Last 16 Champions League Just Announced

With both Manchester clubs crashing out of the groups stages of the Champions League fairly surprisingly this month, and neither Arsenal or Chelsea exactly running away with it as far as English football is concerned, one would think that those in the Barcelona camp would be pretty confident of defending the glory of being current champs - despite David Villa's cringe-worthy leg break yesterday in Yokahama. OK, there have been some pretty fantastic results in the qualifyers (Lyon anyone?), but you just can't help thinking that if they can avoid a...ahem.... "top" team bnefore the winter break, then they have all the more chance of progressing with time for people to come back from injury, etc.

So, we've just had the draw for the last 16 for the Champions as well as the Europa, and it's looking as follows:

Lyon v APOEL 

Napoli v Chelsea 

AC Milan v Arsenal 

Basel v Bayern Munich

Bayer Leverkusen v Barcelona

CSKA Moscow v Real Madrid

Zenit St Petersburg v Benfica

Marseille v Inter Milan

So, looking at that, it could have been worse, right? As always, my opnions here are just that - another football bloke giving his 2 pence against coming results and although I've been accused of having a crystal ball in the past, I'm thinking...

No probs for Lyon. Chelsea will scrape through in a dramatic fashion. Arsenal go through but VanPersie injured and their season then goes down pan. Bayern no worries. Barcelona few nerves, but too much for Leyverkusen. Mou to complain about plastic pitch no end but Real go through. Zenit go through cos Benfica players have never felt so cold they just curl up inside themselves. Which leaves Marseille and Inter. Possibly the most entertaining of matches on paper (although you watch now it'll be dull as dishwater!) but I'll got Inter. 

These are the Valentine's weekend fixtures, remember, to be repeated in March in the away legs, so those Leverkusen fans might get a bit of spring sunshine in the fan parks, too!

Anyone else like to chip in with predections?! Feel free to correct me if I'm wrong below!! 

Any any Leverkusen fans looking to get some spring sunshine, then check out these apartments for rent in Barcelona as a great alternative to a hotel. And for a short guide to Barcelona, click the link. 

Nativity Scene at Plaça Sant Jaume

As is becoming customary with me, I'll take the kids to see the Christmas lights, Christmas Fair, often the Three Kings, and always the Nativity Scenes in the centre of the old town, too. The Plaça Sant Jaume is the usual place for the scene to be installed and each year takes a different form. Last year's scene was like a scale model Bethlehem with lights being projected onto the Town Hall in the background.

Well, this year's scene is perhaps a little more traditional  - as in old fashioned - and seems to echo the style of the abandoned frescos painted on the cielings of churches around Catalunya in the day - many of which can be seen at the MNAC over at Plaça Espanya. The paintings of Jospeh, Mary & the Kings are almost icon-ic and for me the whole faux-stone church is trying to evoke that.

For my ignorance, there may well be a very informative piece all about the designer and painter somewhere around the Plaça Sant Jamue, so I apologise if that's totally wrong!! haha!!! Well, anyway, I like it this year a bit more than last year - although there's no place for the classy dinner table with the caldo de galets like last year...shame!

And just as you're admiring the scenes and taking a few photos, there's your caganer out the back, looking like a mix between Edvard Munch's The Scream and a cardboard Muppet. Hang on a minute.....

Let me know your thoughts in the comments below about this year's decorations, and if anyone else has anything to suggest, please leave a comment, too!

Barcelona Apartments with BCN Rentals.

BarGelona - Skating at Plaça Catalunya

As I mentioned last month, Plaça Catalunya has been converted into a Giant Ice Rink, called BarGelona (Gel is "ice" in Catalan), and although I took these photos the day before it was due to open, I haven't had time to actually get down there yet - so didn't want to wait much longer for the post. Obviously it's a great place to go with the kids, and that has been my intention, but as winter comes, so do coughs and colds, and we've been putting it off - I'll try and update this post with some pics when we manage to get.

