Ahead of Easter rush, officials say drought must not put off Barcelona tourists
Barcelona, Spain Reuters Tourists arriving at Barcelona’s airport or gazing at its iconic Sagrada Familia basilica will this Easter holiday be met with large signs in English that read: “Drought alert. During your stay, save water”. As the impact of climate change intensifies across southern Europe, Spain’s Mediterranean region of Catalonia, which includes Barcelona, is […]
Catalans face carwash bans, swimming pool restrictions over record drought
Barcelona, Spain Reuters Residents of the eastern Spanish region of Catalonia will be banned from washing their cars and filling up empty swimming pools under measures announced on Thursday to alleviate the region’s worst drought on record. The measures, which will come into force on Friday, will affect around six million people in 200 villages, […]
Balancing act: Flooded with sightseers, Europe’s iconic churches struggle to accommodate both worship and tourism
GIOVANNA DELL’ORTO, of Associated Press, reports on challenges facing houses of worship in Europe…
Snapshot: Barcelona, Spain
See KASPARS UPMANIS’ image…
“They roam about like cats”: Spanish cities try to halt wild boar invasions
Barcelona, SpainReuters Large groups of wild boar are now a common sight in some Spanish cities and authorities say they have no option but to capture and put them down as they pose a danger to humans but have become too used to scavenging to live back in the wild. Attracted by garbage bins and […]
With COVID rules eased, Barcelona embraces return of Saint Eulàlia festivities
Barcelona, Spain AP Crowds gathered in Barcelona’s historic downtown to watch in awe and snap cellphone photos as teams of people in colourful garb formed human towers rising into the air like the spires on the nearby medieval cathedral. A giant figure in bright blue dress and a floral crown paraded through the streets in […]
Thousands of Catalans rally for independence in Barcelona
Barcelona, SpainReuters Thousands of Catalans chanted, sang and waved flags as they marched through Barcelona on Saturday, calling for the region’s independence from Spain. The march, organised by the grassroots Assemblea Nacional Catalana, was the first since Spain’s government pardoned nine Catalan separatist leaders who had been jailed for their role in a 2017 botched […]
Pandemic delays completion of Spain’s Sagrada Familia beyond 2026
Barcelona, SpainReuters Souvenir shops are mostly closed and only a few tourists gaze at Barcelona’s Sagrada Familia, a stark contrast from the hordes of visitors before the pandemic, but the board running Antoni Gaudi’s unfinished basilica hopes that will change soon. It will reopen from 29th May on weekend mornings after closing in October, hoping […]
“We are all the same” – Barcelona church opens doors to Ramadan dinners
Barcelona, SpainReuters With COVID-19 restrictions preventing Barcelona’s Islamic population from celebrating Ramadan at the usual indoor venues, a Catholic church has offered up its open-air cloisters for Muslims to eat and pray together. Every evening between 50 and 60 Muslims, many of them homeless, stream into the centuries-old stone passages of the Santa Anna church, […]
Spanish art show spotlights “hidden” digital divide in pandemic
Barcelona, SpainThomson Reuters Foundation A painting of a woman using an iPad, a vase depicting children dreaming of computers – both historical objects with a contemporary twist highlighting the world’s growing digital divide during the coronavirus pandemic. The exhibition at Barcelona’s Analog Museum of Digital Inequality aims to show how this gap – laid bare […]