One Year On!

It's been a little more than a year since I started blogging, so I thought I'd provide updates on some of the topics I've written posts about:

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BICING

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I've written a bit about Bicing, which also celebrated it's first year anniversary recently. Well, today's El País newspaper ran an article about the service's increasing growing pains: El Bicing genera 600 reclamaciones diarias por mal funcionamiento. (Bicing receives 600 complaints a day about technical problems.)
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This was based on information included in a report that City Hall made public yesterday, but which apparently had been making the rounds of municipal offices for a while. Perhaps the most damning part of the report was the revelation that a majority of users are dissatisfied with the functioning of the computerized stations where bikes are parked. Aside from some stations habitually not having bikes available, and others seeming to hardly ever have empty spaces for leaving-off a bicycle, other problems include system overloads which cause the whole computer network to fail. When this happens bikes cannot be removed from the stations and bikes that are left-off are not recognized as having been returned. Therefore, some people have been wrongly penalized for returning bikes late or fined for not returning bikes at all.

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More than 150,000 people currently subscribe to Bicing. Apparently a total of over 250,000 people have joined the program in the last 14 months, but more than 150 people drop out each month. Today Bicing has 367 stations and a fleet of 5,500 bicycles, with about 28 members for each bike. The plan is to grow the program to 6,000 bikes and 400 stations by September and then to postpone more growth until the operation of the service can be improved, for example, by installing a back up computer system to take over when the main one goes down.

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Who will pay for the improvements? The city will, although Clear Channel, the company that has the contract to run Bicing, was fined 22,000 euros this past January for not meeting the minimum quality indices that had been agreed to.

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Other statistics from the report included:

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- An average of 39,500 trips daily - 7.8 per bicycle.
- Each bicycle is ridden some 10,000 kilometers per year.
- As of last June 18, users had completed a total of 50,178 trips - 9.2 per bicycle.
- An average of six traffic accidents involving Bicing users are registered each month.
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If you are a Bicing user and want to have your voice heard, you can participate in a survey being conducted by researchers with Telefónica Investigación y Desarrollo (Research and Development) and the University of Washington. Click here to take the survey, which is available in English, Spanish and Catalan.

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By the way, I still hold a generally positive view of Bicing and am so glad that it exists. While not even close to perfect, it certainly has been a positive addition to my life -- and I bet it's better than anything they have in Paris!

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NEWSPAPERS / PERIÓDICOS
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A new daily newspaper appeared on the Spanish scene this past year. Público hit the stands in September, with the aim of attracting left of center readers in the 25-45 year old age group. The editor is 32 year old Ignacio Escolar, who is the son of journalist Arsenio Escolar, the editor of the free daily 20 minutos. The younger Escolar previously worked in television, radio and as a musician in the groups Meteostat and Dedcodek. He's also writes a popular blog called Escolanet.

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Of course, Público seems to be going head to head with El País, the country's other left leaning daily, which bills itself as, “the global Spanish language newspaper.” (El periódioco global en español) One of El País' directors, Juan Luis Cebrián, told the New York Times and International Herald Tribune, "We don't even see them as a competitor. It's like comparing The New York Times and The New York Post." So, I guess it was just a coincidence that the publishers of El País felt the need to revamp the paper last October, with the stated purpose of appealing to younger readers.

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Well, I still like El País, but I find that I like Público, too, and have been buying it pretty frequently. Anecodotically, I can say that many people I know seem to be doing the same.
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THE SUMMER SOLSTICE AND LA NOCHE DE SAN JUAN
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Another summer solstice / noche de San Juan came and went yesterday. Fantastic fireworks and thousands of party goers on Barcelona's streets and beaches. I read today that the local police estimated that there were 85,000 people on the city's “playas” last night. Of course the symbol of the year's shortest night is the bonfire, and so flames and firecrackers colored my neighborhood as usual, as well as all of Barcelona.

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However, it's not just Barcelona that celebrates la noche de San Juan. In towns in the Pyrenees there were traditional torchlight processions, Madrid saw urban bonfires and on Spain's islands there was fireside dancing in the moonlight.

