Barcelona Metropolitan issue 158 by Barcelona Metropolitan

Barcelona in english MARCH 2010 | Nยบ 158 | Free

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Publisher Creative Media Group, S.L. Managing Director Esther Jones Senior Editor Hannah Pennell Assigning Editor Richard Schweid Assistant Editor Katy MacGregor Art Director David Robinson Graphic Designer Aisling Callinan Financial Manager Cecilia Ölmedal Sales Director Rainer Hobrack

Account Executives Heather Anderson, Janna Nordstrom Marketing Director Hazel Walker Marketing Assistant Jade Anglesea Sales Assistants Alexandra Longstaff, Malini Sampat Editorial Assistants Sara Blaylock, Jayne Deacon, Ema Kazlauskaite Design Assistant Heike Schuricht Financial Assistant Zubeyde Tugce Tanyeri Contributors Jonathan Bennett, Lucy Brzoska, Roger de Flower, Matt Elmore, Nadia Feddo, Catherine Hubbard, Alx Phillips, Pete Jenson, Nick Lloyd, Nicola Thornton Photographers Lucy Brzoska, Patricia Esteve, Tracy Gilbert, C. Secanella, Adriana Trif, Ranald Ward, Lee Woolcock Illustrator Ben Rowdon Editorial Office Enric Granados 48, entlo. 2ª 08008 Barcelona Tel. 93 451 4486, Fax. 93 451 6537 editorial@barcelona-metropolitan.com ads@barcelona-metropolitan.com info@barcelona-metropolitan.com www.barcelona-metropolitan.com Printer Litografia Rosés

Contents

18 No. 158

From the Managing Director:

Cover Story

Food & Drink Directory

After nearly 14 years as Senior Editor at Barcelona Metropolitan, our dear colleague, friend and cofounder, Richard Schweid, is taking his hard-earned retirement. When I first met Richard I was struck by his directness, his honesty and his genuine passion for journalism. He defined the magazine with his integrity and his dedication to social issues in the city. His own curiosity for the quirky side of life meant he was always open to new ideas and suggestions. Metropolitan is Richard’s creation in many ways and although it has evolved and will keep evolving, it will always owe a great deal to its first editor. Richard has also been a true friend to myself and many others in the magazine over the years and we will miss him greatly.

Marketplace

Esther Jones

Basketball at FC Barcelona

Features Interview City La vida Street life

Mark Redden

Firearm murders

Smoking ban Francisco Giner

22 26

Food and drink

Reviews and more

Regulars You the reader What’s on the web

6 8

Columns

Back page

Depósito Legal B35159-96 The views expressed in Barcelona Metropolitan are not necessarily those of the publisher. Reproduction, or use, of advertising or editorial content herein, without express permission, is prohibited.

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Advertising

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| M | You the reader

Dear Metropolitan, Photo by Julio Arboleda

Surprising shopping I was surprised to read in last month’s magazine how many of your readers get their food in supermarkets [‘Speaking up’]. Barcelona must surely be one of the cities with the greatest number of fresh food markets, as mentioned in another article in the issue [‘Market makeover’], offering a great range of fruit,

THE BEST OF BARCELONA DELIVERED TO YOU Sign up for your free newsletter Find out what’s coming up in Barcelona with

vegetables, fish, meat and more

our e-newsletter. Just go to the homepage of

besides. I realise that supermarkets can be quicker and more convenient in some

our website and sign up for your weekly mail.

cases, but in this carbon-footprint-aware, eco-friendly society we supposedly live in, isn’t our own individual convenience less important than supporting smaller businesses that aren’t dominated by ‘the man’ and bring their produce much less further than many of the big chain shops?

Lucy Wilshire

Photo by Lee Woolcock

What’s the answer? I’ve just read a report on-line saying that in 10 years time, 80 percent of British men and nearly 70 of women will be overweight or obese. And that news comes hot on the heels of your report about the rise of juvenile obesity

Become a Facebook fan of ‘Barcelona Metropolitan’. Our page on Facebook features news and information about what’s going on in Barcelona, and offers users the chance to share ideas, tips and advice about being a foreign resident here.

here in Spain, which has long had a reputation for its healthy diet [‘Too many kilos’]. These are just some of the seemingly endless articles about how we are just getting fatter and fatter (in the West, of course). It’s all very well being fed these percentages and graphs, such as the one you used in your story, but what we are we supposed to do with all this information? There has to be a concerted effort by a great deal more people and organisations to end this trend; stop plying us with facts and figures and take action instead.

Marjorie Hayes

Barcelona Metropolitan special event: April 2010 Catalan nationalism and the estatut—what are they all about? The whole idea of Catalunya as a separate nation can be hard for foreign residents to understand. Many people sense how important it is locally, but don’t understand much about it. Metropolitan hopes to lend a hand by offering a free educa-

You can also follow us on Twitter— ’bcnmetropolitan’ posts regular tweets about what’s happening in the city and we’d like to hear about Barcelona from you too.

tional forum on April 8th at the Ateneu Barcelonés (C/ Canuda 6), at 7pm, in which both sides of the issue will be presented, in English. Two representatives of Catalan political parties will explain their parties’ positions on the proposed new version of the estatut and Catalan nationalism. Nito Foncuberta of Ciutadans per Catalunya, which is opposed to Catalan nationalism, and Marta Rovira from Esquerra Republicana de Catalunya, which supports it, will be joined by native English speakers and long-time Barcelona residents, Charles Ablett, a scholar of Catalan history who isn’t in favour of local nationalism, and Erik Jeffries, who owns a business here and supports Catalan nationalism. Each speaker will have 10 minutes, then the floor will be opened to questions from the audience. The forum will be moderated by Richard Schweid, a founding editor of Barcelona Metropolitan.

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You the reader

Speaking up

|M| 7

One of our features this month looks at the proposed full smoking ban in Spain (‘Smoke free’, pp. 2224) and offers some tips to those smokers who, in view of the forthcoming restrictions on where they can light up, might be thinking of giving up. However, sacrificing anything is never easy—this month, we asked nine Barcelona residents to tell us what one thing they could never go without.

Andrezj Witek Poland

Mateja Gabrijelcic Slovenia

Ryan Paine USA In BCN: 3 years

In BCN: 1 year

In BCN: 6 months

“Alcohol. I once went four months without

“My family and friends—for me, people

“I will never give up spending time with my

drinking, and when I drank again, I couldn’t

are the most important thing in life, and I

family. They are the most important thing

believe how much I’d missed it. I’ll never

wouldn’t give them up for anything.”

for me.”

give it up again.”

Mel King UK

Joao Mana Portugal

Mohamed Zargua Morocco

In BCN: 3 years

In BCN: 6 months

In BCN: 13 years

“The one thing I can’t give up is English

“I could never give up sweets and tennis.

“I couldn’t give anything up. Life is for liv-

tea! The tea here just isn’t the same and I

Also travelling, good movies and parties,

ing and we exist to experience everything

always bring tea bags back from England.”

spending time with my friends.”

it has to offer.”

Christina Rott Germany

Agustina Esposito Spain

Xiaolei Yang China

In BCN: 6 months

In BCN: 5 years

In BCN: 1.5 years

“My Mac! I would never change it for

“Chocolate. I know it seems an obvious

“I could not give up Spanish literature.”

anything in the world! And dark chocolate

answer and people always say they’re ad-

too.”

dicted to it, but I really am.”

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| M | On the web

What’s happening on Exclusive web reviews Amongst our web-exclusive content, we’ve recently published a couple of reviews

The Informer City... A UNESCO commission visited the

covering big cultural events in Barcelona. First was Lauren Mannion’s take on the

Sagrada Familia in February to see what eﬀects

sold-out Arctic Monkeys’ concert at the Palau Sant Jordi at the start of February. “The

the AVE high-speed train works are having

90-minute set saw them show oﬀ their latest material, with older favourites thrown in.

on the landmark. The commission met with

Much has been commented in recent months about the Arctic Monkeys’ new long-

representatives from the Junta Constructora de

haired look and American-inﬂuenced sound, with fans divided over whether the shift

la Sagrada Familia and two main issues were

away from punk-rock beats and witty Yorkshire storytelling is a stroke of genius, or

discussed: firstly, the danger of building works

something of a sell-out. I have to confess that I wasn’t sure, but hearing the new songs

on the sandy ground on which the Sagrada Fa-

live has blown any doubts away.” Comments from others who went to the concert

milia stands, and secondly, the eﬀects that the

echoed Lauren’s sentiments: “the boys were a little ‘too cool for school’ with none of

future passing of AVE trains could have on the

the Glastonbury-headlining humour, but an intense barrage of Humbug interlaced

foundations of the cathedral and the increased

with most of the witty anthems more than pleasured the mixed crowd of students &

risk of water passing through the base of the

cosmopolitan older musos” wrote Graeme Williams, while Liam McGurk said, “It was

Sagrada Familia as a result. The Sagrada Familia

a good night, and I will go again if they come back, but I missed a few old songs to

is a designated UNESCO World Heritage site, as

get me really groovin’. ‘From the ritz to the rubble’ is a favorite and I didn’t hear it. But

one of seven designs by Gaudí.

overall it was worth it.” Elsewhere, Alx Phillips produced a slideshow review of the major exhibition on now at the Fundació Foto Colectania featuring

the public can carry out some of the most

images by Latin American photographers,

common procedures related to living in the

‘El peso de la ciudad’. The photos that Alx

city including getting a residency certificate.

reviewed included this one by Horacio

The ‘Puntos BCN’ will be located in key points

Coppola (right), about which she wrote:

around the city, mainly in Oficinas de Atención

“The darkly atmospheric cityscape was a

al Ciudadano (OAC), civic centres and libraries;

style unique to Horacio Coppola (Buenos

however, from September, several could be

Aires, 1907), a photographer trained in the

placed in shopping centres.

famous Bauhaus art school in Berlin, and

Health... Only 22 percent of bars and

husband of German surrealist photogra-

restaurants in Barcelona currently forbid smok-

pher Grete Stern. In 1936, Coppola was

ing in their establishment. Seventy-five percent

commissioned to produce a series of photographs of Buenos Aires for the city’s 400th anniversary.”

of the rest of such venues do allow smoking, Calle San Martín a las 24h (1936); Horacio Coppola

www.barcelona-metropolitan.com/arcticmonkeys www.barcelona-metropolitan.com/peso

Having your say... Comments can be submitted about any and all of the articles, blogs and reviews on our website, and each month we feature here a selection of what people are talking about. Last month’s magazine cover story explored the growth of juvenile obesity here [‘Too many kilos’], and the article led Ana Betancourt to comment on-line: “I hate to say but I saw it coming. Long ago I started to observe that children here had obstensibly more waistline fat than children a couple of decades ago. I am just happy to have been raised in Colombia where young people still walk to school and dance as an entertaiment activity, I can assure you it is far healthier.”

Visit WWW.BARCELONA-METROPOLITAN.COM to have your say

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Society... Barcelona city council has started installing 45 ATM-style machines where

while just three percent have created a specially designated zone for smokers, separate from the non-smoking area. These findings are part of a study carried out by Barcelona’s Public Health Agency based on visits made to 1,130 places in the city during 2008. [See p. 22 for an article about smoking in Spain.]

Really... The current financial crisis has caused a rise in the use of legally valid ‘certified’ text messages. Such messages can be used in different circumstances, for instance, to send an official notification to a person who has defaulted on their credit payments, and by divorced couples, where one has failed to comply with certain terms of the divorce agreement. The company Lleida.net started a service of certified texts last year—after initially offering the text messages through their website, they can now be sent directly from any mobile phone.

For more details on these and other local stories, check our news blog, The Informer, for daily updates. barcelona-metropolitan.com/informer

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On the web

|M| 9

Most popular

Photo by David Montgomery

What people have been looking at on www.barcelona-metropolitan.com

Most-read articles 1. Mullet hairstyles—’Party in the back’ 2. Essential Barcelona 3. International schools 4. Top 10 essentials to finding work 5. The freelance life 6. Calçots—’Know your onions’ 7. Transport in Barcelona—‘Getting around’ 8. Obtaining a NIE 9. Hookah bars—’Ancient smoke’

Most-read blog entries 1. Barcelona take-out (Food and Drink) 2. All you can eat (Food and Drink) 3. When will she arrive? (Diary of an Adoption) 4. Barcelona’s best burger (Food and Drink) 5. Cut the bulli (Food and Drink)

Most-read reviews

Ferran Adrià in 2007; photo by Simon Newman

10. Carrer Joaquin Costa

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BARCELONA METROPOLITAN – March 2010

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| M | 11

Columns

Sport shorts

Wild Barcelona By Nick Lloyd and Lucy Brzoska

By Pete Jenson In the lead-up to Barcelona’s hosting of the European Athletics Championships in July,

Climbing the walls

each month we take a look at what’s making the headlines in the local sports pages.

he richly patterned sandstone wall

two-thirds of adult geckos you can

of Montjuïc castle is full of chinks

clearly see the fault line where they

where a gecko might lie, safely

once broke in two so their owners

ot since FC Barcelona won the European Cup have so many people

basking in the sun. It takes a lot of staring

could escape from predators. Once

to find one: you suddenly realise the dark

dropped, the tail continues twitching: a

patch has toes, and what might be a glint-

useful distraction device. Regenerated

of the event broke the 10,000 barrier for the

ing shard of glass is an eye. It might even

tails never quite match the originals,

number of entrants for the first time ever this

let you approach for a close-up look, con-

but do their job equally well.

year. Long before the race on March 7th the

fident that refuge is only a flicker away.

been charging through the streets.

