I bring you all, health, prosperity and good luck from this little fellow called Caganer.
Caganer
I know it's an odd and probably distateful way to start a travel post showing a person doing his business, but trust me, according to Catalonia traditions, this is by no means rude. Caganer is a local figure and forms part of the traditional Christmas navity scene along with Mary and Baby Jesus. Pooh pooh or “Excrement equals fertilisation equals money equals luck and prosperity." says anthropologists Source.
This was the first interesting shop I saw when I arrived in Barcelona and of course I went inside to have a nose around. Apart from the normal Caganer above, they also did a lot of celebrities, political figures, sports people, professionals etc. Apparently, it's a honour to have a Caganer made after you, but I'm sure there are some snowflakes who can't see the fun side of things and get all upset. Apologies for the lack of photos inside, I got the feeling it was not permitted.
The World Begins With Every Kiss
My next stop is the kiss mural. It's hidden down a little alley a stones throw away from the Cathedral. The mural is made up of thousands of photos sent in by people about their moments of freedom, as the mural is to commemorate Catalonia losing The War of The Spanish Succession in 1714. It was quite busy here and it took me ages to get this photo with not so many people in it. I had a quick look at some of the individual photos. Many were normal daily photos spent (I assume) with loved ones, and it was very comforting to see people so happy and free. I would have loved to spend more time looking at them, but I figured it would be a bit selfish as lots of people were hanging around to take photos and I'm pretty sure they wouldn't want me to photo bomb them.
Lunch with a view
This is the El Corte Inglés department store and it's located at the Plaza Cataluña, one of the main squares in the centre of Barcelona. The department store itself is so so, I mean it's a good reputable good store, but what makes it special is the cafeteria on the top floor. If you notice the bank of windows on the left side, that's where the cafeteria is located, and it gives you stunning views of the city. And the best thing, the cafeteria is quite affordable, they didn't make it into a fancy posh restaurant just because it has gorgeous views. I think it's great that they made it so accessible to people, and I had a very nice lunch there.
Gaudi
I think Barcelona wouldn't be so Barcelona without Gaudi and his unique wacky architectural designs, and one cannot come to Barcelona without seeing at least one of his famous buildings. I've been to Barcelona once many years ago, and that time I also went to Park Güell, so this time I skipped that. That said, I still went to see a few of his other famous buildings.
| Casa Batlló | Casa Milà |
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Of course, I could not not go to Gaudi's most famous work, the Sagrada Familia. Even if you didn't know this was designed by Gaudi, you would probably still know of the building, and that it still has not finished building for centuries. Last time I was here, I went inside to see the amazing interior. Memories are a bit fuzzy as it must have been about 10 years ago, and I can't find my hard disk which holds the photos. However, I remember there was a lot more scaffolding back then, so maybe if I come back in another 10 years time, it might be completed?
Barcelona Football Club
Across the road from the Sagrada Familia is Barcelona FC shop. Unless you are a football fan, or a fan of the Spanish league, or a Barcelona fan, then the club won't be as famous as the Sagrada Familia. I'm none of the three, but figured since I'm in Barcelona, I should wander in for visit. It actually turned out a bit more interesting than I thought. The shop area was downstairs, selling the normal club merchandise on one side, and a table football on the other. Hubby was quite impressed with the whole build of the table football, especially the players that were dressed in the Barcelona kit. I was particularly interested in the exhibition upstairs where you could learn about the history of the club through the posters on display.
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Walkaround
In the afternoon, I did more walkaround in the city. From the Sagrada Familia, I stopped by a rather unusual laundry cafe which I blogged about here. Then I venture towards the marina, passing by the Arc de Triomf towards the Parc de la Ciutadella, a lush urban park that dates back to the mid 19th century. It was a lovely walk.
La Plata
My last port of call for the day, was for some food. We found a really good tapas bar from the internet that had some very good reviews. And it certainly did not disappoint. It was a very small place with 10 - 15 seats, but standing by the counter was much better. They did a small selection of food, and we just pointed to what other people were eating to order ours. La Plata had a lovely vibe and was a great way to round off our day in Barcelona.
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You can checkout all my travel post on the Pinmapple here or click on Mr Pinmapple below
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It's a fun trip. Unfortunately, he doesn't allow taking pictures in the shop.
Thanks for sharing.
Thanks for dropping by
Interesting shop and very cool mural. Did you buy a pooping man figure?