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In Alicante, where one of the biggest San Juan festivals is held, the dazzling climax of the festivities won't happen until tonight. Larger than life wooden and paper maché figures are built by neighborhood associations as part of a city-wide competition and then are burnt to the ground at midnight on the 24th, setting the entire city aglow. What a way to welcome in the summer!
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THE ECONOMY
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Well, PM Zapatero couldn't quite bring himself to use the “c” word but at least he stopped using some of his favorite euphemisms (difficult scenario, period of adjustment) when he finally admitted yesterday that Spain's economy was in serious trouble. He couldn't let go of one ambiguity, however -- economic deceleration. At least he shuffled it along from a “deep deceleration ” to a “strong deceleration -- almost a sudden stop.”
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Better late than never? We'll have to wait and see if the 21 new proposals his government plans to make to address the CRISIS will do any good. So far the reaction has been muted to negative, with the governor of the Bank of Spain describing them as "insufficient." I wonder if that was a euphemism?
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Chao amig@s,
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Carloz

Mercy, mercy me, it's La Merce!

Today has been another public holiday in Barcelona. The last one was September 11th, which is sort of "Catalonia Day" and is called the Diada. Today, September 24th, is a holiday in the city of Barcelona, not in all of Catalonia nor anywhere else in Spain. It's called "La Mercè" which means The Mercy and which refers to Our Lady of Mercy. It's Barcelona's "Fiesta Mayor" or "Main Festival."
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Every city, town and village in Spain has a "fiesta mayor" and many were originally based on saints and such. In big cities, in addition to the official ones which are public holidays, every neighborhood has it's own little "fiesta mayor" which, while not official holidays, involve such things as parades, street parties, communal meals, concerts, carnivals for children, etc. I suppose one of the reasons for these little fiestas is that many big city neighborhoods were once separate towns. Anyway, just about every week in Barcelona there is a neighborhood "fiesta mayor" somewhere. But La Merce is the whopper of 'em all.
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Nearly every corner of the city has had something going on this weekend, including parades, firework displays, food tents, arts and crafts booths, outdoor concerts, etc. I just came in from the final parade of day, the Parade of the Giants. The giants, known as "gigantes y cabezudos" in Spanish, are made of paper mache and are worn like a costume by marhers. Cartoonish and imposing at the same time, they are representative of Kings, Queens, Pirates, Fishmongers, Laborers, Dragons and more. There was one of a woman with a breast exposed who was holding a platter with a stingray on it. I couldn't quite figure that one out. There was also a pair of giants dressed like a priest and a showgirl that seemed to resemble Prime Minister Zapatero and his wife. Hmmmm.

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One of my favorite parts of the close of the festivities is the ability to walk in the middle of Via Laietana at dusk with hundreds of other people. This street, normally full of vehicular traffic, is converted into a pedestrian walkway after the parade. Walking in the middle of it allows for a different perspective of the architecture.
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On my way home tonight I also walked through the street carnival that has been set up near the Barceloneta Yacht Basin. To be honest I had one thing in mind -- to buy fresh, hot, sugar-coated churros! My objective was easily reached, so now I will say goodbye and enjoy the treat. (OK, OK... I admit I ate a few before I got home. However, more await!)
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Chao amig@s,
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Carloz

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P.S. I was inspired this weekend to translate/adapt the articles about La Merce that appear in the Spanish and Catalan versions of Wikipedia for the English version, since it had contained nothing about the holiday previously. If you want to read about its history, click the following link: La Merce on Wiki.

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P.S. The photo above is from Larry&Flo's postings on Flickr. For more great photos of the event visit their pages.

Verbena Tranquila: Commentary on BCN’s Summer Solstice Celebration (Saint John’s Night)

Copied from original http://myspainblog.wordpress.com/ posting by Carloz on 26 June, 2007

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Below is my translation of a major part of an editorial in Monday’s El Periodico de Catalunya regarding Saint John’s Night (La Noche de San Juan / La Nit de Sant Joan):

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“A Tranquil Festival”

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“Another year has produced the traditional images of Saint John’s Night. In a world daily growing more globalized and lacking in references, this festival connects us to a culture, to a way of celebrating the passing of time, to the ancient rites of our civilization. Belonging to this manner of observing the shortest night are: bonfires, fireworks, fire worship, and the urge to celebrate associated with the solstice and heat.

