Enjoy Barcelona from home
For anyone who loves Barcelona and wants to dream about making a trip to the sun, or a change of place. At the moment we are experiencing the peak of the Corona crisis and the city is deafeningly quiet. That’s why these tips about making a trip to Barcelona from home are now the best experiences you can create!
You can also use this travel guide and tips once you can travel back to our vibrant city.
Tips to discover Barcelona from home
1. Put on some Spanish music
Start the Barcelona day with music. Discover new artists and enjoy the Spanish atmosphere at home.
This song by Joan Dausa is entitled Tot anira bé. That is Catalan for “Everything will be alright“. That is the message that the children have put on their rainbow drawings since the start of the crisis, and where the hopes of the locals come true. Sing along and believe in it.
I ara el cor em diu Que to anirà bé I ara el món em diu Que to anirà bé
And now my heart tells That all will be well And now the world tells me That all will be well
The great Spanish star of the moment, Rosalía is from Barcelona. Her repertoire is so versatile and worth discovering. I also love this collaboration with James Blake, it’s called Barefoot in the park. And Cuando te Beso, together with the Spanish Niña Pastori from Andalucia also gives so much feminine energy! https://youtu.be/3yclEyqh7Xg
The video clip of the song Espiritu santo by Facto Delafé y las Flores Azules was shot in the Gothic Quarter. Discover the oldest streets in the city. https://youtu.be/m3oK4vwSfyo
Una lluna a lʻaigua from Txarango. Fresh, summery and cheerful. In Catalan and recorded in the city! https://youtu.be/BeH2eH9iPw4
Belgian Artist Netsky recorded this cool video of Love is Gone a few years back in Barcelona. Good for some dancing and the teenagers in the house!https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5JQbVF8FLyk
The music video for the cheerful song La Gran Eufòria by Joan Dausa, was shot in the most beautiful places in Barcelona. Looking at this, you cannot help but feel melancholy. As far as I am concerned it may be played all over the city, days on end, once the biggest problems are over. For the locals who have to stay in their (often not so comfortable) apartments for weeks, this will really sound like a big liberation. It really makes me emotional when I think about it now. He sings:S’acaben les hores que mai no acaben.
The hours that never stopped are over. https://youtu.be/U6aTHT2wIH8
2. Play a famous work of art
The Museum of Catalan Art has launched a unique campaign. Create your copy of a masterpiece from their collection at home. You can surely spend an afternoon doing this. Fun guaranteed for young and old! You can find inspiration on their Pinterest page.
This painting by Ramon Casas, for example, is very typical of the Art Nouveau movement, Catalan Modernism, and owned by the MNAC, the Catalan art museum in Barcelona.
The female artist I discovered this week on a virtual tour of their website is Olga Sacharoff https://www.museunacional.cat/en/-olga-sacharoff
Check out some examples of people who act out the artworks here. Can’t be cuter, right?
PS: Use the hashtag #RepteArtACasa to appear on their Instagram feed.
3. Toast with a vermut
Go to your local wine store and buy a tasty Catalan vermut. This is a fortified wine with spices. Locals often aperitif with a Vermut and some olives on Sunday around noon, before the familia starts eating a big pan of paella together. The Barcelona neighborhood Gràcia is known for this, but you can drink it everywhere.
So enjoy the sun in your garden, the children running around, or just a good book with a glass of vermouth. Do you live alone or want to toast digitally with friends? Organize a WhatsAperitif!
After work, you can also take a moment with your partner to enjoy each other. Toast on the weekend, on your family, your own health, on the garden or the house where you live. Think about all the things you have today.
PS: can´t find vermouth? Alternatives for a tasty Spanish drink are the Catalan Cava, Gin Mare with delicious herbal flavors or a traditional Sangría! I’m currently very pregnant so I stick to a Clara (beer with lemonade) Sin Alcohol. Also delicious.
4. Make a Gaudí at home
Catalan architect Antoni Gaudí loved nature and animals. Inspire your children with his art, and show them the beautiful Park Guëll. Recreate a reptile with papier mache or its famous and colorful chimneys. Copy the broken mosaic style (called Trencadis). The children will love making extra large makettes with cardboard and paint them afterwards.
5. Make a Southern balcony or sun terrace
Most locals in Barcelona don’t have a garden. With some luck they have a small balcony, but they do enjoy this to the fullest. Anyone who has a roof terrace or “ático” is a very lucky person. Do you also have such a space? Put up a simple table with 2 chairs in the sun and that is already a great start.For the children, drag on a sandbox, a few plants, open your windows, hang your laundry outside, and you’re in Barcelona. Get a book and forget the time.
6. Get your olive tree at home, or start with a mandarin or lemon tree
Now that the garden centers are still allowed to go to, you can look for an olive tree. This is a beautiful tree that also gives you olives, so why not? Or a typical mandarin tree … It is not easy for them to overwinter in Northern Europe for citrus trees, but it is possible! Ask your garden center for tips!
7. Watch a film
Vicky Cristina Barcelona from Woody Allen takes you to all sunny spots in Barcelona from home. This is a happy movie and it makes you long for a warm and long summer. Sounds good?
The funny L’Auberge Espagnol also remains a favorite.
The Parfum is also surprisingly recorded in Barcelona, because it actually takes place in Paris and France. Both the large square on Poble Espanyol and the Gothic quarter on the square of Sant Felip Neri are clearly recognizable. Let us know if you recognize this beautiful square!
8. Read a classic
The books by the Barcelona resident Carlos Ruiz Zafón have been translated into English. They give you hours of reading pleasure, tell you more about beautiful places in the old city districts and even Mount Tibidabo. Once you travel to Barcelona, you can certainly ask us for a tour where we show you those places.
9. Tapas tapas tapas
Get the taste of Barcelona from home. Prepare a tapas meal with calamari, patatas bravas, anchovies, delicious sausage (fuet)… Divide the portions on small plates and enjoy the simplicity. Make your own tortilla de patatas according to the BBC Good Food.
Go to the deli and ask for a tasty Spanish ham and cheese. The Iberico ham is the best delicacy that you will also pay a price for, but a good Jamon del pais can also be really tasty. Bring tasty olive oil with you to serve with salad or side dishes.
If you can buy fresh mussels or prawns in the fish shop, you can also serve them with it. Delicious!
10. Make a human tower with Playmobil, Lego or your children
The Castellers are a local Catalan tradition: building human towers. The sporty locals in each village train for and participate in competitions. You can recreate these human towers with your own children, or let them create a Playmobil or Lego set-up.
The competitive levels are different, but enjoy watching this very ambitious and impressive example: https://youtu.be/K1HWyUIZ5kk?
What do you think? Do you feel like trying one of the activities and enjoying Barcelona from home?
Let us know which one you liked?
¡Con Mucho Gusto!
Esther