Day 20 : 30/09/2013 - The Costa Brava seabed

From the boat I mentioned in the previous day, we can see the seabed.

Costa Brava is a very good land to diving with a lot of diving centers across the sea border. But if you feel fear to the water and the deep sea you can take one of the underwater glasses boats located in the towns of the coast (from Lloret to Roses is typical to kind this kind of excursions).

You should feel stressed in these boats because normally people is moving around, going down to see the seabed or going up to feel the wind.

The company 'Dofi Jets Boats' offers a very range of excursions in summer time,

http://www.dofijetboats.com/en/


Enjoy your excursion !

Day 19 : 29/09/2013 - Lloret from a boat

From Blanes you can take a boat that will give you to Tossa de Mar in one hour approximately.
In the middle of the trip the boat will stop in Lloret, one of the most tourist towns in Catalonia and unfortunately known for the hordes of young European people coming in the good season looking for cheap drink and long party nights.

But Lloret isn't only drink and pop (puaaaaagghhh !!!) music, there are a significant number of sights to see. You should take a walk looking for the different viewpoints around the coast line and visit some of their modernist houses.

You can get more information in the town website

http://www.lloret.cat

Discover the other Lloret !!!

Day 18 : 28/09/2013 - Blanes from a boat

Blanes is where the Costa Brava begins. We can say that it's the first town of this famous Catalonian coast, plenty of visitors all the year and plenty of life in summer.
Costa Brava and Croatian beaches are probably the best summer destinations in Europe, the combination between sea and mountains creates unforgettable landscapes.
Blanes belongs to La Selva shire, today we begin a set of days about this beautiful shire. In Blanes there are 
40.000 inhabitants, probably two times in summer and it's very easy to access : the R1 local train line finish here (the 'Rodalies') and three years ago the C-32 motorway was extended until Blanes for a 40 minutes trip from Barcelona.

You can get more information in the town website

http://www.blanes.cat/

See you next summer !!

Day 17 : 27/09/2013 - The cat style of life

The cats are generally living like a playboy. Our loved black cat Pisto isn't an exception. You will find him either eating or sleeping, stretching out on the sofa.
When he is sleeping you can take funny pictures with different pose, definitely he is a model.

Pisto, you're the king of the house, even a white naughty cat try to replace you ;-)

Day 16 : 26/09/2013 - Vilassar beaches

Welcome to Vilassar de Mar, the most beautiful town where you could be in the most exciting country in the world.

We are living in Vilassar since june of 2002 and each year we love our little town more. We've all we need to enjoy the life, some stunning beaches, a number of very good restaurants, the mountains closer,  in fact we could stay in holidays in our town and we are seeing tourist people lasts years coming from France and England above all.
Some hotels have opened their doors since 2009, we know three new hotels in Vilassar, their quiet atmosphere, good situation and diversity of activities have developed a good image of the town bring us with a new foreigners visitors.
Anyway, we don't like to be a tourism place, we'd like to conserve safe our quality of life and stay here for the rest of our lives.

Wonderful Vilassar !

Day 15 : 25/09/2013 - Gaudi experience

We can leave from Jardins Artigas, they are lovely. When you enter you may follow the 'Ponts dels Arcs', a way built as a set of stone arches, a typical construction from Gaudi art, and you'll arrive to 'La Cova', the original place of 'Font de la Màgnesia', the other name which Jardins Artigas is known.

If you are lucky and you can see the gardens with snow the pictures will remain in your mind forever.

To find more information about this place you can go to La Pobla de Lillet website and look for the information about Gaudi

 http://www.poblalillet.cat/catala/guia-de-turisme/que-visitar/gaudi-a-la-vall-de-lillet/

Enjoy !

Day 14 : 24/09/2013 - Jardins Artigas

Beginning in La Pobla de Lillet, a stunning town in Beguerdà shire, and going to the North you will find a wonderful sight : the 'Jardins Artigas'.
These gardens were built between 1905 and 1906 and they were designed by the modernist architect Antoni Gaudí.
Gaudí created a project similar than Parc Güell in Barcelona and some of the workers in Parc Güell came to La Pobla to build the new gardens.
As Parc Güell is, the Jardins Artigas are fully integrated in the landscape and nature, and it were designed thinking to take a walk.

Come to La Pobla and visit them you'll never forget !!

Day 13 : 23/09/2013 - The big croissant in Castellar de N'Hug

Let's continue with Catalan dishes. Castellar de N'Hug is a lovely town in Berguedà shire.
If you come here you should visit the bakery behind the Town Hall. You will find probably the bigger croissant you had seen in your life.
The croissant weights 2kr approximately and it's a good gift to an hungry friend or to share with your work colleagues.
It has been included in the Guiness? Perhaps...

Day 12 : 22/09/2013 - Trinxat

Winter is coming and hard dishes are tasty. We continue on the Cerdanya shire and one of their most known dishes is the 'Trinxat'.
'Trinxat' is a typical dish from Cerdanya, Alt Urgell and Andorra and it's cooked on base to boil potatoes and cabbage and merge them.
After the merge is consistent, bacon and black or white sausage is added resulted in a delicious kind of omelette.
As I said before, is a calorific dish therefore is typical to eat in winter. In Puigcerdà, the main town of Cerdanaya shire, each year is held the 'Festa del Trinxat', a special day when you can taste this dish.

Enjoy it !

Day 11 - 21/09/2013 : Meranges mountains.