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There are other images, too, although not always so edifying. The hangover of a night measured by kilos of trash accumulated on the beach or a few episodes of antisocial behavior do not manage to mar the natural, desirable and deserved public joy.

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Sadly, there were accidents. Certainly a single tragedy dampens a celebration. At the same time, this year we can be generally pleased with the tranquility that reigned over 2007’s festivities.

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Government warnings regarding the handling of fireworks had their desired effect, although such precautions should be maximized to result in zero risk. We should congratulate ourselves on the normality of it all; which is to say that even in the most crowded of festivals, we are able to behave as a mature society.”

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I couldn’t agree more! There was such a mix of people, too: children, adults, senior citizens, families, couples, neighbors, natives, immigrants, tourists, straights, gays… And as exciting and action-packed as it all was, there was such a feeling of community, peace and, yes, tranquility.

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Here is a link to the original article: Verbena tranquila

Barceloneta and beyond (well, a little) during the summer solstice celebration

Copied from original http://myspainblog.wordpress.com/ posting by Carloz on 24 June, 2007

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It’s just after 4:30am and I’m back home for a little break, so here’s another update. The fantasticness (Merriam-Webster lists it) of this night has continued. My fellow carrefoc spectator decided to go home, so I walked over to Pl. del Mar to meet some friends. On the way over, I joined a few people (strangers) jumping over a little bonfire for good luck — emphasis on “little.”

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At Pl. del Mar there was a stage set up with a pretty good Spanish rock group called Electronico playing. However, my interest in them waned as my curiosity grew about what was going on further up along the seaside. My friends were enjoying dancing, so I decided to head up the coast on my own. (You see, Pl. del Mar is at one end of the Barcelona beachfront. The other end is about 6.5 ks, or 4 miles, away, at the Rio Besos — Kisses River. The distance is only an estimate, but it shouldn’t bee too far off.)

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The crowd was thicker than on Sundays when the tourists are joined by all the locals taking their Sunday seaside stroll. The place was packed! The beach was completely full as well as the “paseo” that runs along it. People were walking, sitting, dancing, drinking ,eating, playing games and, of course, throwing fireworks.

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At the first chiringuito (the name given to the small bars located directly on the beach) I passed, the music was blaring electronic dance music. The next one had a DJ playing old disco music. (For example, Fly, Robin, Fly.)

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Then I passed the Restaurante Salamanca, a seaside institution in Barcelona, which had a very lively crowd beside it. This eatery, which is a block from my apartment building, is well known for its paella and seafood dishes, not for music or dancing. So, imagine my surprise when I realized Salamanca had a DJ playing music on its beachfront terrace. He was about 70 years old, dressed in dark blue slacks, a crisp blue shirt, blue suspenders and a bright green tie. This fellow was wowing the crowd with hot salsa music and Spanish dance hits. Unable to resist, I stopped and danced until the restaurant management made him close down around 2 am, despite cries of “Otra! Otra! Otra!”(or ”More! More! More!”) from the ecstatic crowd. Everyone around me was disappointed to see him fold up his equipment.

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Then I thought, “Hey, I always stay here in La Barceloneta for San Juan. I wonder what’s happening even further up the beach? Even to the other end?” All of a sudden I knew how to find out first hand exactly how folks spend San Juan outside of my barrio — Bicing! (Bicing is the Barcelona public transit system’s bicycle lending service. See June 17th post, Biking with Bicing in Barcelona for more details.)

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Just a few feet / meters away was a Bicing bike stand, so I walked on over and used my magnetized membership card to get a bicycle. Then I was off on a wonderful night “madrugada” ride to Besos.

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Between Barceloneta and the Puerto Olímpico (aka Port Olímpic) night-life area, the paseo and beach were full of people enjoying the night. In fact the beach was as crowded then as it normally is during the daytime! Only, now there were ”moon-bathers” who were gathered around torches and bonfires.

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The Puerto Olímpico area, where Northeners and Southerners "meat", was even more intense than usual. The outdoors was as stuffed as the scores of discos in the area usually are. Despite the large number of people, other cyclers and I didn’t have much trouble getting through.

