Mercat de la Boqueri

I think to get to the heart of any city, you should visit their local food market. Our apartment was a two minute walk from the biggest market in the city...La Boqueria, right on the main streets of Las Ramblas. The giant market is filled with sweets, ham, sausages, wine, seafood, fresh meat, cheese, fruits and countless fruit juice stores. For a special homemade dinner, we bought 2 kilos of mussels, nice spanish wine, bread, fruit, cheese and high quality Serrano ham, all for under 30 euros! Food was incredibly cheap and fresh here so if you have access to cooking facilities, i truly recommend you to cook something simple. And for those who don't cook, there are many tapas bars here and plenty of stores for you to buy food to take back home as presents!

Happy 100th Birthday Sir Norman

Although this one amazing photographer is no longer with us, lets celebrate some of his amazing work on the day that would have been his 100th birthday. Born 21st April 1913, Sir Norman Parkinson is one of fashion photography's pioneers. He changed the history of the fashion industry. He had worked with the most prestigious publications like Harper's Bazaar and Vogue. He has also worked with the most influential people in the world such as The Beatles, The Queen's Mother, Margret Thatcher,  Miss Audrey Hepburn, amongst many others. Whether black and white or colour images, his craftsmanship shows through in every shot. His work tells stories, whether through humour or glamour, they will sure capture the hearts of any viewer. Happy Birthday Sir Norman! Thank you for inspiring my generation... and many generations to come!

Dining In Barcelona

I probably ate more than i should in Barcelona, but with fresh food like this, how could i resist!?! Since Barcelona is very much a tourist city, most of the restaurants are probably catered to the foreigners' taste, thus losing it's authenticity. One way to identify good local restaurants from commercialised tourist restaurants is to listen to the customers around you. If everyone around you including the waiters are speaking fluent english... then you're probably in the wrong place. I always ask local people for suggestions then go online to do a bit more research. 

Out of the many restaurants and cafes i have tried in Barcelona, these three are the only ones i would really recommend based on price, freshness and authenticity. Although they are no fine dining, it really is food made from the heart. It's all about the detail and surprises that you get  now and again.

ATN in Barri Gotic. Modernised spanish food served in a clean, contemporary environment. The weather was lovely so we decided to sit outside to soak up the sun. It was only lunch time so i ordered a few light tapas snacks to keep me going before afternoon tea time. The cold soup was refreshing and so tasty. The crispy crouton topped with cheese gave the soup another dimension. My other favourite was the Adulucian inspired Paella. 

Ra restaurant in El Raval. Situated in the trendy area of El Raval and a two minutes walk from Museu d'Art Contemporani de Barclona... it is the perfect restaurant to visit after appreciating some fantastic art. It is not often that i miss out taking photos of the food i eat, but this time i got too excited and completely forgot to document the fantastic food. The restaurant is full with local people, not even the waitress spoke english. The food was fusion European with Asian and Mediterranean. The place is quite bohemian and was popular with trendy fashionistas, young professionals and quirky looking couples. Another plus is that many trendy bars are also in the neighbourhood, so complete your night with a few cocktails!

Papitu in Le Boqueria. If you want fast, simple and local food, this is the place to be. Enjoy the sun whilst eating some local 'feel good' food! A slice of the  iconic Tortilla Espanola and a nice cup of caffe con leche kick started my day with joy! 

Barcelona in...Sunset

Photos taken at my favourite time of the day....Sunset. Thank you for some BEAUTIFUL memories.

Barcelona in....Muted

Although Barcelona is a vibrant city, there is a much gentler side to the city than you would expect. The city is full of art, music, history and culture. Take a stroll down Barri Gotic to absorb the beauty of all the historical buildings. Enjoy the interesting bric-a-brac at the local market, but make sure to haggle as things are very over priced! For classical music lovers, a visit to Musica Casa Beethoven is a must. The shop is filled with music scores from wall to wall. For a Beethoven fan like me, it was pure heaven!

Barcelona in....Colour!

Barcelona is a majestic city full of colour, life and lots of interesting people. Although the city is known for it's high rate of pick-pockets and crime, it didn't stop me opening up my heart to the local people. I was lucky to come across some quirky locals that showed us what life was really like outside of the tourist circles.  To me, it is the local people who bought colour to this trip, making it extra special. 

Barcelona in.... Black and White

It was a rare opportunity for this city trip to happen. It's not often that my two life long friends and I are in the same place at the same time. We have been best friends for over thirteen years and although we have grown apart in many ways, the very simple fact that we are friends for life will never change. The three of us cannot be any more different, complete polar opposites, but i believe that this is what makes our friendship work. We compliment each other perfectly. One is a sailor, the other is a nurse, for around three hundred days of the year we are all in different places on the map. The past five days have made up for any time apart. It gave us so many beautiful memories that will stay with us for many years to come....

To make things a little more interesting, I decided to share my trip to Barcelona with you through the different spectrum of colours.