2015 in review

I have been living in Barcelona since the beginning of 2015 which has made it one of the best years of my life. Barcelona is a fantastic city with a lot to offer where it’s difficult to get bored. Here are some of the things that made my year great.

Meeting new people

When I moved to Barcelona I didn’t have a social circle, so I decided to use one of the most useful online tools to meet new people: Meetup. This online platform allows anyone to organize groups and events and have people who share the same interests join in. I went to language exchanges, game nights, improvisation classes, writing groups and more. By selecting a couple of those meetups and going to their weekly events, I gained an excellent group of friends with whom I do most of my activities today.

Related article: How to feel like a Catalan

Getting lost

One of the things I enjoy doing is getting lost in the little streets of Barcelona. I have discovered countless treasures while walking aimlessly in the little streets of neighborhoods like Raval and El Gotic. It’s at those small streets that you find the most original businesses, the greatest little cafes, the hidden architectural marvels. I never worry when I get lost in Barcelona. There are always helpful people to give me directions and a subway stop around the corner.

Enjoying good food

In Barcelona you can find any type of food from hundreds of different countries. I’ve had a delicious time discovering some of my favorite places to grab a bite in Barcelona. Here are a few of them:  La Tasqueta de Blai, a tiny establishment in Poble Sec where you can choose from a huge variety of pintxos, costing only 1€ a piece; The dog is hot, the hot dog paradise for vegetarians; La Boqueria, Barcelona’s most famous market where you can find excellent fruit juices and snacks; NAP, where I ate a marvelous truffle pizza; and Chök, a fantastic chocolate store where you can find donuts, cronuts, croissants, cookies, muffins and everything else you can imagine that can be made better with chocolate.

Going to cultural events

Barcelona is deeply dedicated to arts and culture, which means there are a variety of cultural events happening every single month. Some of the excellent events I attended this year were La Musica Contra Ataca, a fantastic concert featuring John Williams’ most famous songs played by an orchestra at the legendary Palau de la Musica Catalana; Dia de Brasil, an annual event where the Brazilian community gathers to share typical Brazilian food and listen to good music; Palo Alto Market, a hip outdoors market that gathers live music, caravan food and designer and handmade products; Comedy Standup nights at local pubs; and Barcelona Gallery Weekend in which I visited a number of galleries featuring gorgeous work by local and international artists.