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Next was Nova Icaria Beach, which is usually a lot quieter than Puerto Olímpico at night. Tonight it certainly wasn’t! The chiringuitos were rocking, people were lying on the beach and walking up and down the paseo. The next two areas, Bogatell Beach and Mar Bella Beach, had similar scenes. As I was riding along Bogatell, the lights went out on a section of the paseo, which led to lots of oohs and ahhs from the crowds around me and on the sand below, as this improved the view of the fireworks blasting in the skies above us. I believe the outage was an accident, however, because the next area, Mar Bella, had lights ablaze.

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As Mar Bella gave way to Nova Mar Bella Beach the crush of people continued to increase. Then as I passed the only sand dunes on BCN’s beaches I saw an incredible sight: the beachfront, from there until practically the end of the access to Nova Mar Bella Beach about a half a kilometer beyond, was chock-full of people dancing to the music of the four chiringuitos that are spaced out along the sea. It was just about standing room only — and people were still arriving! All of the bars had DJs playing similar dance music so that there was a semblance of musical continuity as I sailed by.

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The next area was broken up by construction that is underway for Barcelona’s new aquatic zoo. Therefore, in that section there was no one on the beach, as people are not allowed on the seafront there. The area that follows is the remnant of Barcelona’s Universal Forum of Cultures held in 2004. It is a 18,000 square meter fairground, similar to an Olympic Games site or a World’s Fair site. People were going to and coming from the giant tents that serve as dance areas along the sea.

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After a quick glide across the bridge that spans the Forum yacht basin, I ended up at Barcelona’s newest beach. The crowds were much thinner there, but judging from the burnt out sparklers and spent rocket shells, the area must have been jammed with revelers earlier on. When I was riding by there were groups of people scattered around little fires in the sand, while they drank, talked, sang and watched the concentration of fireworks in the skies above the area I’d just ridden over from. Next, I basically retraced my ride.

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In both directions, there were people who greeted me (”¡Hola hombre!” ; “¡Que pasa bien!” which means, ”May good things happen to you!”), cheered me on when they saw the type of bike I was riding (”Bicing! Bicing! Bicing!”) and stopped to chat with me. I even met a nice couple from Leeds who are in town for a medical conference.

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Well, now it’s about 5:30am and the sun will be rising soon. It’s quieter — no more fireworks at a rat-tat-tat speed, but just an occasional whistle followed by a blast. I’m going to head out to Barceloneta beach, plant myself in the sand and thank old sol as I watch another of its grand appearances.

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Good night and good morning…

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Responses

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By: Colin on June 24th, 2007 at 2:34 pm

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Wow! it sounds amazing! The only comparison I have is last New Year in Gran Canaria. The fireworks were pretty amazing and the party went on all night - sadly I had to get a plane home at 2.00pm on New Years Day so I couldn’t stop out too late. BTW… I checked the Cambridge dictionary and there is no ‘fantasticness’ in it… methinks this is one reason why the language is still called ‘English’!!!

The Night of Fire - La Noche del Fuego - La Nit de la Foc

Incredible, so far! I just came home for a break in-between the correfoc in Pl. de la Barceloneta and the corretillada until dawn in Pl. del Mar. I went to the correfoc with a friend after eating dinner and desert (coca de nueces) at my place. We watched some of the smaller fireworks from my terrace then walked over to Pl. de la Barceloneta. My friend had never seen the Barceloneta carrefoc before, and he thought he was only in store for more of the spattering of fireworks that was going on (and is still going on!) in the streets.

Then as we got a few blocks from my apartment he noticed that Barceloneta’s little lanes were becoming more and more packed. Gradually we began to hear drumbeats and, as we turned a corner, to see flashes of light coming from a couple of streets ahead. Round one more corner and we saw a throng of people leading up to the plaza - young people, senior citizens, families, tourists, couples, groups of friends, etc.

I was a little braver than usual and eventually made my way right up to the edge of the square where all the fireworks were going off from the revelers costumes. My friend elected to watch from a little further behind. From my vantage point I could see, hear, feel, smell and practically touch what was happening before us.