Anyway, the rink is open until the 8th January, so plenty of time to go and enjoy the experience. It's open pretty much all day from 10am till 9pm, and weekends until 11pm (full timetable here) and the price is 8 Euros for 1 hour or 6 Euros for 30 minutes. This includes skate hire and you have to wear gloves. However, many of the local shops in and around the city centre have 2 x 1 tickets which makes it a great price at 4 Euros for the hour. I got some from a local shop in Sant Antoni, for example, if you want to have a shop around - don't be afraid to ask either - the shops get a wad of tickets to give out for those kids of things.

Anyone been yet?! Let me know in the comments - I think it's a great idea, and as I say, I haven't been yet, but will report back when I get the chance!!

If you're coming to Barcelona this Christmas, check out these last minute deals for Barcelona apartments  - some real bargains ! And for a quick look at what's hot and what's not, see this Barcelona Guide.

Christmas Market in Barcelona - Giant Cagatio!!

Every year the Feria de Santa Lucia brings a bit of Christmas Cheer to the city - it's a very long running tradition, and what started as a small market now takes up pretty much the whole of the Plaça in front of the city cathedral in the gothic quarter. Christmas tunes are playing from speakers just enough to keep things merry and not annoying (unless you work there, I imagine!) and it's great to just have a wander around and experience the different traditions and customs which Catalunya has embraced for Christmas.

As well as real Christmas trees (very overpriced, sorry) and decorations there are nativity scenes, ornaments, caganers, cagatios, and lots of plants and floral decorations. Into it's 224th edition, it's a must-visit for anyone visiting the city and even the residents here - especially those with children.

 And this year, there's yet another reason to get yourselves down there. Yes, it's a giant Cagatio!! The Barcelona council and getting good at making giant Christmas characters (see my linki for last year's enormous Caganer in Maremagnum!).

I happened to be there last weekend and it was just about to re-open for the afternoon "show" and there was a huuuuuuuggggge queue of people up towards the bridge of sighs - so we gave it a miss, but for those in fine voice for the song (oh, yes, people, he's got his own song!!). Also, this Saturday and Sunday you can see the traditional Sortidas de la Carassa - like the Christmas beast - from 12:30 onwards. The Fair is on until the 22nd December, so get yourselves down there to pick up a gift or those last minute decorations for your place!

Coming to Barcelona this winter? Check out BCN rentals apartments for rent as a great alternative to a hotel room.

Barcelona Shopping Night Kicks Off Christmas

I wasn't sure I'd be writing practcally the same as I wrote last year regarding the expectations of the nation (practically) on two upcoming events - the Christmas shopping campaign and the Christmas Lottery - but it appears that not a lot has changed in 12 months (save a president). Press releases all week have been praising the sales of the lottery tickets as per usual, and despite the cyber Monday plodding along yesterday and the fact that the 23rd December is the best day for retail in Spain, the initiative to get people digging deep early starts tomorrow night in downtown Barcelona.

Yes, for those fortunate few with rather deep pockets, many of the city's most exclusive (read expensive) shops open from 20h till "the early hours" of the morning to participate in the shopping night. Don't be fooled by the link, people, the site is in Catalan or Spanish, not English. There are also many of the chain stores dotted along the same streets (this year Caspe and Rossello join in, too) to pick up some late night bargains, too, don't worry ;o)

Heavily concentrated around the city's most chic street, Paseig de Gracia, almost all of the shops and hotels have activities going on to entice the locals into the shops. Bands, cooking, Tapas, etc. all co-inciding with the turning on of the Christmas lights, too. Similar to last year, you can get a Passport to travel around the shops - only this time you can download one from their facebook page, and tying in nicely with my recent post on Android apps for visiting Barcelona, the shopping night even have their own andriod app too.

If you're coming to Barcelona this winter, check out BCN Rentals for their selection of last minute barcelona deals. And for a quick llok into the neighbourhood where the event is happening, see this guide to Eixample.

Smartphone Android Apps for Barcelona

This is a post I've been thinking of doing for ages. It's by no means a definitive list and the only reason why I've titled the post Android Apps, is because my phone is android - many of these will work on an iphone and there may be equivalent apps out there. Also, many items of the following list could really be tailored to any city you visit - I just sometimes think that they're very under-used. So, let's dive in. Make sure your battery is charged.


