actually took a note of what it was and who had made it, but I lost the paper. So, If anyone knows more about it, please put a comment! Molt gracies!
09 July: might have been Miucha
Feet
Feet was last month’s theme. Well, I took this picture 3 weeks later. I was coming up from some museum’s underground, and that’s what I saw. Hope you like it as much as I do! My blog is pretty colourful, but I really like black and white as well. More of this later.
Orfeo Catala
The Catalan Orpheon, aka the Palau de la Musica Catalana, one of Barcelona’s 8 UNESCO World Heritage Sites, celebrated today el Dia de la Musica, World Music Day, by opening it’s doors for free. The Palau was inaugurated in 1908, and is a wonderful example of Catalan Modernist style. If you want to know more about it, please go here.
I don’t know if the World Music Day is celebrated worldwide… It started in France in 1982, when Jack Lang, Minister of Culture, decided to celebrate summer by a big party. Basically, everybody started making music in the street, free concerts everywhere… It is now celebrated in many countries, even in Bahrain, so I heard today. Is it celebrated in your country?
Here is what Wiki has to say about it.
73 museums in Barcelona, many of them free… It’s like paradise for me!
Amongst them, a truly beautiful Maritime Museum. The picture was taken from inside what used to be the royal shipyard. Fantastic building.
But not just ships and boats! Toutankamon will be amongst us this summer, and he will be residing in the Maritime Museum.
Want to know more? You can find it here.
Barcelona Daily Photo 
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