It is marathon time in the city and organisers

Just as humans have wanted to

number of runners had gone past last year’s total of 9,700. Organisers had feared the economic crisis would cut the numbers. But come

Moorish gecko with regenerated tail

on! Who gets a pay cut and says ‘Well that’s my running days over’? And so it was that more people than ever signed up for the gruelling 26-mile (or 42-kilometre) slog beginning and finishing at Plaça Espanya. It’s another feather in Barcelona’s sporting cap… and they are not resting on this year’s success; plans are already

Photos by Lucy Brzoska

being made to ensure next year’s marathon is

Almond trees

even bigger, with the aim of rivalling the more famous races in London and New York. There will be no chance to see Lance Armstrong go up against Alberto Contador in this year’s Volta a Catalunya cycling competition, after the American cyclist decided against racing here this month. The 79th edition of the event will take place on March 27th and 28th with a mountain, flat and time trial stage, but the seven times Tour de France winner chose to race in the tour of Murcia in the first week of the month instead. Even more gruelling than the 42 kilometres run by the marathon runners will be this year’s presidential race at FC Barcelona. Barça are due to pick their 39th president on June 13th

At the end of winter we all feel like sun-

emulate the flight of birds, they envy

bathing. To soak up heat more efficiently,

geckos for their grip. Sticky hairs on

the Moorish gecko turns almost black

prominent toe pads allow these reptiles

during the day. At night, when actively

to cling to the smoothest surfaces. A

hunting its prey (mainly insects and the

researcher into the phenomenon, inter-

occasional baby lizard), it becomes pale

viewed in New Scientist, was flabber-

and interesting.

gasted by how “vastly over-engineered”

Seen in the day, the gecko’s eyes ap-

they are: “One gecko could resist the

pear split in half by vertical pupils, sharply

weight of 130 kilograms.” Yet they can

contracted against the light. Intricate veins

also detach themselves at lightning

cover the dark golden iris. Cleaning is

speed.

done by a sweep of the tongue, since the

the pet trade likes to refer to this species as the ‘Crocodile gecko’, inspired by the reptile’s bumpy skin. The tail often has a completely different texture and in about

candidacy next month. Alfons Godall is the incumbent Joan Laporta’s man. Laporta can’t stand for a third term of office but will back Godall and no doubt have a role to play in the club should he win. Former Nike executive and one-time club vice-president Sandro Rosell—who had a famous falling-out with Laporta—will be both the housewives’ choice and one option for those who want change at the top. And finally, there’s Jaume Ferrer who should appeal both to those who want more of the same (he is on the current board) and

gecko has no eyelids. Perhaps because it sounds more exotic,

and three candidates are likely to confirm their

Nick Lloyd and Lucy Brzoska write for www.iberianature.com and run nature tours in Barcelona.

those who want change (he was not picked by Laporta to be his continuity candidate). No en route energy drinks or gold medallions for the victor, but you do get to sit in the best seat in the house at the Camp Nou for the next four years, and there is probably the chance to sign Cesc Fabregas in it for the winner too.

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Interview

| M | 13

Mark Redden Boat builder and artist, Irish I first came to Barcelona on a visit in 2002, but I didn’t get to live here until 2008. What struck me most the first time was the number of large-scale art spaces compared to Dublin. I learnt to build curraghs [traditional Irish rowing boats] as an apprentice to a master boat builder in Galway. I was renting a cottage on an isolated lake in the countryside and needed a job, so I went into the town and asked if they had anything. I’ve always had a relationship with the sea. I grew up in Dublín, on the Irish Sea, and used to go out with the fishermen. I like to get out and look at Barcelona from the water; it’s total disconnection. I’ve been working with kayak expert Narcís Fors in Lloret. We are trying to blend the principles of kayaks and curraghs to make a super curragh. We go squid fishing and I’m hoping to go out tuna fishing soon. I have this idea it will be like The Old Man and the Sea and I’ll have this big tuna dragging me around. We held a curragh tournament last year in Moll de Espanya. There were eight teams, and two curraghs. We’re hoping to do another one this summer. I co-founded the Imraimh Foundation to organise more building projects. ‘Imraimh’ means to row, but in old Irish, it can also mean dream quest or spiritual journey. The ancient Irish monks used to head out in a curragh with just a set of oars and let the wind and the waves take them, as a way of cleansing themselves spiritually. Curragh rowing is great for team building and coordination. You don’t have to be a beast to pull the oars, it’s all done with your own weight, like walking. I have a fantastic nave to work in. I like the nave culture here; all these post-industrial buildings which are used as studios. To have a large space to work in is good. My art is evolving all the time. My first piece was called Gaudistan—a representation of the Sagrada Familia with a big crescent moon above it. It signifies the presence of both Islam and Christianity in Barcelona. Going to the studio every day is like going to the office. You have your off-days and your productive days. Curraghs get lots of attention because of their simplicity. People can’t believe they are capable of floating. It’s a cloth-covered basket, at the end of the day. My next plan is to build a Galway Hooker, a 14-metre-long sailing vessel, and sail it from Barcelona to Dublin. We’ll need a lot of wood, a couple of dedicated people and then hopefully, we’ll have hands passing through. We’ll also need 100 grand and a large space to build it in. Interview by Nicola Thornton. Photo by Lee Woolcock.

One of Mark’s curraghs

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| M | Basketball

Pete Mickeal (left) and Terence Morris (right).

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Basketball

| M | 15

Playing overseas It’s not the NBA but it’s not bad, agree two pros from the States playing basketball here. By Matt Elmore. Photos by Tracy Gilbert.

egal FC Barcelona has most certainly been on fire this season, burning up the nation’s basketball courts. Number one in the Spanish League, and at press time it looked as if Barcelona’s preeminent basketball team might even repeat its famed banner year of 2003, when it swept the Spanish League title, won the Copa del Rey and ascended to the title of European Champions. Regardless of how it finishes, it has been an outstanding season, and while all the limelight shines on Spanish wünderkind Ricky Rubio, it is the club’s two, less acknowledged American athletes who, between them, have scored more points this season than any other two players on the team. Terence Morris, 31, and Pete Mickeal, 32, joined the club this season, having played previously for various other European teams and briefly in the NBA. In conversations with Metropolitan, they shared their observations about competing and living in Europe and Spain. “I think the level’s pretty much the same,” Morris opined, after considering the question, although he has noticed certain idiosyncrasies among the supporters. “When we’re losing, the fans are still cheering. That’s a little different than being at home, where when you’re losing you don’t really hear anything.” He also noted a few other distinctions: “I‘ve got a translator when I’m out on the court. That’s new to me, because the other places I’ve played the coaches spoke English pretty well. Also, here, you have to pay for your own stuff. Your house, your car. That’s a little bit different.” Pete Mickeal differed with his teammate somewhat, maintaining that the game is played differently here than in the US. “There’s really no comparison. Europe is Europe and the States is the States. NBA’s a different lifestyle, different game.” Arguably, the fundamental difference between European and American basketball is reflective of the differences between the two cultures: the European game lends itself more to team play, whereas the American game emphasises individualism. The NBA, with all its highlights, flashy dunks and one-on-one play, contrasts with the steady passing game of the Continent. Part of these variations can be ascribed to small differences in the structure of the game: Europe has a 30-second shot clock compared to 24 in the NBA; five fouls instead of six; goal-tending is permitted; the trapezoid-shaped lane works against large players who excel at rebounds and the three-point line is one metre closer than in the NBA. All these differences, according to Mickeal, conspire against show-boating superstars who would otherwise sparkle across the pond. “That’s why, in the NBA, you see so many guys putting up 30 and 40 points every night, because it’s a one-on-one game.” Basketball has been played here since 1921, when an Asturian priest, Eusebio Millán Alonso, formed the Laita Basket Club in Barcelona, the first team in Spain. He had first seen the game being played by US soldiers who invaded Cuba in 1906. On December 8th, 1922, the first organised game in Spain was played between Laita and CE Europa on Laita’s home field in Gràcia. Europa beat Laita 8-2. FC Barcelona’s basketball team was formed in 1926, and was overshadowed by other teams in the Catalan League until the Forties, when it became a six-time winner of the Copa del Generalísimo (later to be called the Copa del Rey). How-

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

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| M | Basketball



ever, in the Fifties, the team began a decline that bottomed out in the Sixties when it dissolved for a year; after reforming, it was later knocked down to the second division for a time. However, in the mid-Seventies, the team climbed out of its rut and marched into the Eighties. From 1980-1990, they won six Spanish League titles, five Copas del Rey, six Catalan League titles and a Prince of Asturias Cup. Still, it wasn’t until 2003 that they won their first Euroleague title. Since the Liga Nacional began in 1956—and was replaced by the ACB in 1983— US players have always been part of professional Spanish basketball, according to an ACB spokesperson. “Since 1983, just about all of the 16 participating teams have had one or two foreigners, the majority of them Americans.” A 12-player Spanish league basketball team may be composed of five Spanish nationals, five players from the European FIBA League and two players from outside Europe. This year’s two Americans on the Barça squad share superb ball-handling skills, and NBA-level skills, but they have drastically different personalities. Whereas Pete Mickeal is voluble and emphatic in his speech, Terence Morris is soft-spoken and unassuming. When he graduated from the University of Maryland he immediately signed with the Houston Rockets, but found himself spending a little too much time on the bench, which fuelled his decision to try out the European League. He played with Greece’s Apollon Patras in 2004-05, then signed with the NBA’s Orlando Magic the following year. “As a basketball player, you want to play the whole game,” he told Metropolitan. “When I moved to Orlando, it was similar to the way it was before. So, I felt it was better for me to come over here and get more playing time than I was over there.”

The European game lends itself more to team play...the American game emphasises individualism.

Morris’s contract with Barça is in the neighbourhood of 1 million, which is about double what he earned in Orlando. Still, he stressed that salary had little to do with his decision to play in Europe. “It’s really not the main thing. If you like to play basketball, if you feel love for it, you want to experience it the best that you can. I had the chance to experience it over there, up against some good players and things like that, but here it’s a little like the college atmosphere there. It’s cool.” Mickeal’s decision to play overseas was similar to Morris’s. After being drafted by the New York Knicks in 2000, he was frustrated by not being put in game. “The coach was Jeff Van Gundy, who didn’t believe in playing the rookies at the time. I had Latrell Sprewell and Glen Rice in front of me in my position. And those guys were NBA all-stars. So I said, okay, I’ll learn from them and I’ll wait. But it just didn’t work out that way.” While Mickeal never managed to find success in the NBA, he was voted Most Valuable Player (MVP) 2002 in the second-tier American Basketball Association (ABA) as well as the Spanish League Finals’ MVP in 2008. And although he originally came to Europe in order to show the NBA what he can do, he’s extremely satisfied with where he is right now. “Barcelona’s a nice city. The States, that’s always number one. But if I have to live anyplace in Europe, it would most definitely be this city. Just the feeling I get every day here. The atmosphere is good, the weather is good. And the people. To me, that’s the most important: the way the people look at you here, the way they receive you, how they are with you.” Neither considers himself a ‘club person’, and both tend to meet with friends in restaurants. They also feel that Spain is Americanised enough for them to feel basically at home. In short, they have no complaints. Although basketball is not nearly as important a sport here as it is in the States, nor as celebrated here as football, neither man feels any rancor for their lack of star status. “These football players, they can’t go anywhere in this city,” said Mickeal. “But as a basketball player I can go places. People recognise me, but they’ll just say ‘Hi’ and keep moving. There’s days when you don’t want so much attention, so it’s good when you can stay in the background, kind of coast and relax.”

14-16.basketball-3.indd 4

A million euros to come live in Les Corts for a season, and play basketball for Regal FC Barcelona, may seem like a tidy little sum. In fact, it may seem like a hell of a lot of money. But take a look at what the top 11 NBA players are making for the 2009-10 season, according to the website, http://hoopshype.com/salaries.htm. Catalan Pau Gasol comes up 11th with an annual salary of more than $16 million (11.3 million).

