Salnitre Cave

Located inside of Montserrat’s National Park Reserve, it is the best known cave and the one which summarises best the history of Catalan speleology.

This cave, at 549 metres above sea level, allows us to see the inside of the mountain. Visiting it means a subterranean trip that shows us the characteristics and result of a geological process acting on limy and conglomerate materials. For a long time it was the habitat of the first Neolithical inhabitants of Montserrat, becoming in time an inspiring place for Modernist artists such as Gaudí, Jacint Verdaguer or Rusiñol. Before they were opened to tourism, during the 1870s, they were also a good refuge for several bat species, like the Mediterranean horseshoe bat.

The most comfortable way of getting there is to go to Collbató, if possible on the third Sunday of the month, so that you can go to the Mercat de la Tradició. This will allow you to appreciate even more the town’s marked Medieval character. It is a good idea to have lunch there, and then around 4 pm get ready and go to the Àrea d’Esplai de la Salut, an open area in the outskirts of the town (within walking distance), where the tickets to the cave are sold.

A word of warning: The access to the cave has to be made after climbing up a flight of stairs with 244 steps (10 minutes at least!). Once inside the cave the temperature is 14ºC, with a 95% relative humidity, so taking a jumper or long sleeves with you is generally recommended. Finally, the visit, exclusively with a guide tour, lasts for about an hour, and this includes a video-documentary (in Catalan) , which summarises the history of the cave.

Timetable: Saturdays, Sundays and Bank Holidays, 10 am to 1 pm and 4.30 pm to 6.30 pm (last visit). During August it is open from Tuesday to Sunday. General ticket fee €7; reduced entrance fee (“Carnet Jove”, retired people, students and children between 5-12): €5.90. Information Office telephone number: 93.777.90.76

Moreover, in order to enjoy the town of Collbató fully, on the way back from the cave (or before going in) you should visit the Hermitage of La Salut (Ermita de la Salut), which was built in the second half of the 19th century, and was reconstructed between 1936-1939. A neo-Gothic style building, it presents a rectangular plant and a roof with double slopes. Its belfry is encased in an external wall tower, which crowns the front façade, and what nowadays is used as sacristy is located behind the nave of the hermitage. It can be accessed from behind the altar, where we can see ogival arches and alabastre capitals with Modernist motifs like rabbits, locusts and flowers. The sacristy’s walls are covered with paintings imitating architectonic graphisms

Source: www.infocostabrava.com

International walk of Barcelona

Two days walking in Barcelona

New walks very interesting. 10, 20 and 30 Km that will let you discover the beautiful city of Barcelona. 

The International Walk of Barcelona, a non-competitive walk, is a good excuse to get health, alone or with friends, and to rediscover our city. It has international echo, in order to let everybody know the wonderful beauties and particularities of the city of Barcelona.

• Routes: There are 3 marked routes each day, what allows the walker to choose between three different distances: 10, 20, 30 km (+/- 1 km ).
• Kind of ground: All the routes combine urban and non-urban sections of different lengths.
• Drops: In some of the routes, the accumulated drops (up and down) are important. Consult the drops profile that can be found in the map of each route.
• Beginning and End: Complex Esportiu Municipal Trinitat Vella (for all the routes), near the Parc de la Trinitat.
  Underground line L1 Trinitat Vella .
• Routes: they are in the map, as well as the indications of the revictualling controls, of the ordinary controls, etc.
• Pass controls, revictualling controls, services and health care: there are in all the routes, and their positions appear in the map. Each one has its own timetable.

Find further details: click here

VIDEOARTE INDIA

A selection of Indian artists portray their homeland through short film in this exhibition at CaixaForum.

Visit Event Website

Date & Time Wed, Jun 02, 2010 to Sat, Oct 02, 2010
Mon–Sun 10am–8pm.

Phone 93 476 86 00

Price Free

Tossa de Mar Old Town

Tossa de Mar, in the Selva region, has one of the most important mediaeval city walls on the Costa Brava.

In 1931, the Vila Vella of Tossa was declared a National Historical-Artistic Monument. The city walls in the Cape of Tossa are currently the only example of a fortified mediaeval town that still remains on the Catalan coast. The beauty of its beaches and its artistic and cultural heritage have made this place a must for tourists.

