I’ve left Portugal and have landed in Barcelona, where I’m sprucing up my new guidebook on this fun and fascinating city. A trip to Barcelona always comes with lots of learning for me — whether it’s the hottest dining and drinking trends (food tours and vermouth bars), the latest restored building in this city of bold and creative architects, or getting up to speed on the movement for the surrounding region of Catalunya to declare independence from Spain.
The theme in Europe over the last generation has been the rise of ethnic regions. As power gravitates to Brussels, the national capitals seem less concerned about their restless, would-be breakaway mini-states. For example, this year we’re hearing a lot about Scotland and Catalunya both seriously pursuing the possibility of declaring their independence from Britain and Spain, respectively. It’s always impressive for me to note that more people are speaking Europe’s small languages (Irish, Basque, Catalan, and so on) today than a generation ago. Talking to my friends in Barcelona about the practicality of having their children learn Catalan first at home and in school — leaving them with a native tongue that less than 10 million people speak in an aggressive and global world — none of them questioned the notion. Of course they’d speak Catalan…they are Catalans.
Here are pictures of three very different experiences I enjoyed on my latest Barcelona visit.
Last week I posted about a food tour I enjoyed in Porto, Portugal. Food tours— offering a mobile feast with several stops to sample a variety of local flavors for about the cost of a splurge dinner, all thoughtfully explained by a local guide — are a big trend across Europe. In Barcelona, as in many places, vermouth bars are all the rage these days. And as this photo shows, a refreshing glass of vermouth is complemented by a plate of local taste treats. Especially in Spain, this “tapas” style of eating and drinking makes for fun meals.In Barcelona, the Ramblas pedestrian drag and the Gothic Quarter are understandably popular, but overrun with tourists. The new, happening quarter is El Born, just beyond the Gothic Quarter. A square called El Born (named for the tournaments once held there) faced a big 19th-century iron-and-steel market. In the 1970s, the vendors moved out, and the market was slated for demolition and redevelopment. But then they discovered the remains of a centuries-old neighborhood with a rich history: In 1714, the residents here lost an uprising against the Spanish, and were forced to demolish their homes and carry the very stones that gave them shelter to the neighboring hill to build a citadel — from where the Spanish crown would assert their control over the people of Catalunya. The leveled neighborhood then provided a cleared-out no-man’s-land outside the fort, which later became a place of execution. Later, in more peaceful times, the space was made into a market. And in the last few years, they unearthed the remains of those original Catalans. Today, the El Born Market is an inviting and inspirational cultural center that tells its story well.In Francisco Franco’s time (until the mid-1970s), the people of Catalunya were not allowed to speak their language or fly their flag. So instead, they’d fly their soccer team’s flag. Then, once allowed, they flew their yellow-and-red-striped flag of Catalunya. And now you see many flags with a feisty addition: a blue triangle and a white star. This is inspired by the flag and spirit of the former Spanish colony of Cuba, which won its freedom from Spain in 1902. This Cuban/Catalan hybrid flag indicates that the people in this household support Catalunya’s independence from Spain.
I often imagine the fun of being a schoolteacher in an old European city, with all that history and great architecture around you. Here’s a hardworking teacher in Granada with his class on a field trip to the cathedral. Bring your crayons!
If you can’t see the video below, watch it on YouTube.
My favorite viewpoint in Granada (the San Nicolás terrace in the Albayzín, across from the Alhambra) comes with great Gypsy music nearly all day long. You could pop a few euros into the musicians’ hat, sit down with a nice picnic, and enjoy an open-air concert as good as many you might pay for. And the view can’t be beat.
If you can’t see the video below, watch it on YouTube.
Eating in Sevilla is fun and affordable. People from Madrid and Barcelona find it a wonderful value. Make a point to get out and eat well when in Sevilla.