Tracy McGray (Houston)

$23,239,561

Kobe Bryant (Los Angeles)

$23,034,375

Jermaine O’Neal (Miami)

$22,995,000

Tim Duncan (San Antonio)

$22,183,218

Shaquille O’Neal (Cleveland)

$20,000,000

Dirk Nowitzki (Dallas)

$19,795,714

Paul Pierce (Boston)

$19,795,712

Ray Allen (Boston)

$19,766,860

Rashard Lewis (Orlando)

$18,876,000

Michael Redd (Milwaukee)

$17,040,000

Pau Gasol (Los Angeles)

$ 16,451,250

18/2/10 13:23:14

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4/2/10 10:41:44

| M | Firearm murders

e r i h r o f n u G

e ? o b lona t u yo Barce e r in ly a il ke a gun e. r w Ho d by Elmo e kill Matt By

rom a bar across the street, Jorge watched his victim step outside and close the door behind him. It was just after sunrise on a cold Monday morning and Félix Martínez, dressed in a suit and elegant overcoat, carried a briefcase and pulled a trolley case behind him. Jorge crossed the street and covered his head with a grey hood, then fell into step behind Martínez. The hitman took a pistol from his pocket and slipped it into a folded newspaper. When the two men reached the next corner, at the intersection of Carrer Santaló and Travessera de Gràcia, Jorge levelled the pistol at the back of Martínez’s head and pulled the trigger. As soon as his victim fell to the pavement, the assailant ran down Carrer Casanova, dumping the pistol and hooded jersey in a bin, then turned up Diagonal to rendezvous with a get-away driver. Félix Martínez died instantly. February 9th marked the first anniversary of ‘the Santaló case’, as it came to be called. It was the most sensational Barcelona contract killing in recent memory, and immediately fuelled speculation about the victim’s ties to shady underworld figures. Rumours of ‘mafia connections’ began to circulate as police began to hypothesize. Yet, as the investigation unfolded, it appeared that Félix Martínez Touriño was an impeccable and upright citizen. The 36-year-old director general of GL Events, which manages the Centro Internacional de Convenciones de Barcelona (CCIB), had worked his way up the corporate ladder from the position of hotel receptionist just 10 years before. People who knew him were unanimously mystified by the murder. It was clearly a contract killing, but many speculated that perhaps it was a case of mistaken identity.

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Firearm murders

| M | 19

As it turned out, the conspirators were not career criminals per se, and had no connections to organised crime. The motive, quite simply, was money. Martínez had discovered that one of his employees, Manuel Moreno Blancas—‘El Manolo’—was supplementing his 80,000 a year salary by charging commissions to subcontractors. Martínez told El Manolo that he was closing down his subordinate’s chiringuito, and would petition for his dismissal at a meeting of directors in France. El Manolo spoke to his sister’s Colombian husband, who in turn contracted another Colombian in Madrid, who in turn sub-contracted yet another Colombian, 23-year old Jorge Andrés Madrid, to kill Martínez before he could arrive at the meeting in France. Intendente Josep Lluís Trapero, who headed the case for the Mossos d’Esquadra, agreed to speak to Metropolitan about the Santaló

case. When asked if it represented a rise in firearm murders for Barcelona, he said that in his 15-year career he has studied “a hundred and something” murder scenes. “You can’t say that it’s easier to get firearms in the past two years, than five or 10 years ago. No. In criminal circles, firearms have always been available. If you’re not from that world, it would be difficult, but in the criminal environment it’s not impossible.” However, Trapero did indicate that firearm murders in and around Barcelona are a bit more common than most people realise, although they remain quite low when compared to many cities. “We have about eight or 10 firearm murders per year. Maybe in one year we could have 15, but in general it’s around half that.” The pistol used to murder Martínez was a modified replica of a Daewoo DP-51 that had been purchased from an arms ring broken up by the Guardia Civil in early July 2009. Various pistols were reportedly sold for between 3,000 and 6,000, although Trapero suggested that pistols can be purchased in the underworld for “less than 1,000.” While the Mossos do not provide official homicide data for Barcelona, Trapero insisted that the homicide rate has remained more or less the same over the past 10 or 15 years. “We have about 35 to 40 murders a year. The majority of crimes are gender violence and fights—not fights within organised crime, but outside of bars or over women. These murders are mostly committed with a knife. Fights and gender violence are the most serious groups. Connected to organised crime, that is, career criminals and drug traffickers, for

18-20. murder-3.indd 35

Photo by C. Secanella

“We have about eight or 10 firearm murders per year.”

Félix Martínez lies dead on the pavement.

example, we have four or six a year.” The fact that the homicide rate is not rising is backed up by statistics gathered by the Cuerpo Nacional de Policia (CNP): from 1995 to 2005, the year before the Mossos took jurisdiction from the CNP, the province of Barcelona had between 26 and 43 homicides a year. Five out of nine of those years saw more than 33 murders. Even if the murder rate is steady, overall, crime seems to be on the rise. A poll published by the Generalitat in October 2009 reported that 8.1 percent of citizens in 2008 answered affirmatively when asked if they had been victims of crime, one point higher than in 2007, and up from five percent in 1999. The same month, the Mossos published data reporting a nearly 40 percent rise in burglaries in 2008.

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18/2/10 20:59:49

| M | Firearm murders

Firearm murders are relatively scarce here.

18-20. murder-3.indd 36

“Maybe in one year we could have 15 [firearm murders], but in general it’s around half that.” -- Intendente Josep Lluís Trapero, homicide detective with the Mossos d’Esquadra

Given that there are 1.5 million people in Barcelona, this computes to about one murder per 100,000 people. Not bad when compared with the following cities as reported on various websites, including the Wall Street Journal, Foreign Policy Quarterly and Forbes Magazine. Number of firearm murders per 100,000 people

200 150 100

New York City

Moscow

Detroit Michigan

Port Moresby Papua New Guinea

Capetown South Africa

50 Caracas

tution and illegal immigration and Rumanians entice sex slaves and beggars from their home country. Though six of the eight people implicated in Félix Martínez’s murder were Colombians, none of them were directly linked to an illicit Colombian association. Sahid Sanchez, who received 3,000 for contracting the hitman, did serve nine years in prison for smuggling cocaine and was released in 1999, but the hitman had no prior convictions and was an unemployed manual labourer when he received 9,000 for committing the murder. Indeed, if it had been a gang of professional, career criminals, it might not have been so easy for the Mossos to solve the case and apprehend those who had a part in the killing. The case was cracked almost immediately when police were able to trace suspicious calls received by Martínez to a pay phone, which had also been used to call most of the conspirators at around the same time. Over the following four months, police had only to connect the pieces and establish proof.

New Orleans Louisiana

Many people credit immigration and the rise of ethnically-based organised crime with the rise in criminal activities, a view supported by Inspector Rafael Jiménez of the CNP, although he also cited Spain’s permissive laws, globalisation and advances in telecommunications as contributing factors. The most important element is the nation’s strategic advantage for drug traffickers. “Seventy-five percent of the cocaine in Europe that comes from South America passes through this country. And all the hashish from Morocco comes through Spain or Portugal.” Jiménez provided a summary, broken down by nationalities of the big players, describing how certain ethnic groups operate in Barcelona and the rest of Spain: Colombians and Mexicans traffic in cocaine; Russians use money from narcotics and prostitution to buy up businesses and property, which they then use to launder money; Balkan mafia— mostly from Albania and Kosovo—specialise in robbery and burglary; Chinese and Nigerians focus most of their activity on prosti-

Juarez Mexico

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19/2/10 15:07:07

| M | Smoking

Smoke free Anti-smoking laws are due to get tougher. By Catherine Hubbard.

arcelona is getting set to butt out. Like the rest of Spain, Catalunya has been a haven for those addicted to nicotine, but when the country’s strict new anti-smoking laws come into effect, smoking will not be allowed at all in bars, restaurants or cafés. Trinidad Jiménez, Spain’s Minister of Health, confirmed last month that anti-tobacco laws would be toughened by the end of 2010, a move that consumer groups have dubbed ‘anti-cancer, not anti-smoker’. The legislation has been a long time coming and, according to the physician Carles Ariza, secretary of the Comité Nacional para la Prevención de Tabaquismo, it will be widely supported. “The social norms are changing,” he told Metropolitan. “We have data now that shows 70 percent of the general population wants the government to change the law.” A poll published in El País on January 10th found that 56 percent of those Spaniards questioned favoured more restrictions on smoking in public places. Whenever the full ban is finally implemented, it won’t be the first time that Barcelona’s smokers have had to resign themselves to living with less than carte blanche to smoke where they please.

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18/2/10 13:45:21

Smoking

In 2006, smoking was banned in offices, shops, schools, hospitals and cultural centres in Spain. Businesses larger than 100 square metres were given eight months to set up separate smoking areas. This has become a bone of contention for the hospitality industry, which is asking for government compensation to offset any new, stricter law, arguing that many owners spent between m40,000 and m70,000 on modifications. Carles Ariza, who also works for the Agència de Salut Pública de Barcelona, said that there were, in fact, few bars and restaurants that made these changes. “In some cases they divided the restaurants, but not exactly as the law dictated.” Based on evidence collected from countries that have already put similar full smoking bans in place, changing the law will have little effect on the profits of the hospitality industry, according to a report issued by the Comité Nacional para la Prevención de Tabaquismo. “In the majority of cases in Europe, the expected losses didn’t happen,”Ariza pointed out. Under the 2006 legislation, businesses with a floor space of under 100 square metres could choose for themselves whether to permit smoking on the premises, with the result that most of Barcelona’s bars, restaurants and cafés continued to be smoker-friendly. Tobacco companies considered the 2006 regulations a victory for their side—so much so that the Spanish model was promoted by them to other countries, according to a US study published in October last year by the journal Tobacco Control. Spain is a relatively permissive country, and banning the cigarette that goes hand-inhand with a daily café con leche, or a beer with friends, seems heavy-handed to some residents. “For me, it’s dangerous when the government decides everything,” Ignacio García, a 48-year-old, pack-a-day smoker told Metropolitan. Globally, however, other governments are putting far stricter measures in place. In Tasmania, Australia, for instance, smoking is banned in vehicles with passengers under

the age of 18. Also in Australia, in Queensland, smoking is prohibited in commercial outdoor eating and drinking premises and on patrolled beaches. In Japan, smoking is forbidden on the streets of Chiyoda, a ward of Tokyo. In many countries, lighting up within 20 feet (six metres) of entrances, exits and operable windows of public buildings is against the law. Spanish smokers, by comparison, will still enjoy considerable freedom to puff, though many may choose to give up, said Carles Ariza, adding that after the last law came into effect, the smoking rate of the general population dropped from 27 or 28 percent down to 24.8 percent. In addition, figures from the Generalitat’s Department of Health show

Tobacco companies considered the 2006 regulations a victory for their side.

that 48 percent of Catalans who continue to smoke would like to quit. Unfortunately for them, if they need help to do so, they’ll probably have to pay for it out of their own pockets. Treatment helping smokers kick the habit is not funded by the public administration, except in exceptional circumstances, although both the Comité Nacional para la Prevención de Tabaquismo and the opposition Partido Popular have been lobbying the government to do so. Residents can, however, visit their local Centre d’Atenció Primària (CAP) where they will receive advice on the process to follow and be given general tips. It is also possible to call the Quit Smoking Helpline (902 111 444) and talk with a nurse, who will then

| M | 23

call back for free in the following weeks to check up on progress and give support. The justification for not funding the treatment, according to a source at the Generalitat’s Departament de Salut who asked not to be named, is that paying for patches, gum, nicotine-blocking pharmaceuticals or some kind of therapy is cheaper for the smoker than the cost of cigarettes. Carles Ariza works with teens using group therapy and is pleased with the decline of smoking among youths. For adults, though, he suggests those who remain resolutely hooked may benefit from treatment using prescription-only drugs. Pharmaceuticals, such as Zyntabac, function by removing the desire to smoke. Treatment usually lasts from two to three months, and a two-month supply costs around m85. Other smokers manage cravings with nicotine replacements, such as gum or patches, or even chewable tablets. Nicotine gum costs m25 for 105 pieces, a supply for around 10 days. A smoker who consumes a pack a day, by comparison, will spend about m35 for the same length of time, depending on what brand they smoke. Additional options include going cold turkey or cutting down on nicotine by switching to weaker brands of cigarettes. Those who have tried, and failed, sometimes turn to alternative methods such as acupuncture or hypnotherapy. Ferran Blasco Aguasca, an acupuncturist trained in the US and working in Barcelona, runs a special programme for patients hooked on tobacco. “Acupuncture is a very good method to give up smoking in that it helps in three main ways. It helps reduce cravings because it helps calm the nervous system,” he said. “Since the person is feeling better, what happens is they have more willpower to choose different options. It’s not like the cravings will completely disappear, but when the person is faced with the desire to smoke, maybe they will say ‘Okay, well I feel like smoking, but since I have a little bit more energy available, I can choose not to smoke, to drink a glass of water, to do some

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| M | Smoking

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stretching, go running, whatever, just do some breathing, so I don’t smoke’.” His clinic takes a practical holistic approach—sometimes using herbal supplements, while recommending dietary changes and exercise. The quit-smoking programme costs m145 and includes the first visit, and three treatments on three consecutive days.

