Rollerblading in Barcelona - Palau Sant Jordi

 Technically, this could be titled Rollerblading with kids as it's a family activity that we do, but mainly geared towards the kids. It started last year, after we took them to the ice rink at Christmas two years ago. It's been a post I've had as a draft for absolutely ages, and just keep not getting round to publishing!!

It's well known that Barcelona is a great city for wheels of the non-motorised variety - hundreds of skateboarders descend on the city each year and the lax laws and slight gradient the city is on makes it a perfect place to practise tricks and shoot videos.

So it's natural that skating also fits the bill. There are plenty of associations and events that revolve around skating (both inline and traditional) and even just two weeks ago there was a roller disco kind of event at Sant Antoni festival, but I wanted to focus here more on the wee ones. Obviously, before I go any further, I'd like to remind everyone - young or old -to always wear proper protection. Knee and elbow pads, wrist guards and a good helmet are a must, people (as shown by my fashionable lad here in the photos).

As a family, we've tried a few places to skate which I'll be adding to the blog bit by bit (when I remember to take photos of the places we go!) but so far, I don't think you can beat just in front of Palau Sant Jordi.

There are so many advantages to skating here, it's a really tough one to beat. First of all, it's huge. Literally, these pictures don't do it justice at all, and there are actually three different spaces you can skate on, all joined together but on slightly different levels. You can see from the snaps, that the place is almost entirely covered with smooth pinky flag stones, so great for beginners but still "urban" enough to practice (there are plenty of broken ones and drains to navigate). You can also see the decorative posts in the above pic, which are great for training the kids on curves/slalom and just getting them to practise changing direction in short spaces.

Another massive advantage is that you can almost always find a car parking space right outside for free, so if you are going in a car, there's no need to worry about that. I say almost always, unless there's a daytime event inside the Palau, or nearby Olympic Stadium. And even if you decide to take public transport, it's a quick hop up from Plaça Espanya on the escalators, or there are bus routes too which stop right outside. 

It never gets crowded  - just occasional tourists who come to admire the views towards the airport, or close ups of the telefonica needle. There is also a great ramp to one side of the Olympic stadium which is great to practice on and get used to different inclines and gradients. Perhaps the biggest advantage though - and remember I'm always thinking of the kids here - is that there's absolutely zero traffic. You don't have to worry at all about someone straying off, or not being able to stop at a traffic light or junction!! 

And while you're there, you can get some pretty snazzy shots of the Barcelona skyline, too, like this one below! 

Coming to Barcelona this spring? Check out BCN Rentals for some great deals on apartment rentals. 

England vs Andorra

In just about 2 and a half weeks (on Saturday 6th September), England football tem will be playing Andorra in a World Cup qualifier. The importance to this blog? Well it's because it's being played at the Olympic Stadium in Barcelona - up on Montjuic. Andorra's national stadium (Estadi Comunal de Aixovall Ciudad) is very small with a capacity of only 1300, so permission was asked for the Olympic Stadium in Barcelona to be the host - similar to the Qualifying campaign in 2005/2006 when they also played Andorra.

Many might remember that this was under the rain of the "wally with the brolly" Steve McLaren, and was one of the most torrid times for many an England player. I was at the match and it was appalling. The abuse hurled at our own England team was shocking. "You're not fit to wear the shirt" "You're getting sacked in the morning" ad other such chants ran around the stadium all night long. And we even won! I'd love to say that this time round it would be all different. We have anew manager in the Italian Fabio Capello - a man-manager and disciplinarian, so they say - but based on last night's dismal home performance at Wembley, I'm afraid to say that it looked like Steve McLaren all over again. Capello used all of his subs (again) as if this was the first time they'd met and the whole shape of the team was terrible. I won't let this go into a rant about football, don't worry!

Just a few interesting things that those of you coming to Barcelona (for the football or not) might want to read about. I was very pleased to learn last time around, that "La Caixa" bank over here also sells tickets for sporting events, too. I was aware that you could get the tickets for pop concerts and other musical events, but the football was one I hadn't considered. I assumed for tickets I would have to plod my way up to the Olympic stadium and queue at the ticket office. However, given the abundance of La Caixa's cash points; it's just as easy to get one from there. OK, you'll pay a small surcharge but it's worth it for the time you'll save. I think ticket prices this time round are about 60 €.

Accomodation in Bacelona last time round was difficult to come by and the majority of the stadium was full of irate England supporters. Let's hope it's not the same way this time round! For a good selection of Apartments for rent in Barcelona be sure to book early!