Today we will stay in the Cerdanya shire. Cerdanya is one of the Pyrenees shires in Catalonia and it's distinguished to be one of the most panoramic places in the country.
Cerdanya is plenty of snow in winter when the skiers come in avalanche to enjoy the skiing stations. Also, there are beautiful towns to visit, for example Meranges.
Meranges is a very little town in Baixa Cerdanya with only 91 inhabitants registered. It's located at 1539 meters above the sea level, being the higher town above sea level in Catalonia.
From Meranges you can start a easy excursion to see magnificent views of the surrounding mountains, as you can see in the photo.

Cerdanya, the Winter's shire.

Day 10 - 20/09/2013 : Calçots

One of the most popular catalan dishes are the 'Calçots'.

They are a kind of large onion eaten with a delicious sauce, the 'Romesco' sauce. The season of 'Calçots' begin at the end of January and continue until the spring is coming (the last years the season is finishing even in early june).
'Calçots' are becoming more and more popular with the pass of years, arriving to tourist people visiting Catalonia from far away (for example Chinese and Japanese people who book special tours to eat them).
The best places to eat 'Calçots' in Catalonia are the Alt Camp and Alt Penedés shires, where is located Valls, the main town where 'Calçots' came. It's typical to eat them in a 'Masia', but nowadays you can eat in some kind of restaurants (for example 'Pic a Pic' and 'El Terral' in Vilassar de Mar which are 'closed' restaurants).

We are looking forward for the next season !!!!

Day 9 - 19/09/2013 : People in Cerdada

Cerdada has been held since 2002 without stop. We think the first years were 2 editions but we don't remember as well. We think the record of participants was in 2006 with 43 persons eating and drinking in the room.

A typical moment in each Cerdada is people moving around the table trying to taste all the different dishes offered to choose the best of them in the vote. People prepare their dishes with special quality and presentation topics doing very difficult to choose the best.

See you soon in the next Cerdada !

Day 8 - 18/09/2014 : Cerdada, a typical catalonian party in Vilassar de Mar

Each January, when the winter is rasing and the snow is falling in the Pirynees, a peculiar party is held in Vilassar de Mar. We meet in our flat (with a big sitting room) to eat pork products and drink all of it comes to our hands.
The star of the party is the 'Paletilla' ham we buy to share with all the participants, by the other hand the people comes with an uncountable quantity of food based in a variety of 'pinxus'.
At the end of the lunch so many trophies are delivered to the best chefs.

Enjoy the ham !

Day 7 - 17/09/2013 : Glorious night at Sant Jordi Arena

Sant Jordi Arena is the most emblematic arena remained from the Olympic Games in 1992. The 11th of may of 2003 i lived my best night as a Barça supporter : after 4 failed attemps (with 4 trips around Europe : Zaragoza, 2 times in Paris and Thessalonica) we reached to win the Euroleague Basketball.

It were two magical nights at Sant Jordi, winning CSKA in semifinals and Benetton in the championship game with an unforgettable match of Dejan Bodiroga. All of us we've followed the basketball team during the history, we never forgot this night, without doubt, a night to remember in our lives.

After the match with Benetton and after we received the desired trophy, i kissed my 'Estelada' as a victory symbol (with the pass of time this Estelada would win 3 football Champions Leagues and other basketall Euroleague, it's a amulet !!).

Unforgettable !!!

Day 6 - 16/09/2013 : Pisto in action

Let's continue with Pisto. He was a very fit cat in their first stage at home. He liked run behind a red light in the floor (we played with him with a light pencil but now it should be dangerous due to their age), in summer he pursued some flies that entered in the home through the opened windows (and we saw him eating the flies sometimes, puaggghhhh!!!!)

As a normal cat, he is very nosey, and as the photo shows it's normal caught him trying to discover a delicious can of tuna in all the home places.

Now Pisto is 'retired', he is living like a king, like Jaume I The Conqueror !

Day 5 - 15/09/2013 : Typical Catalonian Cat

After a first days with landscapes images, let's continue with some about animals, pets and people.
This lovely black cat is called 'Pisto', is the first cat which entered in our home in 2002 (now we've
3 cats !!!!).
Pisto was a naughty cat when he was young, but now it's a relative quiet pet that only show interest
to eat a good can of tuna.
You can see Pisto in action if you come to 'Cerdada' (you will know soon what it's 'Cerdada'!) or calling us to an appointment (the entrance is free ;-) )

Pisto, our first lovely cat.

Day 4 - 14/09/2013 : Cadaqués, a stunning town that needs two or more visits

Cadaqués is a little town in the Alt Empordà shire (comarca) and it's considered the most oriental town in Catatonia.
In 2012 it had a population near of 3.000, but up to ten times as many people can live in the town during the peak of the summer tourism season.
It's near Cape de Creus cape and you can reach the town easily from Roses following the GI-614 and GI-613 scenic routes. 

Come in and visit it !

Day 3 - 13/09/2013 : Norfeu Cape

Norfeu Cape belongs to the Parc Natural Cap de Creus, it's located at the south-east end of the park.

It is located between Roses and Cadaques looking to the bay of Jóncols to the north and bay of Monjoi to the south, at the end of a little peninsula, offering stunning views in two ways.

It's a land very appreciated by hikers, where you will find a historic defense tower from sixteenth century and the Cave Ermites, in the northern side of the cape.

If you like hiking, threre is a chance !

Day 2 - 12/09/2013 : Driving to Montjoi, within the Parc Natural Cap de Creus

The road between Roses and Cala Montjoi give you unforgettable view around the Parc Natural Cap Creus, the Norfeu Cape and the Mediterranean Sea.

In winter, if you've the lucky with the weather you can see the Pirynees snowed. It was the road to the Bulli, the most knowed restaurant of one of our best chefs, Ferran Adria, but now Bulli is closed indefinitely.


Drive carefully on this road and enjoy the views !