“For me, it’s dangerous when the government decides everything.”

Hypnotherapy is another option. Several practices in Barcelona run stop-smoking programmes. The Instituto de Hipnosis holds seminars several times a month, and claims a 95 percent success rate with a written guarantee. Seminars cost m240. Giving up smoking is not easy. But the gain is certainly worth the pain. “Quitting smoking really requires looking into the reasons why one is smoking, because it’s very rare a person smokes because they really like it,” said Ferran Blasco Aguasca. “Most of the time, people smoke by habit, or people smoke because it’s covering up some kind of emotional issue. Success depends on whether the person is totally committed.”

In 2004, the percentage of men over 25 who smoked, according to www.smokersonly.org: Greece: Spain: Austria: Portugal:

61 47 47 47

Barcelona

22-24.smoke free-3.indd 36

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19/02/10 8:19

19/2/10 11:35:44

| M | Street life Pati Groc, nº. 56

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Can Punyetes, nº. 8-10 Santa Madonna, nº. 6

Francisco Giner

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ust a hop, skip and a jump from the Diagonal metro station, on the cusp of Gràcia, lies the Carrer de Francisco Giner, an unassuming street bursting with hidden gems. Before becoming one of Barcelona’s city districts in the 19th century, Gràcia existed as an independent town, and if you take a stroll up Francisco Giner today, you soon get a sense of the area’s continued community spirit. Albert Sangenís, owner of A. Sangenís Antiguitats Esportives (no. 52) agrees that Gràcia is still “just like a small town in a big city.” His antiques shop, opened by his grandfather in 1923, stocks all kinds of weird and wonderful sporting relics. Unique in Barcelona, you can find anything from golf clubs to parts of a ski-lift used in the 1936 Winter Olympics. At number 6 stands Wunderkammer. German for ‘wonder chamber’, it’s everything the name suggests, boasting a unqiue collection of decorative knick-knacks, stylish furniture and accessories. The street reflects Gràcia’s reputation as a cultural nucleus. El Pati Groc (no. 56) is a social and cultural centre that sells handicrafts and offers a number of courses, from cookery to ‘laughter therapy’, family activities

26-27. Street life.indd 6

Text by Jayne Deacon

and monthly art exhibitions. Further down the street, you’ll find the Escuela de Ajedrez ‘Miguel Illescas’ (no. 42), teaching people the art of chess, with courses and organised tournaments. There’s a wealth of restaurants offering tasty tapas and hearty platos. Santa Madonna (no. 6) is a chic Italian restaurant, priding itself on homemade bread and pasta, and authentic Italian cookery, something which owners Vincenzo Petrucci and Raquel Pla say is “badly misunderstood in Spain.” Next door is Can Punyetes (no. 8-10), part of a small chain of restaurants serving Catalan cusine at a modest price. The speciality, botifarra, is made in the Pyrenees by owner Carlos’s father. Further up, La Singular (no. 50), is a favourite with Gràcia residents, with a worthy reputation for its market specials. And next-door-but-one, Miriot (no. 54) offers a Brazilian flavour, with dishes like Moqueca de gambas (a kind of prawn curry). At night, the street becomes a hive of activity. There are some fantastic bares de copas, including Le Journal (no. 18), where you’ll struggle to find a seat at the weekend, and El Sabor (no. 32), a lively Cuban bar, where you can enjoy a mean mojito and shake your thing to the rhythm of the salsa.

18/2/10 16:32:24

Street life

Sangenis, nº. 52

| M | 27

La Singular, nº. 50

Wunderkammer, nº. 6

Francisco Giner The educator, philosopher and intellectual Francisco Giner de los Rios was born in southern Spain in 1839 and died in Madrid aged 75. As a career, he chose the law and later became a professor of the philosophy of law at the University of Madrid. However, Giner’s life’s passion was the education of children and he was an openly critical voice against what he saw as the repression of academic freedom. To counter this, he opened the Institución Libre de Ensenañza in 1876. The centre’s main tenets were coeducation, rationalism, freedom of teaching and research and freedom of literary communication. His legacy lives on in the form of the Fundación Francisco Giner de los Rios, opened in 1916, which continues to promote the teachings of this radical thinker.

View from the street

Federico Crocellá

Vincenzo Petrucci and Raquel Pla

26-27. Street life.indd 7

Italian interior-designer, Federico Crocellá, has had his studio on the street for three years, and opened his boutique, Wunderkammer, in September last year. He sells furniture, home accessories and jewellery, which he has either designed himself or hand-picked on his travels to markets in France and India. Crocellá chose Francisco Giner as his base because of the neighbourhood’s reputation as a culturally rich and diverse place. “I like the street because it is in such an artistic and vibrant place,” he said. “With my designs, and the pieces I sell, I select the things that I like, and that I think people in Barcelona would be unlikely to find elsewhere.” Like Federico, husband-and-wife partnership Vincenzo Petrucci and Raquel Pla opened their business on Francisco Giner, an Italian restaurant called Santa Madonna, last September. They too were attracted to the street because of its location in Gràcia, a place they believe is “just more special”. Their aim in setting up Santa Madonna was to bring real Italian cuisine to Barcelona, putting quality before cost-cutting, and Raquel said that Gràcia was the only place they wanted to be. “The people living and working here are the type of people we want to visit our restaurant,” she explained.

“They are artistic and autonomous people, and understand what it is we are trying to achieve. We already have a steady flow of loyal customers and people we call friends.” Mercè Fontanet is the owner and head-chef of La Singular, an intimate Catalan restaurant, which has been going for around 15 years. Everything is locally sourced and homemade, and it has a loyal following of Gràcìa residents who come to enjoy dishes such as duck with passion fruit and banana sauce, and chocolate, pear and almond tart. Mercè grew up in Gràcia, on Carrer Verdi, and after spending time away from the area, she returned to live there 15 years ago. When asked how much Francisco Giner has changed, she said, “It’s changed in the sense that, although the area still feels like something of its own town within a city, it is much less so these days. It has lost a lot of the innocence it once had, but I think that reflects Barcelona as a whole. “Much like the rest of Gràcia, the street has incorporated a lot of people from other districts, and immigration has introduced a lot of new customs, cultures and lifestyles, which has made it much more multicultural. Having said that, it has still managed to maintain its own unique identity and it is still one of the calmest places to live in the city.”

18/2/10 16:33:19

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On YO LA TENGO P. 30 RODNEY GRAHAM P. 34 BAND TO WATCH P. 30 PUPPET FESTIVAL P. 36

The Opera Show, featuring some of the genreâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s most popular arias, stops off in Barcelona this month following a successful run in London. See page 32 for details

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Live

Going out this weekend? DISCOVER WHAT gigs ARE on: WWW.barcelona-metropolitan.com

I’ve got it! Y DESPITE THE CASTILIAN NAME, EXPECT AMERICAN MUSIC FROM GROUP YO LA TENGO. BY SARA BLAYLOCK

Yo La Tengo

o La Tengo: say it with a New Jersey accent. Now set that to the backdrop of a tight uncompromising drumbeat. Add horns, a string quartet, a 10-minute guitar jam and breathy voices...or grungy ones, or loungy ones. Throw in the occasional organ trill, a conga or two and pepper your mash with heavy metal sounds or maybe outer space ones. You’re getting close to getting it... One of the US’s most critically acclaimed rock groups, Yo La Tengo defy easy description. Some call them ‘alternative rock’ or ‘noise oop’. Others say ‘shoegazing’. In more than 25 years, this group has released music to put the baby to rest, seduce a lover, set an angsty rage aflame and start many a foot a-tappin’— sometimes all at once. With such a range, Yo La Tengo risk catastrophe, but always pull through. They soundtracked the ocean in 2001 (The Sounds of the Sounds of Science) providing scores to eight undersea documentaries by Jean Painlevé. They’re famed for their covers (Cat Stevens, the Kinks and Sun Ra are among their repertoire) and in 2006 released an album of live covers called Yo La Tengo Murders the Classics. Cheeky musicmakers! For this, their fourth visit to Apolo, Yo La Tengo will play off their 12th record, Popular Songs. Released in September 2009, the album has been enthusiastically received. The 12 juicy tracks on Popular Songs cross from dark to light, Motown to epic jam, mixing the previous Yo La Tengo sound with the brand new, including heady collaborations and production. One track mixes in an Isaac Hayes soundtrack. Two others feature elaborate strings composed by jazz artist Richard Evens. Popular Songs ends with a few mega-jam tracks, concluding the album with misty psychedelia. Without a doubt, this will be a ‘popular’ show (nyuck nyuck), so get your tickets as soon as you can. Yo La Tengo Sala Apolo, March 19th

Back-to-back shows that are not to be missed—but be quick... On March 1st, head over to Bikini for Cornershop, the English band whose sound fuses Indian music, Britpop and electronic dance music. Frontman and founder, Tjinder Singh, sings his licks in both English and Punjabi, often with a sitar. The following day, find yourself grooving to the funny, folky, Velvet Undergroundy tunes of Adam Green at Razzmatazz. Anyone looking for a refresher on American pop culture, keep your ears perked to the unusual lyrics. Everybody else, keep your eyes on stage: this guy’s got a reputation for crazy moves. --SB

Adam Green

Worth seeing STARTING THIS MONTH AT RAZZMATAZZ, BAND TO WATCH WILL GIVE UP-AND-COMERS A SLOT IN THE SPOTLIGHT.

These New Puritans

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Getting a break if you’re a budding musician these days, often seems to be a question of either auditioning for a television reality show and hoping that there are no Susan Boyles up on the same day or praying to the gods of YouTube and MySpace that the video you’ve put up actually gets noticed. Either way, there’s a lot of luck involved. Good to hear then, that a new segment at Razzmatazz 3 will provide a more solid leg-up to young bands: ‘Band to Watch’, which is bringing, as the organisers put it, “semi-hidden” bands from the international indie scene. Of course, it could be argued that “semi-hidden” means “not really known in Spain yet”. A point in case is the inaugural group, These New Puritans (March 10th), who have been around since 2006 and are already on their second album (Hidden, since you ask), described by NME as “shockingly brilliant”. So not quite the best-kept secret in the music industry, but still, let’s applaud new chances to see quality live music in an intimate venue. www.salarazzmatazz.com

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Live

| M | 31

Music talk

We ASKED two UK DJs/producers about their experiences of making and playing music here in Barcelona.

13th

Who’s on

A selection of this month’s Concerts Ane Brun March 4th, 9.30pm Sala BeCool Shearwater March 7th, 7.30pm Apolo [2]

4th

Brendan Brenson March 9th, 9.30pm Apolo [2] Spandau Ballet March 12th Pavelló Olímpic de Badalona Florence and the Machine March 13th, 8.15pm Bikini The Cranberries March 13th Pavelló Olímpic de Badalona

9th

Jeff Mills March 18th Razzmatazz Manuel Carrasco March 19th, 9pm Palau de la Música Catalana Heavy Trash March 23rd, 9.30pm Apolo [2]

12th

Second March 26th, 9pm Apolo [2] Tangerine Dream March 27th, 9pm Sant Jordi Club The Hidden Cameras March 30th Razzmatazz (please note, where a time is shown above, it indicates when the artist(s) is due on stage)

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FOR MORE DETAILS:

www.barcelona-metropolitan.com

Kid Suda: At the age of 10 I was cutting up tapes and recording with a Casio keyboard onto my dad’s old TASCAM 4-track. I started off DJing at warehouse parties 12 years ago in East London, where I founded the Decknology DJ crew. In 2004, I landed a European Tour with Neneh Cherry. · London and Barcelona are two very different stories. I have a lot more time here to write music and that’s the most important thing for me. · DJing in Barcelona? They’ve pretty much banned it, haven’t they? At least most bars have a limiter that’s set by the Ajuntament and they don’t like people playing music from turntables anymore, so there’s a slight air of oppression regarding the whole DJ culture. · Being in Barcelona has definitely opened me up to different styles. I hear more reggae in my sounds, more afrobeat, bailefunk, electronic influences, Latin flavours. There are also less egos involved in music here compared to London so there’s a certain honesty about the other musicians I’ve met. · Mad Session is a collaborative effort between my label Raw Format, Global Soundz Agency and Genome Records. We basically play dubstep, 2-step, breakbeat, drum‘n’bass and everything else in between. We’ve had some excellent local guests playing and so far the night has incorporated many styles and nationalities. Mad Sessions, every Tuesday, 11pm-3am. Sala Cream, C/ Balmes 8. www.myspace.com/kidsuda Fluid motion: I’ve been DJing since 1997. I started playing in Manchester from 1998 onwards, concentrating on the soulful side of drum‘n’bass. I also played at a few illegal raves in the late Nineties in Manchester. I moved to London for three years in 2003, and set up a small night there called First Floor Funk. · I think that the opportunities for DJing are generally better here and the music scene is less saturated than in the UK. I ran The Liquid Sessions night for over a year here. However, the money is not good at all and there is a lack of locations to play at now, since the police closed down or put noise restrictions on many places in the city. · Unlike the UK, there isn’t much money available for quality promotion, which can be seen as a good thing and a bad thing. The best nights here are put on purely out of passion for the music. I think if club-owners and club-goers both paid more, then we would see an improvement in the quality of music in the city and the people who come here to play. · I changed from playing drum‘n’bass to deep house over the last two years. The reason was for the quality of the music. Not because it’s fashionable or anything like that, but because it is the best music out there, in my opinion. · I run Binary Soul Records from here and work closely with Soul Industries Recordings, a quality deep and tech house label. Fluid Motion plays March 4th at Underground Club, C/ Granada del Penedes 19, 10pm. www.myspace.com/fluidmotionhouse