The sparklers and firecrackers were carried by the performers in heavily gloved hands, attached to decorated helmets, spewing from knee-pads, literally jumping off of shoes, etc. The costumes were mostly red and black, although one group wore white clothes covered with hand-painted twists and twirls. Some of of my favorite participants were:

- the guy who had a back-piece that looked like a crude pair of wings, which in fact was a launching pad for a thunderstorm of pyrotechnics that went off as he ran like hell around the plaza;

- the person on roller skates, whose skates shot off sizzling sparklers in front and behind as he whizzed by the crowd;

- the two human flamethrowers.

- the giant wire-mesh fish on wheels that was rolled out near the finale to shoot Roman candles high into the sky.

All of this took place with live music in the background — percussive and wind instruments to provide the rhythm to an impressive spectacle.

Wow!

P.S. I’ll try to come back by in a few hours to write an update! If not, tomorrow at some point I’ll write more.

Copied from original http://myspainblog.wordpress.com/ posting by Carloz on 23 June, 2007

In Today’s News: Tonight Won’t Be Just Any Night

The Flame Has Arrived! I learned a bit more about local traditons today from an El Periodico article entitled, “Hogueras y verbenas festejan la noche de San Juan.” (Bonfires and festivals celebrate Saint John's Night.)

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It seems that a flame called La Flama del Canigo is transported from the Catalan area of France to Barcelona. It arrives in the city via Ave. Meridiana in the morning. After being recevied in the Catalan Parliament building it is carried down Ave. Diagonal to Pl. Sant Jaume, where the City Hall and the Generalitat stand across from one another. There representatives of Barcelona’s neighborhoods and of towns and cities throughout Catalunya collect a part of the flame to take to their respective communities to light bonfires.

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The article then went on to highlight the festivals in the city of Sabadell (about 75ks north of Barcelona) and my neighborhood, Barceloneta. Speaking of which, I’ve got to go as the carrefoc will start soon.

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P.S. Another great photo taken in Barceloneta by Greg Gladman. Here is a link to a Flickr page with more of his fantastic photos of the fiesta: http://www.flickr.com/photos/ggladman/sets/72157594175614703/

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Copied from original http://myspainblog.wordpress.com/ posting by Carloz on 23 June, 2007

ANNUAL SUMMER SOLSTICE CELEBRATION IN BARCELONA THIS WEEKEND

Barcelona’s observation of the summer solstice is a fiesta called Saint John’s Night. (La Noche de Sant Juan in Spanish; La Nit de Sant Joan in Catalan.) The event involves an all nighter of fireworks, moonlight swimming, bonfires on the beach, eating a special pan like pastry called coca (it can be either sweet or salty, e.g. made with candied fruits or with pine nuts) and drinking, of course — usually lots of the Catalan sparkling wine known as cava. This year’s fiesta starts at sunset on Saturday June 23rd and lasts until sunrise on Sunday.
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The fiesta’s roots stretch back to the time when Mediterranean people worshipped nature. At that time one tradition was the building of bonfires on the summer solstice in order to shed light on the shortest night of the year. In the 7th century the church forbad the ritual as pagan. However, the people kept the tradition alive by Christianizing it as a homage to Saint John the Baptist.
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During the Middle Ages it was believed that on this night witches and demons came out and that by jumping over a bonfire was purifying. Today some people still jump over bonfires, but the idea now is to say goodbye to the old, welcome the new and make a wish.

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The fireworks are actually pretty intimidating. There don’t seem to be many governmental controls on the sale or use of fireworks here, so on Saint John’s Night it’s a case of sparklers, firecrackers, Roman candles, bottle rockets, etc. going off all around you. So, if you’re out and about, you need to take care.

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The City of Barcelona has a special web page devoted to Saint John’s Night. It is full of information about the traditions and foods, including recipes for things like Coca with Fruit and Pine Nuts and Coca with Pork Craklin. It also has a lisiting of the various festivites by neighborhood. (If you want to see where I’ll be, click on Ciutat Vella on the map of Barcelona.) http://www.bcn.es/santjoan/en/

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P.S. The photo above was taken in my neighborhood in 2006 by Greg Gladman. Here is a link to a Flickr page with more of his fantastic photos of the fiesta: http://www.flickr.com/photos/ggladman/sets/72157594175614703/

Related: Summer Solstice in Spain: Fiestas of Fire!