¿Qué es esto?

This is my final project for HP/AN345: Catalan Cultural Studies. The assignment was to create a city journal based upon personal research reguarding the city of Barcelona and Catalan culture. I needed to include a certain amount of news stories, leisure activities, cultural experiences, field trips and restaurants. Four months ago I hopped off a plane from Chicago and was completely submerged into Catalan Culture. These are some of the experiences I have had in Catalunya. I hope you enjoy reading them as much as I enjoyed experiencing them. Feel free to leave comments if you'd like.

Thanks for reading!

Rebecca Taylor

What does Marilyn Manson and Catalunya have in common?

Local News Story

Marilyn Manson had a concert here in Barcelona this past weekend. I know, it doesn’t sound like breaking news at all. But it was a pretty big deal. He came on December 4th and played at the Olympic Stadium at Montjuic. This was the stadium originally created for the 1929 International Exposition that never happened but was rebuilt for the 1992 Olympic games. This stadium is HUGE! It has a capacity of 55,926 (70,000 during the 1992 Olympics). It hosts many athletic events as well as concerts today. The outside of the structure looks like a cathedral or palace, but the inside is a huge field and stadium. When I first saw the Stadium, I didn’t know it was a stadium but rather a huge castle or cathedral. I find this very intriguing. What seems peaceful and church-like on the outside was hosting Marilyn Manson’s tour on the inside.

Believe it or not, Marilyn Manson and Catalunya have a lot in common. He has been known to make extremely controversial comments that upsets a lot of people. Some people hate him for his extreme ideas, but some people support his “out of the box ideology.” Catalunya would never do that! (insert sarcastic smirk here) Catalans have always been chastised for their radical ideas of being different from the rest of Spain. There have been wars and countless people dead because traditional Catalans have a different perception of government and culture than the rest of Spain. Historically Catalunya has always wanted to be an independent country from Spain, and this can be observed in almost any aspect of Catalan life today. People in Madrid don’t have a lot of nice things to say about Catalan ideas, while those in the Basque region look to them for inspiration. The point is that both Marilyn Manson and traditional Catalans have radical ideas that have never been supported by higher authority, but neither give in and submit to social normalcy’s. Marilyn Manson could be describing Catalunya when he claims “They can’t destroy me just because I have a different opinion.” Some have tried, but the radical ideals still live on in Catalan tongue.

Siesta: A Fading Tradition

Local News Story

Spain is not exactly known for it’s efficiency. I was really looking forward to the lazy Spanish lifestyle when I came abroad. Although Barcelona and Catalunya are don’t exhibit the traditional Spanish lifestyle, it is still pretty prevalent. A typical day is arriving at work around 9, getting a coffee and donut or croissant for a 45 minute break around 11, going home for lunch from around 2-5, and working until around 8 or 9.

An article just came out that claims the “average Catalan workday is 35.8 hours, the longest since 1999.” Although that is a mere average of 7.16 hours every day, this is significantly more than what Catalans are used to. Part of Catalan culture is to take one’s time and get things done at a pace that is comfortable. The article did state that companies with less than 250 employees usually work less hours. This makes sense because large global companies are no longer tolerating the lack of efficiency that is conducive with Spanish culture.


Personally, I do not have any classes from 2-4, the typical siesta time here in Catalunya. When I was down in Andalucia, the siesta was from around 2-7. That’s a long siesta! Banks, grocery stores, restaurants, basically any retail store is completely closed at the time. It is impossible to purchase anything during a siesta. Even though Barcelona is a metropolitan city and needs to be more efficient than cultural norms allow, it still does demonstrate a small siesta. The whole concept of the siesta is to have a break from school or work in the middle of the day and spend time with one’s family over a long lunch. I love this concept! I think that families would be much closer and happier if they could all get together in the middle of the day for a stress-free lunch. However, I do understand the demands of having a global economy. Time zones and our fast-paced global work force does not allow for long breaks in the middle of the day. It does make me sad that Spanish culture is slowly being erased with the new technological era. I think many Americans can learn from the Spanish values of family time and relaxing. It may even make everyone more efficient when they are at work. However this is just one of many ways that traditional Spanish and Catalan culture are being Americanized.

"Every Life Matters"

National News

I was visiting my friend in Madrid last week. She was taking me all around the city to see all the sites and so were in Puerta del Sol. The whole placa was packed with people. We couldn’t move or get anywhere. I knew Madrid was more populated than Barcelona, but I didn’t think there was THAT many people in the city. After noticing the red capes, red shirts, picket signs and chanting, I realized I was right in the middle of a demonstration. In Spain, a demonstration is like a rally or a strike. There over a million people all coming together to fight in what they thought was right. I’ve never been to a rally or anything even remotely similar to the anti-abortion demonstration in Madrid. Currently, abortion is illegal except in particular situations: rape, endangerment to the mother, ect. There was a law proposed to make abortion legal to anyone 16 and older, and this was the some of public’s response to it.