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| M | Live

Get your soul back

alt is a small town close to Girona that boasts of being both the birthplace of Pau Masó i Fàbrega, an activist, writer and baker, whose bread croutons inspired Dalí, and the home of a remarkable number of otters. But as lovely as otters are, and as pretty as the town is, there aren’t too many reasons to visit Salt, unless you happen to be a big fan of black music, because every March, the town holds its annual Black Music Festival. Now, Detroit, Memphis, New Orleans, Salt? It doesn’t exactly slot neatly into place alongside those famed homes of blues, rap, funk and soul. Despite this, every year the Catalan town pays homage to these genres with concerts, film screenings and workshops. Acts come to Salt to perform every type of black music and this year is no exception. Londoners US3 (March 12th), who you might remember from their jazzmeets-hip-hop track ‘Canta-

Cindy Blackman

Marc Ford

loup’ and their heavy use of the Blue Note Records’ back catalogue, are headlining. Flamboyant bass guitarist TM Stevens (March 20th) is also on the bill. Stevens, who caught his break after James Brown insisted on him doing vocals as well as guitar on a track, is billed alongside female drumming sensation Cindy Blackman. In a markedly man’s world, Blackman has carved out an impressive career including working with Lenny Kravitz after auditioning over the phone. Another highlight is Spanish group The Pepper Pots (March 13th) whose sound is nothing new but rather is a near-perfect version of groups like The Ronettes. Also on the programme are The Steepwater Band with Marc Ford (March 7th), who pitch up in Girona to play their rootsy rock‘n’roll, while there’s ska from Skatalà (March 26th) and funk from Mothergroove (March 12th). Mixed in amongst the

concerts are film screenings: this year they’ve scheduled Soul Power by Jeffrey LevyHinte, which documents the music festival that accompanied the legendary ‘Rumble in the Jungle’ fight between Muhammad Ali and George Foreman in Kinshasa. Hailed by many as a forceful showcase of black empowerment, some of the biggest names were booked to play including James Brown, B.B. King, Bill Withers and Sister Sledge. Also scheduled is the Martin Scorsese-directed documentary The Blues. Feel Like Going Home, which examines the roots of the genre in the Mississippi Delta and the connections between it and the musical traditions of Africa. --KM Black Music Festival Various venues March 5th to 26th www.blackmusicfestival.com How to get to Salt: By train to Girona then local bus or taxi; by car, take the AP-7 motorway until exit 7, then follow the C-65 to Salt.

A song and dance

ast month at Barcelona’s splendid Liceu opera house, a sumptuous version of Wagner’s Tristan und Isolde was staged. With a running time of close to five hours and a set designed by British artist David Hockney, the performance by the Los Angeles Opera Company must have had purists weeping with joy. This month, they may be slightly less enthused with the arrival in Barcelona of The Opera Show, although, equally, there are many who will be gratified by the all-singing, all-dancing extravaganza. With a style that mixes the classic (wigs) and the contemporary (black leather and sequin outfits) with a more minimalist look (simple Thirties’ clothes), The Opera Show could be described as a live equivalent of The Best Opera Album in the World…Ever!. It takes some of the most popular arias written by the likes of Puccini, Verdi, Rossini and Mozart (‘Nessun Dorma’, ‘La Donna E Mobile’ and ‘O Sole Mio’—the kind of thing we all like to bash out in the shower or bath on occasion), and has four singers, five dancers and eight musicians perform them with all the guts and gusto you’d expect from a night at the opera. If you know your Ring Cycle from your Rake’s Progress, or have any kind of opinion on whether Opera North’s 1993 staging of La Bohème has no equals, you should probably give The Opera Show a Pavarottisized wide berth. The Opera Show has no illusions about what it wants to bring its audience: a rollicking good time with big voices and big songs. It’s never going to be shown at La Scala, or the Liceu come to that, but for those who enoy the old favourites, The Opera Show will likely hit just the right note. --HP The Opera Show Teatre Victòria March 17th to April 4th, €23 to €45 www.theoperashow.com

For more live events, visit our website www.barcelona-metropolitan.com

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Arts

FIND FULL DETAILS OF CURRENT EXHIBITIONS ON OUR WEBSITE WWW.BARCELONA-METROPOLITAN.COM

Quick pic(k)s Art shows on now

2 3

1. El peso de la ciudad* Fundació Foto Colectania Until May 29th www.colectania.es

2. Looks. Veinte años fotografiando moda Disseny Hub Barcelona Until April 25th www.dhub-bcn.cat 3. The Daniel Meakin Show Gràcia Arts Project March 28th to April 18th www.graciaartsproject.com 4. Atopía. Art i ciutat al segle XXI CCCB Until May 24th www.cccb.org *Read our online slideshow review of this exhibition at: www.barcelonametropolitan.com/peso

Telling tales C THE ECLECTIC OUTPUT OF CANADIAN RODNEY GRAHAM IS CURRENTLY ON DISPLAY AT THE MACBA AND THE MUSEU PICASSO. BY ALX PHILLIPS

anadian artist Rodney Graham (b.1949), a fan of Sigmund Freud, explores unconscious processes in his artwork. Thanks to curator Friedrich Meschede, Graham’s solo show at MACBA tingles throughout with the hints of a narrative that we want to believe in, but that ultimately proves to be elusive. Graham draws on imaginative 19th-century writers to drop his hints. He extracts objects and text from the books of Edgar Allan Poe, Lewis Carroll, Georg Büchner and the Brothers Grimm. Repetitions are highlighted, compelling us to make connections. Graham began in the late Seventies by creeping through the British Columbian woods at night, startling trees with his flash photography. He amplifies the theme in the installation ‘Edge of a Wood’ (1999), where we are trapped between a hostile barrage of dark trees and an equally invasive rescue helicopter. There is constant cross-referencing between works: the sound of the helicopter is re-evoked in the whirring of monster projectors; those projectors are capturing the glint of diamonds on a chandelier, which themselves later appear in a piece about burning cinnamon. A looped theme from Richard Wagner’s opera Parsifal pervades the whole show. Inspired by a reported event from 1882, when, in rehearsal for the premiere performance of the opera, a part of the music was subtly looped to accommodate for some slowmoving scenery, Graham’s version lengthens the piece interminably, so that its build-up never reaches crescendo. It epitomises his artwork in general: after the flash of recognition has faded, we are always left in the dark.

Alx gave this show four stars out of ﬁve. Read her interview with Rodney Graham on the opposite page.

Luces a non lucendo (1987) © Rodney Graham and Lisson Gallery, 2009. Courtesy: Ellipse Foundation—Contemporary Art Collection. Photo by: Tony Coll, Barcelona

Rodney Graham: A través del bosc MACBA Until May 18th www.macba.cat

FOR MORE EXHIBITION REVIEWS, VISIT OUR WEBSITE: WWW.BARCELONA-METROPOLITAN.COM

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In Barcelona for the inauguration of the retrospective show of his work, Rodney Graham answered questions from Metropolitan about his art. Describe your early work. It was in response to the British Columbian landscape. I liked the irony of experiencing nature under stress-inducing circumstances. Igniting a river in light with an obnoxious diesel-powered engine; taking Polaroid shots of the woods at night...which I did again recently on Montserrat mountain [on show]. At one point, I nearly fell off. You make reference to a number of writers and thinkers: Georg Büchner, Edgar Allan Poe, Sigmund Freud... I’m interested in mental processes. In Freud’s Dream of the Botanical Monograph he includes a pressed specimen of a plant, which he uses for his theories on the unconscious. It’s written in beautifully poetic language. You’re best known for your video ‘Vexation Island’, shown in the Venice Biennale in 1997. Although my big breakthrough came in 1995 with ‘Halcyon Sleep’, first shown in Barcelona, in fact. I was a person asleep in the back of a car being driven to the city centre. It opened up all kinds of possibilities for me. More recent work is also performance related. Yes, in this show you see me playing the role of an artist from the Sixties; a 19th-century artist’s model, posing as a bugler for a panoramic piece about the Franco-Prussian war; and a musician performing in a fictional early music concert, set in a Unitarian church in 1977. This layering of the past, channelled into a specific fictional event... does it say something about your perception of reality? Possibly. How do you feel about the MACBA show? Honestly, I think this is the best show I’ve seen of my work. I’m very excited about it. In fact, the first time I showed ‘Edge of a Wood’ [on show] was in Berlin with the same curator, Friedrich Meschede. Another idea that became the large two-part light box ‘Allegory of Folly’, in which I play Erasmus reading the Vancouver phonebook [on show], came from a conversation I had with Bartomeu Marí [now MACBA’s director]. New work is on display at the Picasso Museum. It’s quite different! Isn’t that risky? It is a bit scary. The pieces are really heavy.

Interview and photo of Rodney Graham by Alx Phillips

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Something else Celts up Kevin Bridges

hanks to a certain popular but historically inaccurate ﬁlm, Celts will probably always be indelibly inked in the collective consciousness as blue-faced crazies with a propensity to violence and yelling. Look beyond Hollywood, however, and you’ll discover that the Celts were actually a fairly worldly bunch who liked to sing and tell stories (and yes, on occasion, the odd barney and a fair amount of naked scaremongering, too). However, it’s their more cultured traditions that are honoured at the El Feile Festival, an annual celebration that aims to introduce acts from Celtic countries to Catalunya. This year, its scope is scaled down but there are still some gems in the programme. Kevin Bridges, a comic from Glasgow, is booked to make us laugh and judging by the reviews from his sell-out show at Edinburgh he’s pretty good at it. At only 23, he’s drawn comparisons to another Scottish funny man, Billy Connolly, but Bridges is making a name for himself with his dry, observational wit. He gets his laughs from reciting autobiographical tales of small-town life and the joys of being Scottish. The El Feile festival has always championed Celtic music, whatever the genre, and although not one for

CELEBRATE CELTIC CULTURE WITH MUSIC, COMEDY AND ST. PATRICK’S DAY FUN.

RíRá the purists, this year they’re hosting RíRá, an Irish rap star. The rapper, whose name means chaos in Irish, will be doing his thing on St. Patrick’s Day alongside Method Man of Wu-Tang Clan fame. A case of David and Goliath perhaps, but RíRá has been at the forefront of Irish hip-hop for two decades. --KM El Feile Kevin Bridges: March 12th, 11.30pm and 13th, 10pm; Teatre Llantiol RíRá, March 17th; Apolo www.comedyinspain.com Another option for Celtic celebrating is the annual St. Patrick’s street party hosted by Kitty O’Shea’s pub. On the Saturday after St Patrick’s Day, partygoers can expect seven hours of fun including music, book readings and a pub quiz. For the youngsters, there will be storytelling, face painting and balloon animals. In the evening, enjoy traditional dancing and live music, plus a screening of the Six Nations rugby match between Ireland and Scotland. Pedestrianised area of Carrer Numancia (above Avgda Diagonal) March 20th, from 11am

Roda, Roda...Rodoreda

String it out

feeling of being controlled by a force greater than us has haunted humans forever. Strange, then, that so many people throughout the ages have got such pleasure and entertainment from the sight of a puppet-master expertly manipulating his creations. Or perhaps we are comforted by the thought that we might have our own puppet-master moving the strings for us… Whatever the psychology behind it, the history of puppetry is centuries old, and all areas of the world have their puppet traditions, encompassing tragedy and comedy, romance and satire. Catalunya is no exception and this month sees the inauguration of a new festival of puppet-theatre in Barcelona: TOT, standing for Teatre, Objectes, Titelles (Theate, Objects, Puppets). In fact, the festival’s venue, Poble Espanyol, has hosted a one-day gathering of puppet companies for over 10 years. TOT, however, expands the event to become a weeklong puppet extravaganza, to coincide (more or less) with World Puppet Day on March 21st. The companies performing will largely be Catalan, with a special appearance from the Italian company Walter Broggini, bringing its itinerant show Solo here for the ﬁrst time. There will be both sit-down indoor performances as well as open-air shows, and some of the most promising-sounding features include a rendition of Alice in Wonderland with an Alice measuring over four metres, as well as Roda, Roda…Rodoreda that relates some of the most important writings by Catalan author Mercè Rodoreda, as performed by insects made out of coloured wool. --HP TOT Festival Poble Espanyol March 25th and 26th; €12 for adults, €8 for children