The general system is to eat family-style, sharing everything. Smaller tapas are served at the bar, while larger portions called half-raciones and full raciones are at the tables. While raciones work great for small groups, individuals and couples get more variety with tapas. Fortunately, many places are easing up on the “tapas only at the bar” rule. You can always ask — many places are easing up on this rule, and if things are slow, they’ll let tapas eaters sit at a table.
A clear eating trend in Sevilla is the rise of gourmet tapas bars, with spiffed-up decor and creative menus, at the expense of traditional restaurants. Even in difficult economic times, when other businesses are closing down, tapas bars are popping up all over. (Locals explain that with the collapse of the construction industry here, engineers, architects, and other professionals — eager for a business opportunity — are investing in trendy tapas bars.) Old-school places survive, but they often lack energy, and it seems that their clientele is aging with them. My quandary: I like the classic típico places. But the lively atmosphere and the best food are in the new places. One thing’s for certain: If you want a good “restaurant” experience, your best value these days is to find a trendy tapas bar that offers good table seating, and sit down to enjoy some raciones.
While you can find tapas somewhere just about any time, the best action starts late. Restaurants generally serve lunch from 13:00 to 16:00 and dinner from 20:00 until very late. Spaniards don’t start lunch until about 14:00 and dinner until after 21:00; at these times, the top tapas bars can get extremely crowded with locals, and it can be tough for English-speaking tourists to find a place — or even order. Tourists wanting to avoid the crush have clear windows of opportunity: If you go early — around 13:30 for lunch or 20:30- 21:00 for dinner — you’ll get better service and a place at the bar.
For a different twist on a tapas bar, find an abacería. This is a neighborhood grocery store that doubles as a tapas bar. I found a great one, which will star in the next edition of my Spain guidebook: Abacería Casa Moreno is a rare, classic abacería (an old-time grocery store that also serves tapas). Squeeze into the back room, and you’re squeezing back in time — and that includes a steep language barrier. It’s standing-only. Help yourself to the box of pork scratchings on the bar while choosing from an enticing list of €2.50 tapas. They’re proud of their top-quality jamón serrano and queso manchego, and serve hot tapas only at lunch. Rubbing elbows here with local eaters under a bull’s head surrounded by jars of peaches and cans of sardines, you feel like you’re in on a secret (Mon-Fri 8:00-15:30 & 19:30-22:30, closed Sat-Sun, 3 blocks off Plaza Nueva at Gamazo 7, tel. 954-228-315).
My guide demonstrates how quality ham, sliced thin, will stick to the plate when upturned. I’m not sure what that has to do with quality, but one thing I am sure of: When in Spain, life’s too short to eat mediocre jamón. At least a couple of times, pay extra for the best ham on the list.
Updating the flamenco scene in Sevilla for my Spain guidebook, I had the occasion to pop into concerts in five different venues in town. Sevilla is the best city in which to experience flamenco. While the concerts are designed for tourists, they are real and riveting, and a great value. Here’s my latest report on the much-changed flamenco concert scene in Sevilla:
In Sevilla, you basically have three flamenco options: serious — yet still touristy — flamenco concerts, where the singing and dancing take center stage; even more touristy shows that have a bar and/or food (scurrying waiters can distract from the performers); and — least touristy — casual bars late at night, where you can catch impromptu or semi-impromptu musicians at play.