I don't think that Sagrada Familia will ever be finished. By the time they complete it they will need to begin restoring the older parts and so on, in a continuous cycle lol 😆
There would be no selling point if there's no works going on!!! I'm pretty sure they're just dragging the whole thing out!
Those architectures are hideous and impressive...but the mural was quite attractive.. I mean, who won't be attractive by a kissing scene lol.. Unique artwork though.
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Apparently it was supposed to be a temporary exhibition, but it became so popular that they kept it permanent. So glad they did that
This has wetted my appetite!!
I have a couple of days in Barca, in June, I am loving that mural, from a distance it looks fantastic, close up WOW.
I think Caganer needs to change his diet, that is one hell of a dump.
I wonder what they eat in Barcelona. It's a big dump for little plates of tapa!!! Hope you find lots of interesting places when you go there next month
I shall avoid the tapas!!!!!!
I'm glad to say that after a crappy start, your post did improve ! Looks like an awesome city, its high on the list - we (my wife and I) really want to see that cathedral ! Arc de Triomf looks pretty impressive too !LOLZ
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It's a very nice city, and have loads to do, I'm glad I went back after so many years, as I don't often revisit places I've been to before
What the hell!? I laughed my ass off with the Caganer story.
I don't know what's our thing with poop really, but in Brazil we say money is coming when someone steps on poop or when a bird poops on us. "Oh, that's money", people say. I'm still waiting for the money though \o\
Perhaps you need to step on more pooh 😄
Barcelona is for sure one of my favorite cities in the small list of cities that I've visited. I think that after a week staying there back in 2004 (after the biggest snowfall of the century), I just passed by and walked for a couple of hours in Las Ramblas. All the architecture, the Gaudi Park, and the city landscape are unique and amazing. Now you made me want to visit Barcelona again 😅 The best part for me is that is not far apart from Lisbon, and every now and then, some low budget air companies send some promotions on weekend getaways!
Lucky you, being able to get there pretty easy. I love it when I find these good deals and can go away unexpectedly. And after 19 years, I think you're due a revisit!!!
More then time... You are about right!
I also went to Barcelona but about 15 years ago for a weekend to meet up with a friend, mainly to do a Gaudi tour. I'm not a fan of his school of architecture but you have to go if you're an architecture fanboy. My favourite is possibly the least 'Gaudi-like', Casa Calvet which could almost be French or Italian in style.
Keep it to yourself but I wasn't overly impressed by Barcelona in general, I'm not a big Spain fan.
You had an amazing cruise though, loving the posts. We cant keep up with you!
Hope the weekend is going well and best wishes :-)
Ha ha!!! Now you've broadcast it on the chain, you will be forever known as the person who is not a Spanish fan 🤐
Hope you have a great weekend yourself Nathen, what mode of transport is it this weekend?
Whoooaaa I never knew that Cathedral was so badky damaged during the fire!
How long ago was that? Three? Four years ago?
On a sidenote.... What a nice entry photo yiu have there!! 😂😂😂
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The cathedral - you mean the Sagrada Familia? It wasn't a fire, it's just being built, or rather has been built since 1882 and hasn't been finished yet.
I figured I'll start the post with something different 😄
Hermosas construcciones, me encantaría ir a España algún día. Me gustó mucho el mural, aunque es entendible que no lo vieras detalladamente y por más tiempo debido a la cantidad de gente. Aún así, parece una experiencia muy genial. :)
The mural was a very interesting feature, plus it was quite central near other landmarks no wonder it was quite popular with tourists. I hope you can go to Spain some time.
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The architecture of Sagrada Familia is so beautiful, I hope to visit it too someday. Thank you for sharing.
Your trip to Barcelona is very interesting. It's quite unique and amazing seeing those architecture. The kiss mural seems very attractive to all the tourists in the place.
Thanks, there's a lot of interesting things to see at Barcelona, makes a great trip
Oh shit. Haha. Just have to come and comment
Haha!!! You're always welcome to leave your mark on this pile of shit! 😂
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When I saw the man doing his business right there in public eye, I thought this was partly a #looloo post, the guy has no shame😂
The Sagrada Familia looks very intricate and will be quite a feat once it's completed!
I just love the architecture of all the buildings.
PS our Netherlands tickets are finally booked, going for just over 6 weeks from end July. It will be the 1st time our staff will be left to run it for such a long period, I'll still have to handle the bookings though, but we're really looking forward to the trip.
Ohhhhh one of my favourite cities in the world! Lived there for 3 months after college and loved it! If you like tapas and are still around, you have two awesome places:Ciudad Condal and Cerveceria Catalana. Have fun!