Google maps (street view)

It goes without saying that one of your best friends visiting any new city would be google maps. Apart from pinpointing your location and then being able to see map/satellite version to see just how far/close you are to major points, you can use Navigation to find directions to any street/monument/metro station, etc. The routes can re-calculate if there are streets closed/roadworks/you don't fancy the frst route suggested and you can even zoom in to street view with the pegman and actually follow the route as if you're following your camera.

Street View Navigating to Palau Güell

If there are a few of you in your group, you can also each turn on latitude, which will follow you around and if you decide to split up, you can "spy" on your friends to find out where they are - so girls go shopping and get lost from the boys, it's easy to find them again instead of wasting a call. Maps also lets you "check in" to places, similar to Foursquare and Facebook and similar sites, and then there are many apps to find useful places near to your location - the default one in Android is just as good as some of the others I've used, and will show you cashpoints/ATMs, Restaurants, pubs, petrol stations, etc.

Fancy some food at the Boqueria, but don't have a guide book ?

It also goes without saying that services like Viber, whatsapp and the like are also great for keeping in touch (but roaming applies, so it depends if your mobile plan works out cheaper/more expensive as many have bundle packets of sms thrown in). There are a couple of decent Wi-Fi Finder apps out there, too, to scan your surroundings and find free wifi hotspots to connect to and send messages to each other in these situations.

Google Goggles Capturing Casa Batllò

Google Goggles.

I really love this app. Apart from the possibility of taking a photo of (for example) a menu and having goggles directly translate the text for you, one of the best uses is pointing your camera at a random building and then Goggles will tell you what it is. It's surprisingly accurate and the photo here is even me in the car taken through the windscreen (as a passenger, don't fret) and the app recognised Casa Batllò in about 2 seconds. So instead of just wondering what that cool building is, flick out your googles. It is really really clever. Goggles also works perfectly as a QR reader, so those posters you'll see in and around the city for the upcoming nights in the cool Barcelona clubs can be a "Wonder if that's any good/wonder where that is?" thing of the past. I used it recently to find out more about the Cat Garden that I've passed by a million times and always wondered just who the cats belonged to and how they were taken care of, etc. For those of you not quite sure what those QR codes are, they're those black and white squares with lots of dots that work a little like a barcode.

Translate.

Conversation mode in Translate

Translation apps are often a bit hit and miss, but if you're really shy or need something very urgently like a trip to a chemist, you can use Google translate. I know that most chemists will speak English (!) but you get the idea. All android phones have voice input, so once you've played around for a bit with it (usually before you arrive/when you first get your phone!) you can forget typing on a mini keybopard and just say what you want. Translate on a mobile will offer not only a text-based answer but a spoken version of the phrase in many languages. Specifically for Spanish, you can also enter in conversation mode - where you can hold your phone/mic to the other person to reply to your query (in Spanish, not Catalan, sorry) and then the app translates it back to you - like a real conversation.

Twitter is an awesome social tool to have at your disposal. Before you go, make sure to do a bit of research and start to follow people who might be able to help. The social community on Twitter is mainly there to help and as long as you don't bombard people with usesless tweets you could easily find online, then most people are really willing to help. Hashtag searching can help, too, to see what's happening in #barcelona at any time, and some great people to follow are obviously Barcelona Yellow, Barcelona Guided Tours and Barcelona Unlike for up to date stuff and a keen eye on the city.

Obvously I've found a few other apps in the market, such as metro maps, etc. mostly free, as well as loads to do with FCBarcelona of course, but didn't include here as not everyone would use them on a daily basis. I'd love to hear any comments on apps or things on your mobile that you've used to help enjoy your stay or you think I should have included. Leave me a comment below!

If you're looking for accommodation during your stay, then check out BCN Rentals late deals for some bargain prices.

Disclaimer. I purposely haven't linked to the apps themselves, as this is not a promotional post or anything, just a helpful idea. You can find them easily in the android market.