Serious Flamenco Concerts
While it’s hard to choose among these three nightly, one-hour Flamenco concerts, I’d say enjoying one is a must during your Sevilla visit. To the novice viewer, each company offers equal quality. They cost about the same, and each venue is small, intimate, and air-conditioned. For most, they are preferable to the “shows” listed later; compared to those, these options are half the cost, half the length, half the seats, and earlier in the evening. (While you can hear flamenco for free in various bars around town — also described later — that scene ignites very late.) My recommended concerts are careful to give you a good overview of the art form, covering all the flamenco bases. At each venue, you can reserve by phone and pay upon arrival, or drop by early to pick up a ticket. While La Casa del Flamenco is the nicest and most central venue, the other two have exhibits that can add to the experience. Casa de la Memoria is a strangely wide venue (just two rows deep), where everyone gets a close-up view and room to stretch out (€16, nightly at 19:30 and 21:00, no drinks, no children under 6, 80 seats, Calle Cuna 6, tel. 954-560-670, www.casadelamemoria.es, flamencomemoria@gmail.com, run by Rosanna). Their exhibit is one easy, well-described floor, with lots of photos and a few artifacts (€3, or free with concert ticket — but only open 10:00-18:00). The Flamenco Dance Museum, while the most congested venue (with 115 tightly packed seats), has a bar and allows drinks, and you can visit the museum immediately before the show. It’s festival seating. The doors open at 18:00, allowing you to grab the seat of your choice and spend an hour touring the museum, and enjoy a drink before the show (€20, nightly at 19:00; €24 combo-ticket includes the museum and a show; 10 percent discount off museum, show, or combo-ticket with this book; Manuel Rojas Marcos 3, about 3 blocks east of Plaza Nueva, tel. 954-340-311, www.flamencomuseum.com). La Casa del Flamenco is in a delightful arcaded courtyard right in the Barrio Santa Cruz (€18, nightly at 21:00 April-Sept, 19:30 Oct-March, no drinks, no kids under 6, 60 spacious seats, the reception at the adjacent hotel serves as the box office, tel. 954-500-595, Ximénez de Enciso 33).
Razzle-Dazzle Flamenco Shows
These packaged shows can be a bit sterile — and an audience of tourists doesn’t help — but I find both Los Gallos and El Arenal entertaining and riveting. While El Arenal may have a slight edge on talent and feels slicker, Los Gallos has a cozier setting, with cushy rather than hard chairs — and it’s cheaper. Los Gallos presents nightly two-hour shows at 20:15 and 22:30 (€35 ticket includes a drink, €3/person discount with this book in 2014 — but limited to two admissions, arrive 30 minutes early for best seats, noisy bar but no food served, Plaza de la Santa Cruz 11, tel. 954-216-981, www.tablaolosgallos.com, owners José and Blanca promise goose bumps). Tablao El Arenal has arguably more professional performers and a classier setting for its show — but dinner customers get the preferred seating, and waiters are working throughout the performance (€38 ticket includes a drink, €60 includes tapas, €72 includes dinner, 1.5-hour shows at 20:00 and 22:00, near bullring at Calle Rodó 7, tel. 954-216-492, www.tablaoelarenal.com). El Patio Sevillano is more of a variety show, with flamenco as well as other forms of song and dance. While hotels may recommend this, they’re just working for kickbacks. I like the others much better.
Impromptu Flamenco in Bars
Spirited flamenco singing still erupts spontaneously in bars throughout the old town after midnight — but you need to know where to look. Ask a local for the latest. La Carbonería Bar, the sangria equivalent of a beer garden, is a few blocks north of the Barrio Santa Cruz. It’s a sprawling place with a variety of rooms leading to a big, open, tented area filled with young locals, casual guitar strummers, and nearly nightly flamenco music from about 22:30 to 24:00. Located just a few blocks from most of my recommended hotels, this is worth finding if you’re not quite ready to end the day (no cover, €2.50 sangria, daily 20:00-3:00 in the morning; near Plaza Santa María — find Hotel Fernando III, the side alley Céspedes dead-ends at Levies, head left to Levies 18, unsigned door; tel. 954-214-460).
Sitting in the front row of an intimate concert venue with a powerful and intense performance going on, I found myself watching the little children (also in the front row). It helped me experience the dancer — towering, in black, with a demonic expression on her contorted face, long fingernails making her outstretched arms seem even longer and more able to take me into her grasp — from the perspective of the toddlers in the audience. Terrifying.Parents bringing their children to a flamenco concert do more comforting than actually focusing on the music and dance. These children were terrified by the performance.
