A question for you: has Barcelona changed for the better or worse in recent times? Personally, one improvement I’m happy with is the broader range of international cuisines available in the city’s restaurants, but find the growing number of empty business premises increasingly hard to bear; the sudden closure of familiar, friendly enterprises is particularly disappointing. This issue is broached in each of our features this month. We hear from two booksellers about their differing fortunes in the face of the economic crisis and internet shopping; look at the growth of traditional, hand-made food production in the city; and talk to three women who have seen Barcelona metamorphose during the past decades. In other sections, we interview tattoo artist Joaquin Forero about the complexities of his craft and TEFL teacher Melissa Pritchard about her cycle trip from Barcelona to her home in the US. If you’re looking for things to do this month, we tell you about Lindy Hop at Apolo, contemporar
