Thursday 31 July 2014

Random reasons why Barcelona is so cool

Beth of "Besudesu Abroad", mentioned in a recent facebook status that Barcelona's city symbol is a dragon, and wrote "How badass is that?". She was expressing her feelings for this amazing city. In this post I'll try to write a few VERY RANDOM reasons why Barcelona is cool!

One of the dragons in Parc de la Ciutadella

Saturday 19 July 2014

Game-changer: I just kind of relocated to Barcelona!

Surprise! Perhaps you have noticed that it has been quiet on the blog and in my social media channels in the last ten days. This is because I am in Barcelona right now and I intend to stay here for a few months! I was looking for a flat in the past few days, and now that I have one I'm trying to find a job - something to pay the rent, not my dream job, because that is hard to find.

A cycle has finished for me. I have finished my PhD, and at the same time I had to move out of my flat in Venice. Subsequently, I had to look for both a new flat and a job.
 
While Venice has been a great place to live in for a while, a good detox from chaotic London, where I used to live before that, I feel that I need a change in my life. In spite of the millions of tourists, Venice is a small town, with a small-town mentality. I miss the international dimension of a city, the possibility of doing something new every day, of exploring new neighbourhoods, of having a wide choices of bars and little ethnic restaurants. I need people that can inspire me, with innovative ideas and . Venice is gorgeous aesthetically, it has a great cultural offer especially concerning art exhibitions and theatre, but it can hardly be called a city.  


A cool bar in Barcelona


Why Barcelona?

Barcelona is a city I love, in a country that I adore and where I have been several times, but just on holiday. Barcelona has everything that I like about London (I also lived there for over a year): it's a vibrant city, multicultural, and with a lot of things going on at all times. At the same time, it doesn't have the disadvantages that I find about London: it's not as big, for one thing, and it doesn't have that crap depressing weather. Moreover, people actually speak to each other, and the food is awesome!
 
Yes, I know that Spain is not the best country to relocate to right now, because of the economic crisis, the unemployment, and so on. The truth is that I can't see myself living in Berlin, but I can easily image myself in Barcelona. At least for a few months.


The Barceloneta beach

This is not a definite move. I am not leaving Venice forever. As one of my wise friends say, Venice is the perfect place to return to. I intend to stay there a few months, and see what (or where) this experience takes me.


Selling fruit at La Boquería market


You can expect updates from Barcelona: its cool bars, its hidden gems, its world-famous night life and its culture. Let's see if I also mention to visit other pars of Catalonia and Spain!

Arc de Triomf


Do you like Barcelona? Have you been? What strikes you the most about this city?

Monday 7 July 2014

Katzentempel, the first cat café in Munich

I had always dreamt of visiting a cat café, which is a regular coffee shop where you can pet cats and the ambience is built for the well-being of the animals, with parcours and pillows. Cat cafés were born in Asia: the first one opened in Taiwan back in 1998, and then spread to Japan, where they are still very popular.  In the past few years, cat cafés are opening all over the world, including one in Turin, so when I read that there was one in Munich - where I was headed for a weekend - I decided  to pay a visit, and perhaps cuddle a German cat or two.


Mascotte in front of the cashier
01 09 10