Flash Gallery...in a flash 1. What? A not-for-profit artist’s association called Flash Gallery BCN that organises temporary ‘flash’ exhibitions. 2. When? Every two months. 3. Where? Flash Gallery, Carrer López Catalan 1 (Sants). 4. Who? Nine European artists. 5. How? Mediums include painting, sculpture and print-making. 6. What’s on? ‘Art 4 Haiti’, March 26th (6-9pm) and 27th (2-9pm). 7. What’s included? Work this month includes 36 paintings, each costing €125. 8. How much (1)? Twenty percent of sales from this event go to the Haiti appeal. 9. How much (2)? Free entrance and nibbles and wine will be served. 10. Want more info? www.flashgallerybcn.es

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Some of the Flash Gallery artists, pictured at the venue

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main pages - Mar 10.indd 9

16/2/10 15:34:16

| M | Food & drink

Welcome to the dollhouse Small is beautiful at Petit Bangkok. By Nadia Feddo. Photo by Patricia Esteve. ple’s pad thai, the drinks came speedily as did the first course. Easily done, keeps the customers lubricated, fed and far more inclined to overlook any later dips in punctuality. Why don’t more restaurants realise this? Dani works the tables with huge charm and efficiency, while his Thai wife produces miracles in her tiny kitchen. Their pride in their business and their enthusiasm give them a huge advantage over certain larger Thai enterprises in the city: they care. And that makes all the difference. The wine list was short, Spanish and affordable with nothing over m16. We tried a 2004 Capilla del Fraile from Toldeo, with a spicy, blackcurranty nose that gave an intense and meaty wallop to the tongue (especially after being left to breathe for a while) and provided a good foil to the fresh flavours of Thai cooking. We kicked off with delicately flavoured Pho pia ped (spicy duck rolls with fresh vegetables and mint) and Kung hom pha (tender prawns with the odd wisp of vegetable in perfectly deep-fried pastry wraps), both with sweet chilli dipping sauce. The main courses are divided up into wok, rice, curry, pad, etc. and can be cooked with the main ingredi****Petit Bangkok, Carrer Saragossa 87 (FGC: Gràcia/Plaça Molina, Metro: ent of your choice, such as tofu, cuttlefish, duck, beef, Lesseps/Fontana). Tel. 616 185 196. Open Tues-Sat, 1pm-3.30pm, 8pmchicken or lamb. I tried Pad med ma muang, a heap of 11.30pm. Price: €24 for three courses and wine. big fat prawns (although this dish is more commonly made with chicken) with various crunchy vegetables flavoured with cashews and almond paste. My cometit Bangkok certainly lives up to its name: this Thai restaurant panion had a massaman curry which Dani described as “between red has space for just seven small tables, a toilet and a Hobbit-hole and yellow.” Rather than the typical Thai flavours of lemon grass, gakitchen. It’s so tiny, that on our visit they had two spare chairs langal and coriander, this is a more Indian-influenced curry with custacked outside on the pavement. It’s so tiny that all the cleaning min, cardamom, cinnamon and cloves, and all of these came through equipment is stashed in the loos. It’s so tiny that there’s no room for a nicely. I should also note that the steamed jasmine rice was m1.50 for phone—call owner Dani’s mobile instead (and whatever you do, don’t a generous two-portion bowl, a welcome change from the mean little forget this part: Petit Bangkok’s popularity means reservations are esthimbles you sometimes get in Asian restaurants. sential, even on a rainy Wednesday night when the football’s on). In a nice communist touch the desserts were all priced at m2.50. The fashion furore surrounding Thai food right now seems to My companion had Thai red tea ice cream, which had an intriguing have passed this place by, so there are no model waitresses, no DJs, flavour of fresh cream and rust (but in a good way). I initially balked no trendoid diners in ironic double denim and no overreaching menu at the flan de coco, as I find the slime factor unbearable, but it was prologues that bang on about cod Oriental philosophy in the name a firm little brick of creamy, coconutty loveliness, and converted me of flogging a few more bowls of tom yum soup. In the absence of any for life. space for bombastic statement decor, Petit Bangkok has forgone the The bill was as diminutive as everything else in the restaurant and Buddhas, gongs and aggressive foliage that seem to be de rigeur in we both stuffed and drank ourselves silly for under m25 a head: proof Thai places, and limited itself to a few photos. that the best things do come in small packages. However, with this Once we had performed the complicated manoeuvre of wedging kind of popularity, expansion is all but inevitable, so don’t expect ourselves into our seats without dipping our scarves in too many peoBangkok to stay Petit for much longer.

Market Watch Spring’s bounty

fter a long winter of knobbly root vegetables, March brings a huge explosion of leafiness, colour and variety to the market stalls, from baby courgettes and fiery pink radishes to chicory, tiny sweet carrots, asparagus and watercress. The first sweet peas from Llavaneres start to appear, and by the end of the month it’s time to celebrate the Festa del Pèsol de Sant Andreu de Llavaneres. The top dish here is pèsols ofegats (stewed peas), a simple recipe of fresh peas, onions, garlic shoots, fresh mint,

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a few drops of anisette, and many recipes call for bacon to be thrown into the pot too. Super-food watercress (créixens in Catalan or berros in Castilian) is also at its best in early spring. Once known as ‘scurvy grass’, it is packed with vitamin C along with iodine, iron, magnesium and zinc, and was used to treat anything from anaemia to infertility, although that might be stretching things a little. In the stalls, look for crisp, dark-green leaves with no sign of wilting. Eat on the day of purchase if you can, or put the stems in water

and refrigerate to keep for another 24 hours. March is also the time to find spring bolets (wild mushrooms) in the mountains after the winter snows have melted. Look out in the markets for múrgoles or the charcoalcoloured carboneres (also known as marçots), along with the delicate, thin-stemmed camasecs (or carreretes) and dumpy little moixernons. One of the favoured ways to eat these locally is to throw them into a pan of scrambled eggs or simply eat them lightly pan-fried in olive oil with lashings of garlic.

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Reviewed eateries are rated using stars with five being the best.

Food & drink

| M | 39

What’s for lunch

***Arabia, Sant Pere Més Alt 18 (Metro: Urquinaona). Tel. 93 319 8793. Open daily, 12.30pm-1.30am. Set lunch €9.50, three courses à la carte with drinks around €28 a head.

hat’s not to love about a place that has its own giant camel in the doorway and an electric indoor fountain? The decor at Arabia may be a little kitsch, but at least it leaves you in no doubt about the kind of food you’ll be eating: floor-to-ceiling pan-Arabic overkill with blown-up photos of the Valley of the Kings, the Palestinian flag, Arabic MTV on the various plasma screens, garish paintings of doe-eyed Arab lovelies (one, bizarrely, in a fishnet hijab) or turbanned warriors on horseback, doorways with ogee arches, chairs in wipe-clean tapestry, painted wooden tables, retired shisha pipes used as candle holders... there is literally no cliché left unturned and not an inch of undecorated space anywhere. Even the waiters are decked out in taqiyah (round caps) and embroidered waistcoats. As referenced by the decor, the cuisine is pan-Arabic, with many well-known dishes from Egypt, Morocco and Lebanon along with an occasional nod to Iraq, Syria, Tunisia and Yemen. The dishes Arabia does best are those centred around big chunks of meat: an excellently crisp lamb and beef shawarma; tender xix taouk; a towering pile of lamb couscous with the meat falling off the bones. With the notable exception of the felafel, vegetarian dishes fared less well: the fattoush salad was blah and needed much more bread, more heavily toasted for greater crunch and texture and to be far heavier on the mint and the lemon juice for anything approaching an authentic Levantine flavour; the warak inab (Lebanese stuffed vine leaves) were teeth-shrivellingly cold, having been served direct from the fridge, and the kousa mahshi (stuffed courgettes) also needed punchier seasoning to avoid the baby-food syndrome. Finish off with cardamom-flavoured Arabic coffee (m2.50) and good pistachio baklawa; for those with some time to kill, there are even a couple of back rooms where, for m12, you can kick back and smoke a shisha.

Read the food and drink blog on our website for the latest gourmet news and reviews: www.barcelona-metropolitan.com

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listen to reggae

watch the vibe

taste the food smell the flowers

experience

feel

Jamaica

c/ Rosell贸 209 路 Barcelona 路 Tel. 93 368 9393 路 www.stushandteng.com main pages - Mar 10.indd 4

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Food&Drink

Bakery Fabulous Baking Co. 4Sant Gervasi Come by and enjoy Fabulous Baking Co. Old-fashioned bakery Bakeware store Baking ingredients Tea room

4advertisers’ directory

Join them on Facebook “Fabulous Baking Co” for updates on their New baking and cooking classes.

NEW

Under 20 / 20-30 / 30-40 / Over 40 / IN F&D RV Reservation Advised /4new restaurant in food & drink C/Bisbe Sivilla 48 | FCC Puxet | Tel. 93 418 6616 www.fabulousbakingco.com Mon-Fri 9.30am-8.30pm, Sat-Sun 10am-2.30pm

Bistro

Bar

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smoking dog4Eixample e

Margarita Blue 4BARRI GÓTIC

Smoking Dog is a place where both foreigners and locals get the chance to meet, hang out and chill. It’s conveniently located in the heart of the Eixample district, next to the famous Opium Cinema. They have a wide selection of local and imported beers including Guinness, Heineken and Murphys on tap. Come here to meet new friends or just grab a bottle of beer and watch a game on Sky Sports or enjoy the great international and varied music.

Located in the heart of old Barcelona, Margarita Blue has become a classic in the city’s bar scene. This bar/restaurant is full of life and energy and gives its guests a world of options. Delight in the dishes from the “Mexiterranean” kitchen, such as a variety of tacos, amazing guacamole, fresh carpaccio and tomates verdes fritos or take pleasure in a drink or cocktail whilst appreciating new music and spectacular shows that alternate between theatre and performance art. The kitchen is open until 2.30am. Reservations essential for groups. Join them on Facebook “Margarita Blue” to receive info on events.

C/Paris 191 |

Diagonal/Provença | Tel. 625 115 245 | www.smokingdog.webs.com | Every day 7pm-3am

C/Josep Anselm Clave 6 | Drassanes | Tel. 93 412 5489 | www.margaritablue.com Mon-Fri 1.30pm-4pm, 8pm-2.30am, Sat-Sun 6pm-2.30am | RV

Cake Designer Ki-Cake

7 Sins Bar and Lounge 4EIXAMPLE e

Personally Designed Cakes

New food menu with an even bigger selection of American style burgers, including chicken fillet and vegetarian options. Tasty tapas accompanied by one of our 7 beers on draught or 7 deadly cocktails for the ladies…? Entertainment every weekend in the basement club bar where you will find local & international DJ’s as well as live music acts. A great pre-club venue to get your weekend started. Big screen sports events over 2 floors. All Champions league games. Join us on Facebook “7 Sins Barcelona” to receive info on weekly events. C/Muntaner 7 | Universitat | Tel. 93 453 6445 www.7sinsbar.com Mon-Fri 11am-3am, Sat-Sun 6pm-3am | RV

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

Surprise your partner, friend or children with a very special gift. Infinite number of decoration and flavour possibilities. Made to order for any special occasion including birthdays and weddings. Become a fan of Ki-cake on Facebook.

NEFW &D IN

Tel. 647 282 414 | info@ki-cake.com | www.ki-cake.com

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Food & Drink Indian- Modern

Govinda (VEGETARIAN) 4BARRI GÒTIC

BEMBi4Eixample D Bembi offers an authentic Indian experience unlike any other in Barcelona. Traditional Indian recipes are passionately prepared and presented in a modern, stylish way by their India- and UK-trained master chef. Experience Bembi in trendy surroundings, and try their lunch menu for 14 (choice of four starters, main courses and desserts). Highly recommended is the menú de degustación for 26.50, you can try the chef’s selection and Hyderabadi lamb biriyani (succulent lamb and basmati rice cooked with a natural dough seal). C/Consell de Cent 377 | Girona/Passeig de Gràcia Tel. 93 502 4952 | www.bembi-barcelona.com 1.15pm-3.45pm, 8.30pm-11.30pm (11.45pm Fri and Sat) Sun 1.15pm-4.30pm | Closed Sun dinner

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A restaurant veteran for 23 years, Govinda specialises in vegetarian Indian cuisine. The international menu features talis, a salad bar, natural juices, lassis, paninis, pizzas and crêpes. It offers a vegan-friendly, non-alcoholic and authentically decorated environment with lunch and weekend menus. Pl. Villa de Madrid 4-5 | Catalunya | Tel. 93 318 7729 www.amalteaygovinda.com Tue-Sat 1pm-4pm, 8.30pm-12am, Sun-Mon 1pm-4pm

Food&Drink to advertise in this section, please call 93 4514486 or email ads@barcelona-metropolitan.com Indonesian- Thai BATIK4SAGRADA FAMILIA Close to the Sagrada Familia you will find a small and very special restaurant with authentic Indonesian, Malaysian, Thai and Singaporean cuisine. Enjoy one of the house recommendations “Satay”, “Nasi Goreng”, “Sambal Udang”, “Tom Yam Soup” or the tasting menu for 15 per person. Menu del dia runs Monday-Friday for 9.50 and 11.50. Reservations are strongly recommended Friday and Saturday nights.

