Mango Outlet Barcelona

It's not often I'll call out a specific shop or brand here on the blog, but I wrote an article a few years ago on another site which receives an enormous amount of traffic for the search phrase "Mango Outlet" and I only mentioned that in passing when talking about the various bargains Barcelona can offer for the thrifty shopper.

I think it's fairly easy to find a bargain in Barcelona, with central shops such as Lefties (Zara Outlet) in two very strategic spots in the city, Celio is another with an outlet (although not that great for bargains IMO), and many more (please ask me in the comments or leave your own) but the actual information out there about the Mango Outlet is a bit poor. There is a store in central Barcelona - Carrer Girona, 37 - just below Gran Via and another massive warehouse which has an open sale I believe every 2 years. That one is just outside Montmelo - where the the racing circuit for the Formula 1 Grand Prix is - and is difficult to access with public transport. That one is really cheap  - like boxes and boxes of stuff and it's a proper free for all. My wife has been a few times, and people go at 5am to queue up outside, and just buy up whole boxes!

This central one is a fairly decent sized shop and you can see from the pics here, it's a nicely managed place, not just a mad rush with loads of mounds of messy items. Although it should be noted that it was an early mid-week morning ! The store is mainly women's fashion, but there is a really small section of men's stuff if you fancy prancing around like Gerard Pique.

Any readers got some more tips? Fans of Primark for more bargains? Please let me know in the comments! And if you're looking for Barcelona accommodation this Autumn, check out BCN Rentals Apartments for some great, late deals. And for a quick look at the rest of the city sights, their guide to Barcelona is another good read.

Casa Batllò Comes Alive This Weekend

Audiovisual mapping is something waaaaaaaaaaaaaaayyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy cooler than it sounds and involves lots of very fast computers, projectors and lights and music to transform an inanimate object into what appears to be a fully 3-D moving, living spectacle. It's nothing new, and Barcelona has seen its own town hall be transformed by the same methods a few years back with great effect. Other famous monuments have gone through the same process and if you know the static building well enough - I mean you're so familiar with the facade - , the transformation can be literally jaw-dropping.

So, as if Antonin Gaudi's works weren't already wacky enough on their facades, this weekend sees "El despertar de la Casa Batllò" which literally translates as the Awakening of Casa Batllò, and involves the very same thing. Here's the teaser vid from the website (hat tip to barcelonayellow for this)


 Doesn't that look cool?! And confirmation (perhaps) that Gaudi DID intend the rooftop tiles to represent the scales of a dragon's back, with the main chimney being a sword's handle in the slain dragon's back in homage to Sant Jordi (Saint George) the patron saint of Catalonia. I've been telling people that for years although I've never been able to actually find any official reference to it!

So, there's only 6 chances to see this, guys - it's on this Saturday and Sunday night at 21h, 21:30h and 22h and of course it's free. I'm guessing those working in Banco Pastor late won't be grumbling. ;o)

Coming to Barcelona this Autumn? Check out BCN Rentals for some great late deals on apartments.

October Music in Barcelona - Some Classics!

I don't know if maybe it's just my age, but it seems to me that there are some really cool bands playing or getting back together, or celebrating a milestone of being together quite a lot recently! And the back end of October is no exception to the rule. I've been lucky enough to see some amazing bands in the time I've been living here, and in smaller, more intimate locations than those bands would play on their home turf.

So the following are a few of my reccomendations for some bloody good bands in some great spaces with an amazing atmosphere.

Keane - Razzmatazz Wednesday 24th October. I saw Keane here about 8 years ago and they were great, really played to the crowd and it was almost karaoke-y at some parts, but they have another 3 albums under their belt now, so will surely mix it up a bit. Either way, highly reccomended.


Richard Hawley  - Apolo Friday 26th October. Richard is up for a Mercury Award this year, and actually played here already this year at Arc de Triomf during Primavera Sound for free, so great to see him back. Part of the Longpigs and collaborator with the likes of the very cool Elbow, Richard's got his own style and in such an intimate venue as Apolo, it'll be a great night.