Click here for futher details

The Salvador Dalí Triangle

The life and works of this painter from Figueres are condensed into three emblematic areas: the Theatre-Museum in Figueres, the House-Museum in Portlligat and the Púbol Castle. Visit them!!!

Gala-Dalí Castle (Púbol)

Salvador Dalí’s Home (Portlligat)

Dalí Theatre-Museum (Figueres)

SHOW OPERA FANTASY

For young and outstanding voices of present lyric, perform delicious fragments of lamed both classic and contemporany operas, with an intimate and innovative staging. After tasting our Mediterranean cuisine, let yourself go by Carmen, Turandot, La Traviata, Evita or The Phantom of the Opera… Feel the thrill, the pleasure of the music, enjoy with all five senses

 Show & Dinner – Thursday at 21:00h from 55€

Show & Drink – Thursday at 22:45h from 30€

More info:  Aquarella music-Restaurant

ow & D

Festa Major starts in Sants district of  Barcelona it is absolutely worth visiting.  Many of the main activities take place in “Parque de la España Industrial” and 13 streets in Sants will be decorated by the residents with many entertaining themes. The Catalan actress Amparo Moreno open the festival on Saturday 21 August 21 at 20.00 in the evening at the “Parque de la España Industrial.” There will be many chances to see festivals traditions like correfocs – fireruns, castellers – human tower building, Gegants and capgrossos  - giants and other Catalan festival traditions. A highlight of the Sants Festa Major is the Sants Festival cycling race, called the Cursa Ciclista ‘Memorial Antoni Andrés Sancho‘  which takes place for the 29th time in 2010 on streets of Sants from 10:30 on Sunday 29 August 2010. A new running event premieres in 2010 called “El 2000 de SantsCursa atlètica de la Festa Major 2010” which is a 2k run (2 circuits of 1000 metres) also takes place on Sunday 29th August 2010 from 09:00. And finish the festival with a pyromusical evening on Sunday 29 August.

Check the Festa Major website for programme of all activities www.festamajordesants.cat

From: www.barcelonayellow.com

Mecal Air (cortos, música y barbacoa) is a series of summer outdoor short films, music and barbeque evenings organised by “The International Short Film Festival of Barcelona” called MECAL, and Poble Espanyol.  It takes place on Friday evenings ifrom June to mid-September from 20.00 to 24.00 in the evening on the Baluard Plaça of Poble Espanyol, the Spanish village on Montjuic in Barcelona, where you can enjoy nighttime views of Barcelona. Mecal Air presents  selection of themed short films and music. You can also try the outdoor barbeque and there is a naturally a bar.
Admission is 5 euros or 2 euros if you print and bring this MECAL AIR flyer.  Food/Drink not included in admission price

Event date:  Friday evenings from Friday 4th June to Friday 10th September 2010
Event location: Baluard Plaça of Poble Espanyol, Barcelona

More info: www.poble-espanyol.com

Taken from www.barcelonayellow.com

 SLEEP ON TREES

Huts in the trees ” offers to the lovers of nature the pleasure of a stay in direct touch with the tree and its ecosystem, the pleasures of an exile among the foliage, some nights in a nest placed in the framework of the branches of a beautiful tree.
It’s a form of alternative rural accommodation. In order to preserve the tree and its natural surroundings, the huts do not have electricity nor running water.
Because of that, at a reasonable distance, there is a centre for complementary services: the homestead The Vileta.
The Vileta is a typical Catalan country house equipped with parking, reception, canteen, living room, showers, swimming pool and garden.

TREN DELS LLACS

(Train of the lakes)

This nostalgic journey takes you back in the time for the train travellers and nature lovers .
This unforgettable trip runs through the Lleida lands to the Pyrenees lakes; leaving from El Segrià, through La Noguera and Montsec and reaching El Pallars Jussà region.

A charming journey,a magnificent landscape…

Getting on to the train, sitting and enjoying the journey of the Prepyrenees plain. The coach window show us a nice view of the landscape of great beauty. A land of rugged scenery and wild vegetation, lime walls, controlled calm waters and at the bottom the white peaks of the Pyrenees. Four great sheets of water which we find along the journey: Sant Llorenç de Montgai, Camarassa, Cellers and Sant Antoni.

More info: click here