C/Valencia 454 I Sagrada Familia Tel. 93 231 6015 and 677 594 533 www.restaurantbatik.com I Mon-Sat 1pm -3.45pm Tues-Sat 8.30pm-11.30pm Closed Sun and Mon Evening

International

SHANTI4LES CORTS Shanti (which means peace in Sanskrit) have selected a rich and varied menu comprised of traditional dishes that offer an authentic Indian experience to even the most discerning palettes. Using classic recipes their dishes respect tradition but come with modern presentation. Try their tasting menu for only 24.90 (+IVA). Come to Shanti and enjoy authentic Indian cuisine with inner peace and a 10% discount with this advertisement for the month of March.

C/Agustina Saragossa 3-5 (in front of CC L’Illa) | Maria Cristina - Tram 1,2,3 L’Illa | Tel. 93 252 3115 www.restaurantshanti.com | Mon -Sat 1pm-4pm 8pm-11.45pm Closed Sun | RV

Indian - Hindu Moti Mahal4RAVAL Conveniently located between the Rambla de Raval and Paral-lel, Moti Mahal offers an extensive menu of Indian cuisine, including madras and tika dishes, sheek kebabs, traditional soups breads and biryanis.  A large variety of vegetarian dishes are also available.  House specialities are the clay oven-cooked tandoori dishes and the tofu paneer pakora. Menu of the day is on offer Monday - Friday for 9.25 and an evening and weekend tasting menu for 14.95.  All items can be prepared mild, spicy, super spicy or suicide. Take-away is available. C/Sant Pau 103 | Paral.lel | Tel. 93 329 3252 Fax. 93 441 3713 | www.motimahalbcn.com Every day 12pm-4pm, 8pm-12am Closed Tues Lunch | RV

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Hard Rock CafE4CIUTAT VELLA Hard Rock Cafe Barcelona offers an inspired, creative ambience with incredible rock ‘n’ roll memorabilia on display. Come and taste authentic American food. Their berbecue entrees slow cooked in the cafe’s hardwood smokers are delicious. Visit the bar to try a premium cocktail and check out the live music and special events on offer. Don’t forget to stop at the Rock Shop for fine, classic, cotton T-shirts or a collectable Hard Rock pin. Imagine There’s No Hunger Hard Rock is proud to support World Hunger Year (WHY) and its many Global initiatives to help children and the fight against hunger and poverty. As part of Imagine There’s No Hunger campaign, when you add a donation of 1 or more onto your bill at Hard Rock Cafe in Barcelona, you’ll receive a very special charity bracelet. To find out more visit: www.hardrock.com/barcelona. Plaça Catalunya 21 | Catalunya | Tel. 93 270 2305 | www.hardrock.com/barcelona Restaurant: Sun-Thurs 11am-2am, Fri, Sat and hol eves 11am-3am Rock Shop: Sun-Thurs 10am-1.30am, Fri, Sat and hol eves 10am-2am

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44 M Food & drink Jamaican

Take-away Stush & Teng4Eixample E

Pim Pam burger4Born

Stush & Teng is Barcelona’s first Jamaican restaurant. Enjoy the reggae vibe and Jamaican-based cuisine in a beautifully sensuous and stylish setting. The lunch and dinner menu include traditional Jerk chicken, salted fish and ackee (a delicious Jamaican fruit with a milky taste). New menu of the day for 9.50 on offer. At midnight, Stush & Teng converts into a laidback lounge bar with excellent music and a good selection of classic fresh fruit Caribbean cocktails that are a must!

Quality is of utmost importance making it the best burger and frankfurter take-away in town. Special hamburgers, chicken burgers, bratwurst, frankfurters, home made chips and stroganoff are also available and are all prepared on the premises.

C/Rossellò 209 | FFCC - Provença Diagonal Tel. 93 368 9393 | www.stushandteng.com Breakfast: Mon-Fri lunch: 1-4pm, dinner: 8-11.30pm, Lounge bar: 12-2am, Sat dinner 8pm-11.30pm

C/ Sabateret 4 I Jaume I Tel. 93 315 2093 burger@pimpamplats.com I www.pimpamplats.com Every day 1pm-12am

Thai

Mediteranean Creative

tHAI GRACIA 4GRACIA A new Thai restaurant has just opened on the edge of Gracia! Expect authentic ingredients all imported from Thailand and cooked by experienced Thai chefs. The pad thai, green and yellow curries have excellent subtle flavours. Simply delicious! The special tasting menu for 19.80 is a huge hit and allows you to try all the exotic dishes Thai Gracia has to offer. An affordable 10.90 menu del dia is available during the week. The warm hospitality and attention to detail to every dish at Thai Gracia will keep you coming back for more.

C/ Córcega 381 | Metro Verdaguer / Girona Tel. 93 459 3591 | www.restaurante-thai-gracia.com Every day 1pm -4pm 8pm-12am | RV

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Thai Thai4EIXAMPLE E

Thai Thai restaurant invites you to taste and enjoy traditional Thai food with tropical ingredients from Thailand prepared by Thai chefs. They specialise in all kinds of Thai curries. Thai Thai has created a delicious tasting menu for only 24 and a fresh menu of the day is on offer for 9.50 during the week.

Mulet4Eixample d Mulet’s ambience is minimalist where the pleasure of savouring delicious food comes first. The dishes designed by Rodrigo Mulet are flavourful, healthy and creative cooked using the best quality ingredients. Exotic meats such as buffalo and African gazelle, as well as tantalising fish dishes are just some of the options available on Mulet’s Mediterranean and cosmopolitan menu. Take advantage of Mulet’s set menu deal; choose any appetiser, main dish and dessert for only 23 (IVA included) available Monday to Wednesday evenings and Saturday and Sunday lunch time. Let experienced staff assist you in choosing from their top selection of wines, one more thing that makes your experience at Mulet unforgettable.

Enjoy Thai Thai’s authentic cuisine at their NEW location near Plaza España.

Visit their regularly updated website (www.restaurantmulet.com) to check out events and new menus. Sneak preview: wine tasting events are the last Thursday of every month. C/Diputació 93 | Urgell | Tel. 620 938 059 www.thaithai.es España | Tel. 663 126 398 C/Princep Jordi, 6 | Every day 1pm-4pm, 8pm-12am | RV

C/Valencia 350 | Verdaguer/Girona | Tel. 93 459 1723 | www.restaurantmulet.com Mon-Thurs 8am-4pm, 9pm-11pm, Fri 8am-4pm, 9pm-3am, Sat 1.30pm-4pm, 9pm-3am, Sun 1.30pm-4pm | RV

Vegetarian

Nepalese

Food & drink_Mar10.indd 44

NAMASKAR NEPAL4GRÀCIA

Amaltea4EIXAMPLE E

Recently opened Nepalese restaurant that brings you traditional cuisine that will carry your taste buds to Nepal. Enjoy thali food in a tranquil, friendly environment. The chef has years of experience and is keen to prepare food that meets the diners expectations.  A take-away service is available and the menu del día is only 8,70. We are waiting for you with a warm Namaskar welcome.

Visit Amaltea vegetarian restaurant, where tasty and healthy meals are served in a welcoming environment. Dishes include cereals, pulses and vegetables, with homemade puddings. The cuisine is creatively international with care taken to ensure all ingredients are fresh and dishes are well balanced. Menu of the day 10, night and weekend menu 14.50.

C/Hipòlit làzaro 34, Local 1 ( Pi i Margall 38-40) Joanic | Tel. 93 213 1220 | Tues-Sun 1pm-4pm, 8pm-11.30pm, Closed Mon www.restaurantnamaskar.com

C/Diputació 164 | Urgell | Tel. 93 454 8613 www.amalteaygovinda.com Mon-Sat 1pm-4pm, Mon-Sat 8.30pm-11.30pm, Closed Sun

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main pages - Feb10.indd 4

12/1/10 16:15:50

| M | Beauty | Health | Wellbeing

Marketplace 4 Services directory To advertise in this section, call: 93 451 44 86 or email: ads@barcelona-metropolitan.com

beauty health & wellbeing

home services

education

services

business employment

Hairdressers

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Hairdressers Massage Beauty / Spa Dress Designer Dentists Doctors Chiropractors Pharmacy Podology Veterinarian Psychologists / Psychotherapists Pilates / Wellness Personal Coaching Hypnobirthing Martial Arts Dog Care Painting & Carpentry Interior Design Architecture & Construction Building Security Plumbing Real Estate & Accommodation Transport / Storage Relocation Language Schools Nursery / School Translation Course Computers Electrician Television Services Design Drinks distributor Legal Practices Financial Services Insurance Job Opportunities

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Massage

Beauty / Spa

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Beauty | Health | Wellbeing Beauty / Spa

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Iradier, 30 years at your service. The perfect present for your loved ones... health, beauty and well-being.

www.iradier.com 93 254 17 25

Gift cards available for facial or body treatments, a session at the thermal spa, a day of relaxing...

Dress Designer

Dentists

English Dentist Dr. Nicholas Jones BDSLDSRCS Col. No 4090

FREE CHECK-UPS

General & Cosmetic dentistry Orthodontics Implants & Tooth whitening Smile makeovers Diagonal 281 (Sagrada familia L5/Monumental L2) Tel. 93 265 80 70 / Mob. 607 332 335 Open Monday to Saturday

nickteeth@hotmail.com www.nickteeth.com

American Dentist

Associate Member of American Dental Association

...open monday to saturday

Clinic: Castellnou 47, 08017 BCN Tel: 932 051 903 / 696 664 430 / 636 312 522 Email: tingsvall_ mccarthy@hotmail.com www.tingsvall-mccarthy.com Transport: Station Les Tres Torres (L6) & Bus 16, 30, 66, 70, 72, 74.

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Dr. Joseph de Vilallonga

We Fix Smiles 100% Ceramic Crowns First review at no cost

General Dentistry Implants

Emergency Line

659 443 583

www.clinicavilallonga.com English, Japanese and Spanish spoken

American Dental Association

Calvet, 15 pral. 1ÂŞ - 08021 Barcelona â&#x20AC;˘ Tel. 93 209 61 21

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| M | Beauty | Health | Wellbeing Doctors

Leila Catherine Onbargi, M.D.

OBSTETRICS and GYNECOLOGY

ULTRAMED Our Doctors can help you improve your health through various natural methods:

Centro Medico Teknon American Board Certified C/Vilana, 12 • consulta 161 Barcelona • Tel: 93 393 3161 Email: dr.onbargi@gmail.com www.teknon.es/consultorio/onbargi Fellow, American College OB/GYN Diplomate American Board of OB/GYN

ENGLISH • SPANISH • FRENCH

English Doctor Dr. Steven Joseph

Chiropractic Acupuncture Homeopathy Chiro Massage

Col nº 38291

BSc, MBBS, DRCOG, MRCGP, MRCPsych (London) Member of the Royal College of General Practioners U.K Member of the Royal College of Psychiatrists U.K

General Practice · Mental Health Extensive range of primary care services Access to all medical specialists/investigations

GOOG medical centre

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Tel 93 330 2412 • Mobile 627 669 524 Email: googol@hotmail.es www.googolmedicalcentre.com

Gran Via Carles III nº-37-39 08028 Barcelona Les Corts

Please contact us for a free consultation:

www.ultramed.es - info@ultramed.es C/ Bruc 76 - 93 487 9648

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Beauty | Health | Wellbeing Chiropractors

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Pharmacy

Veterinarian

Podology

Psychologists / Psychotherapists

Network of English Speaking Therapists Established since 2000

Connie Capdevila Brophy PhD Clinical Psychologist & Psychotherapist 932 179 841

Anna Jansen MA Dance Movement Therapist 657 183 542

Denise Marmelstein MA Learning Specialist 932 111 095

Christen Bruce MS Speech & Language Therapist 687 635 630

Donna DeWitt MA Performance & Sport Psychologist 607 636 246

Vera M. Hilb MA Clinical Psychologist & Psychotherapist, EMDR 667 584 532

Jill Jenkins PsyD Child Clinical & School Psychologist 932 179 841

Emma Judge MA Licensed Counselor Psychologist 639 041 549

Claudia Ros Tusquets MA Clinical Psychologist & Psychotherapist 934 102 962 / 657 570 692