Scissor sisters - Razzmatazz Monday 29th October. I'm never a fan of a Monday night concert, cos it's like the first day back at work syndrome, and it just doesn't feel right. However, if anyoine can get your toes tapping and your hips swaying it's the Scissor Sisters. They're certainly fans of Barccelona and even turned up to do an impromptu gig at Sonar one year, so you can bet they'll be up for entertaining this time too.

Blind Melon - Apolo 7th November - taking us straight into the November winter is the 20-year anniversary tour of Blind Melon at Apolo. I couldn't actually believe that it was 20 years since the release of their cool californian sounds and I reckon this will be a really cool concert to go and see, they'll be playing all their most successful crowd pleasers and are not promoting a new record or anything so it's going to be heaps of fun.



Anyone planning on going to any of these concerts? Or got any more to reccommend ? Let me know in the comments! And if you're coming to Barcelona this winter, check out BCN Rentals for some great deals on apartments. For a quick look at what's not to miss, then read this guide to Barcelona.

Oktoberfest Barcelona - Ein Prosit!!

Well, October is flying by and apart from that one rainy Saturday, it's still glorious weather and a great time to visit the city. September and June are probably my favourite months to visit the city, but this October is shaping up to be a smashing month too, so far. We've had a puking Gaga, an even Classico an upcoming zombie walk, and this Friday is even a holiday so long weekend ahoy!

So what better reason to celebrate the long weekend than joining in the celebrations at Barcelona's very own Oktoberfest!! I've been lucky enough to visit the Oktoberfest in Munich - an exoerience I think everyone should do once in their life - so it's great that a little bit of Bavaria is coming to the Catalan Capital, too!!

As in Munich, you don't get served drinks if you're not sitting down, so this weekend (12th, 13th and 14th) make sure you reserve your table via the website and get your tickets - it's FREE!! By the looks of things, they have a fair few beers on tap as well as the usual Bavarian brews - Guinness, Newcy Brown (might be in a bottle of dog, rather than on tap?), your typical Belgian beers, Tequila-flavoured Desperados and they're even chaeting a bit with two brands of cider to try, too.

What's great is that they've made it a lot more family orientated, with a load of great things to distract the kids - inflatable castles, trampolines, all sorts of stuff. And then there's live music for the adults, you can bet there'll be frankfurts and the like around, so basically it's a case of rolling up in the morning, working your way through the liquid menu and staying till the night time!

Of course, one of the most important things about the whole Oktoberfest experience is the song!! Ein Prosit is the toast song, where everyone stands up (forgive me if my memory is a little blurry!) and toasts everyone else on the table and then gives it a "one, two, three drink up!" kind of gesture. For the whole 5 days I was there I had absolutely no idea what I was singing but belted it out with all my heart and lungs!! Fear not, though, if you have no idea what I'm talking about, you can practise here.

Thinking of heading down to the Oktoberfest? Let me know in the comments!

Coming to Barcelona this Autumn? Check out these great deals on Barcelona apartments and for a quick look at the best city sights, this Guide to Barcelona.

Re-Visiting My Favourite Park

I've written about this park before, and it's my favourite of the city's many parks and gardens. My last post wasn't as detailed as this one as all the photos I used to take in the past were with my parents or family members and you could hardly see the park and its installations. 

And that's a shame cos it's a bloody cool park. I've since learned when returning to places I haven't visited before to take a few snaps with no-one in the foreground for posting here! So bear in mind these are just pics from my phone with none of your instagram filters or whatever but I think you'll get the gist!

 One of the first things you'll realise is that the actual Park is much bigger than just the Labyrinth and is housed in some luxurious leafy gardens with shady corners and plenty of romantic hideaways to slip into. We actually went on a Sunday afternoon in summer, so got in for free, and despite the heat we were sufficiently cool in the shade to stay a good while.