Peter Zelaskowski UKCP Registered Psychotherapist 628 915 040

www.barcelonanest.com

All NEST professionals are Licensed / Certified English - Spanish - Catalan - Dutch - German - Italian

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| M | Beauty | Health | Wellbeing

Psychologists / Psychotherapists

English Speaking and Trained Counsellor and Psychotherapist Help and Support with; • Lack of Energy or Low Self-Esteem • Improving Family and Personal Relationships • Feelings of Anger, Loneliness and Isolation, or Anxiety • Expat Issues and Adapting to, or Preparing for, Change • Achieving a Particular Goal or Finding a New Direction • Changing Unhelpful or Destructive Habits or Patterns of Behaviour

Free Initial 20 minute Introductory Meeting

Jonathan Lane Hooker

Psychotherapist, Counsellor, Coach and Guide Tel: 93 590 7654 • Mob: 639 579 646 • jonathan.hooker@yahoo.com

Personal Coaching

Whole Person Development

March 6th - The most effective route to happiness and fulfilment

Less is More March 27th - the 21st century way of living and working More at www.intelligencefoundation.org/courses To register: dimitri@intelligencefoundation.org

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Pilates

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Beauty | Health | Wellbeing Dog Care

HypnoBirthing

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Martial Arts

Painting & Carpentry

Wing Chun is a concept-based system of self defence from southern China, renowned for itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s simple, direct techniques. Improve both your body and mind. Find out more at:

www.wongshunleungspain.org Contact David on 617 357 184 or david_615734@yahoo.co.uk Classes every Tuesday & Thursday 7pm - 8.30pm C/ Enric Granados 48, 08008, Barcelona

Interior Design GRAHAM COLLINS PROPERTY CONSULTANCY INTER IOR DESIGN & DECOR ATION Puzzled by the property market ? Need a renovator that speaks your language ? Want that designed look on an Ikea budget ? C / CONSULAT DEL MAR 35, 3er BARCELONA t: 0034 678 75 75 11 e: grahamcollins@talk21.com

Architecture & Construction

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| M | Home Services Building

Security

Plumbing

Real Estate & Accommodation

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Home Services

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Transport / Storage

Relocation

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Education

Language Schools

SPANISH COURSES

ACELE

Catalan Association of Spanish Language Schools

Your guarantee of high quality service (*) abcCollege www.abccollege.es

Centro Humboldt www.centrohumboldt.com

Enforex www.enforex.com

BCN Languages www.bcnlanguages.com

Don Quijote www.donquijote.org

IH Barcelona www.ihes.com/bcn

(*) All ACELE schools have been accredited by the Cervantes Institute and/or CEELE.

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Education

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Nursery / School “I really enjoyed the Spanish classes and learned a lot.” “My Spanish improved rapidly.” Lene Sandvik Norway

Josephine Tustin Canada

“Small classes!”

Fleur Van de Wijgert Holland

“A warm and friendly environment with great teachers.” Carol Mallinson Australia

“I’ve learned more Spanish at Speakeasy in 3 weeks than I’ve learned in the US in 3 years.” Tom Carey

Day Care and Kindergarten

Summer school Saturday workshop for children After-school activities Family space and workshops for parents Children’s bookshop “El Jardinet” Excellent quality of care with only 7 children per teacher Appropriate installations and warm environment with a garden, animals and vegetable garden Flexible time-table to suit your family (from 8.30 to 18.30) Groups divided by language with native speaking teachers: CATALAN, ENGLISH, GERMAN AND SPANISH

In Poblenou:

Llatzeret, 9 (Metro Poblenou)

Tel.

663 021 457

secretariakinder@gmail.com www.kinderbarcelona.org

Personalised education for overall development - children from 0 to 8 years

Translation Course

USA

“Rewarding and intense.” Carina Mikka Olsen Denmark

“I’ve learned a lot!” Anna Tomaszewska Poland

“Very friendly staff, excellent teachers and great location.” “I’m really speaking Spanish!”

Dionne Jacomello Greece

Merel Fernandes Holland

Spanish lessons from 4€ www.speakeasybcn.com

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Tel: (+34) 933 427 197

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Services

Design

Computers

graphic design

& photography for all your projects

corporate identity Bespoke means ‘made to individual order’, and we tailor each project to our client’s unique needs. Our 10 years of experience working with and producing publicity, design and editorial content guarantee you value and quality that can be trusted. www.bespokebcn.com

logo design web design advertising brochures & magazines signage call 659 526 639 or send us an e-mail info@happy2design4u.com

Enric Granados 48 entlo. 2a, 08008 Barcelona m.667 906 721 f.93 451 6537 e.david@bespokebcn.com

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www. happy2design4u.com

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Services Electrician

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Television Services

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| M | Services | Business Drink distributor

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Legal Practices

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Business

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Financial Services

Financial Advice on all aspects of living in Spain from our experienced, regulated and qualified team.

British qualiied accountants with local solutions

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For your free guide to independent financial advice email barcelona@spectrum-ifa.com or phone 93 665 8596

Founder Members of FEIFA Regulated in Spain. Offices also in France, Luxembourg and the Netherlands

Traditional accounting and taxation covering both territories Outsourcing Solutions for all sizes of enterprises

www.spectrum-ifa.com

The Spectrum IFA Group en España – Baskerville Advisers S.L. CIF B-63/137.020 – Correduría de Seguros; Nº de registro RDGS J2306 Paseo de Gracia 63, Principal 2a, 08008, Barcelona Seguro responsabilidad civil AIG Europe Nº 0131900503.1330 Registro Mercantil de Barcelona, Tomo 35489, Folio 170, Sección 8, Hoja B-269534

Insurance

Cost reduction appraisal Assistance to doing business in either UK or Spain Business development and Strategy Bespoke Services

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| M | Business | Employment Insurance

Job Opportunities

Ambitious, money hungry sales people wanted. For an english speaking telesales role.

Earn 10,000â&#x201A;Ź per month, no experience necessary Send cv to: eurosalesrec@live.co.uk

Development Assistant We are an international English language training corporation seeking an assistant for our International Development Division Requirements: English (as a native) French (fluent) Organized & disciplined Work out of home Self employed We offer: Fix salary + bonus Training in Paris

Contact: Daniel.fischer@yourenglishsolution.com

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Business

| Employment | M | 61

Job Opportunities

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| M | Employment Job Opportunities

ELON ENJOY BARC

WITH A STABLE JOB

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63 Mar 10.pdf

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18:34:26

Confused about Insurance in Spain? Want to feel more protected? Brumwell Brokers have 30 years of experience and can help you with the full scope of your Insurance needs.

In 1978, after working in the Insurance Industry all over the globe since 1964, Brumwell Brokers was set up by Bevan Brumwell. Roger Brumwell joined the company in 1994, making it a family run affair with a broad range of experiences and languages. The company is an active member in the International community and has multilingual staff. Bevan speaks English, Cantonese, Spanish and some Catalan and Roger speaks English, Spanish, Catalan fluently and has a high level of French. The company favours a personable approach with all clients whilst helping them jump over any hurdles they have come across with their Insurance needs. They pride themselves on their welcoming, helpful and dedicated approach to their service. Brumwell Brokers provide household, health, accident, life, motor car, pet and commercial Insurance tailored to the needs of the local and International communities.

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Got visitors coming? Let us take care of their accommodation...

...so youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re free to take care of them. Our centrally-located apartments are available from one night to several weeks, with prices and sizes to suit all budgets.

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Call us on 93 451 4486 or visit our website.

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| M | Back page

Ending the agony

o time’s almost up for Barcelona bull-

are sexy (apparently) with their tight plus fours

the bulls are treated with dignity etc. But then

fighting. Sorry, time might almost be up.

and snooty self regard. Bullfighting isn’t.

hanging was traditional (or the garrotte, if

It’s not actually over until the fat politi-

Richard Dawkins would argue that as a dy-

we’re sticking with quaint Spanish traditions);

cian sings. Ending a centuries-old tradition like

ing breed they won’t be long for this world

a better life, maybe, but a miserable death, and

bull-fighting doesn’t happen overnight, and

anyway. The same could be argued of the coe-

anyway citing the wretched lives of cattle bred

certainly not without a struggle, but there are

lacanth, the white rhinoceros and the vinyl

for the slaughterhouse is an argument in favour

signs that an end is in sight. It just has to over-

record, but they still seem to cling on. Given

of vegetarianism, not bull-fighting. As for dig-

come the minor obstacle of a vote in the Cata-

the tenacity of the pro-bull lobby, it will need a

nity, you only have to hear the death bellows

lan parliament first. Was ever a topic of debate

short, sharp coup-de-grâce to end it all—ironic,

and see the spurting blood to understand that

likely to prove as bloody outside the bullring as

given the fate of their beloved bulls.

dignity doesn’t come into it.

it is inside, with its heady mix of vested inter-

Thanks to Hemingway, or possibly Russell

About the only redeeming feature of a bull-

ests, hard-line nationalists (Catalan and Span-

Crowe, it seems every full-blooded visitor to

fight is the chance the matador might get a bit

ish), and people who just enjoy bullfighting for

Spain feels the urge to pay homage to the are-

of a goring. But let’s not be seduced by the ar-

the fun of it? Fun doesn’t really come into it if

na. An homage most soon regret. Nothing quite

gument that it’s a meeting of equals, man ver-

you’re the bull, or you’re one of the many tour-

prepares you for the pure barbarity of someone

sus beast. How often does a matador die? How

ists who usually leave after a bull or two, once

plunging a sword into a living creature. If they

often does a bull survive? If it were one man

they’ve seen exactly what’s involved.

could get it right first time, it might be more

against one bull, fine. But it isn’t, there’s a man

Long after the last tourist has shuffled off

palatable. But they can’t. They invariably need

on a padded horse with a gruesome spear, three

in search of a more palatable local tradition—

several lunges, each inflicting horrific wounds.

men with kebab sticks, to say nothing of the

microwaved paella, Catalan flamenco, and ef-

Nine times out of 10 they have to finish the job

rumours of deliberate dehydration to weaken

fervescent wine in a beaker—the traditionalists

with a dagger through the spinal chord—but

the bull before it even scents the arena.

will still be waving handkerchiefs and whis-

not before disorienting the agonising animal

Politics being what it is, it’s possible the de-

tling at any bulls that fail to demonstrate suf-

with flicking capes, to bring it to its knees.

bate will be pushed back in Parliament, or the

ficient enthusiasm for an arena full of jeering

There’s nothing sporting about bewildering a

pro-bullfighting lobby might even be handed a

spectators and a man with a sharp sword. That

dumb animal already gushing blood from nose

win. And any ban might take several years to

those spectators are almost all elderly men,

and mouth, bellowing in pain and in some cases

come into effect. Even so, if you’re curious to

whose fluttering handkerchiefs have seen bet-

trying to crawl away from its tormentors.

see what the fuss is about, now’s the time. Just

ter days—and more detergent—is symptomatic

Of course, defenders of bullfighting argue

of the decline of bullfighting here. Bullfighters

that it’s traditional, the bull has a better life,

don’t say you weren’t warned. -- Roger de Flower

HOROSCOPE

by Nuria Picola

Aries The energy holding you back is unblocked, so you should recover your centre and your direction and start to move rapidly toward your objectives. Your intuitive powers are strong.

Taurus This is a good moment to make your hopes and desires real, so it should be a happy month. Friendships play a role in all parts of your life, including the financial.

Gemini Try not to be divided between work and home. Keep focused at work. A loved one may be more sensitive than usual so watch what you say, and think before speaking.

Cancer Your professional objec-

Leo It’s a good time to resolve your doubts, but be careful that others don’t spring up. Hasty financial decisions may cost you dearly. You could do with doing more sport.

Virgo Keep an eye on your electronic valuables and your car, you may need to make a change. A good work opportunity may arise around mid-month. Your friends are super-sensitive.

Libra If you used last month to think hard about the love you want in your life, it may happen now. If you’re alone, you may not be for long. Keep an eye out for a special person.

Scorpio It would be a good idea

Sagittarius You need to pay at-

Capricorn It may be a compli-

Aquarius It’s a good moment to

Pisces Congratulations! This is

cated month for balancing your heart’s desires and your mental objectives. Use those strategic resources that tend to work well for you.

market yourself. Send out information about your products and services and do publicity campaigns. All of this will bring enormous professional benefits.

your moment of maximum personal energy and it should be a happy month. You’ve got a lot of personal power and charm to atract the best.

tention to home and family, and take care of any unresolved issues there. This may refer to your birth family, and doubts you’ve had for a long time.

www.nuriapicola.com tives should be much clearer this month, and it should be a successful time at work. It’s also a good time to find a job. Take a hard look at your love-life.

to begin a plan for revitalising your health. Exercise and diet need looking at. You could use a period of recreation to prepare for a more defined role at work.

scoop

By Ben Rowdon

66 Back page-2.indd 90

18/2/10 17:31:22

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