Considering the age of the actual residence and the whole story behind the Labyrinth and it's creation, it's still in remarkably good shape. The history of the Marquis Desvalls and his family dates as far back as 1791, and it's their palace/residence that still greets you at the entrance. In a similar way to parts of Montjuic, there's moments of absolute silence despite being in the city itself - one thing I love about the park.

There are a few water features which have been added to the park over the years and restauration works, so streams running along the lower parks and waterfalls are all a prelude to the maze itself. Greek Icons dot the park and in days gone by the Pavillion was used for open air performances.

So when you reach the actual maze itself, it's pretty impressive from the top. Despite what you might think, it is actually a proper Labyrinth and there's only one way to the centre (no clues from me) and it's loads of fun bumping into the same people on the way round with a puzzled look on their faces! My kids loved it. 

The place is immaculately kept, and they only let a maximum of 750 people in the whole park, not just the maze itself, so it never gets "busy" busy, if you know what I mean.

Can you spot my family?!

 And by the miracle of modern technology, here's a mash-up of those three photos to give you a more panoramic view. Granted, my summer photos make it look really cool, but I've been in different times of the year and they've also been just as entertaining, so don't be put off now, just because Autumn is round the corner, OK?!

Parc del Laberint is located in Horta neighbourhood, and you can take public transport, or if you happen to go in a car, there's plenty of free parking spaces alongside the park and near to the private university residences. Get yourself there and get lost!!

Coming to Barcelona this Autum ? Check out these late deals from BCN Rentals Apartment agency and for some of the other Barcelona Parks and Gardens, see the link.

A few Tips for Enjoying La Merçe with Kids.

So as most of you know, I have 2 kids. 5 and 6. Barcelona is a pretty good city to explore and live in with 2 kids, considering it's a big city. Fortunately we live fairly close to the Port and the beach and also the green oasis of Montjüic, so it's not like pure cement high rises. So I'm always keen for them to join in any activities that the city celebrates  - or indeed each festa del barri - work and schedule permitting. Personally, I've often found that things geared towards kids seem to start far too late (!) but now mine are older, we get out and about a lot more.

So this weekend is La Merçe Festival - only a 4 day affair this year as the crisis looms large, but there's no reason to skimp of fun, which is free!! There are plenty of events for kids over the next few days and with Monday being a public holiday, then let's hope the weather stays fine the whole weekend!!

I wanted to offer a few hints and tips for people either visiting the city with kids, or parents with wee-uns who are venturing out this weekend in search of fun. First off is the Gegants presentation in Plaça Sant Jaume. In a word, don't bother. The Plaça gets rammed with people and tourists and it's almost impossible for children to see anything - I've swapped my kids from ground to shoulders many a time to no avail - much easier to wait for the parade which goes all the way down Las Ramblas, as children can get much closer and shout and chat to the people as they go past (like the photo above). And if they want a really close look, some of the best ones are on permanent display outside the festival.

Another area almost exclusively dedicated to the kids, is up on Montjüic. There is a circus each year in the amazing gardens of the castle, and then various puppet shows and marionettes and clowns from different countries all speaking the universal language of laughter. This year sess French, Catalan and Czec Republic back to wow the crowds. Access is easy via the funicular at Paral·lel station or buses up there, too. Full details can be seen here.

I've been up there two years running, and my big tip is go early. Take a packed lunch and plenty of water and try and get in the queues for the shows. We made the mistake last year of having an early lunch and going up after that. It had rained the previos 2 days, so I think everyone did the same as us, and we ended up (well, I ended up) queuing up for 2 shows, both of which we missed, and then the third one started at around 20h after that, so a total wash out!! There were some small theatrical performances outside while we were waiting, any maybe the weather played a part, but my tip is to go early to avoid disappointment.

Anyone else have any specific tips ? Anything not to miss ? The kids correfoc ? Free entrance to Sagrada Familia ? Please let me know in the comments below!

Coming to Barcelona this Autumn ? Check out BCN Rentals for some great late deals on accommodation with their central apartments.