I consider myself really lucky to have stumbled upon this huge national rally. I have never even heard of a situation where that many people come from all over the country to show their support (or anti-support) for something as simple as a law proposal. Although personally, I disagree with the mass of people, I couldn’t help but be inspired by them. They truly believe in something and are fighting to encourage it. How incredible! In the States, we do not do things like this. If we disagree with something, we sit at a bar amongst our friends and complain about it. These people must have spent lots of time, money, and effort to get over a million people to band together in Madrid. It made me want to stand up for what I believe in, too. This is just one of the ways that I have experienced other cultures, mindsets, and customs, and it will truly affect me when I return to the States.

A Windy World

Local News Story

It was a normal night: My roommate, Senora, and I were eating cena and watching the television. The news came on and was talking about some corrupt politicians in the Catalan government. As someone who is from Chicago (named “The Windy City” for it’s “windy” politicians), this did not phase me at all. But Senora was freaking out. It turns out that she grew up with the politician that was currently being investigated. She couldn’t believe that the “nice guy” from all her classes was now in jail. She said that she purchased the book he wrote last year and was waiting to get together with him to sign it. Now, she didn’t want anybody to know she was associated with him. Macia Alavedra has been, since 1989, minister of Economy of the Generalitat de Catalunya, president of the Fundació Catalana per a la Recerca (Catalan Research Foundation) and president of CESCA from its foundation until July 1997. However, he is now known for his shady political deals when holding a position in the Catalan Governement.

This is one of the things I have learned in my experiences abroad: people are not all that different. Although the United States and Spain are completely different countries with very different governments, they are both equally corrupt. Some American students in my program have made ignorant comments about all the corruption on the news here in Spain, saying that Spain itself is just a really crooked country. I can’t believe this! The governmental officials are just as corrupt (or probably even more) in the States. However, it is just not on the news as much. Just because it’s not on the news every day like it is in Spain, doesn’t mean that it doesn’t happen. It is pathetically comforting for me to know that all countries are shady in their own way. I realize that Spanish culture and values couldn’t be any different than American, but we all do have things in common: everybody has a price.

When you point one finger, three are pointing back at you

National News Story


This week is the huge Copenhagen Summit. It is essentially a meeting of over 200 world leaders to create a plan to reduce carbon emissions on a global scale. I am extremely interested in this because ideally I will be working in an environmental sector after I graduate. I also think it is necessary for there to be a global agreement in order to realistically reduce carbon emissions. This is a follow-up from the Kyoto Protocol back in the ’90’s. At the Kyoto meeting, many countries vowed to reduce (in increase) their carbon emissions by a certain percent depending on their wealth and development as a country. They believed it was not fair to not allow some undeveloped countries to develop because they cannot put carbon into the atmosphere. Each country was analyzed and given a certain percent to increase or decrease their carbon emissions. The United States is by far the highest producer of carbon emissions per person. This means that my home country has the majority of the responsibility for this issue and needs to address it. However, until recently, President Obama was not stating whether or not he would even come to the Copenhagen meeting. Currently he has announced that he will attend the meeting, but may not attend the last few days to create a solution. As a concerned American, this is just embarrassing. How is it that the country that is leading the issue (and also sets examples for many other countries) does not believe it is a priority to fix it’s mistakes and literally help the world? The goal was to reduce overall carbon emissions by 50% by 2050. This would be the amount of sustainable carbon emissions.

In the last 4 months in Spain, I have noticed a lack of interest and concern in environmental issues. For example, my host mother does not recycle at all, and neither does any of my friend’s host families. There are some recycle bins next to dumpsters for recycling so it is available, however it is just not a main concern. I have told my host mom that I can take out the plastic bottles of water to recycle them and she said, “This is how we do it. We put everything in the trash and throw it away all at once.” I have also noticed a similar situation at my school, IES. The school systems should be the most concerned about environmental efforts because schools influence children who influence their families. However, there is one recycling location at IES, an establishment spread out across three floors. Also, since the Kyoto Protocol, Spain overall has increased it’s emissions by 40%. I do recognize some things the government has been doing to help. The Catalan Government has a really cool idea to make schools “eco-friendly” so that children are always aware of environmental issues. However, the main producers of waste are adults. The adults in Spain seem to have the same outlook as President Obama: there are more important issues to deal with right now.

I'd Like to Order a Bikini???

Catalan Cuisine

It didn’t take long for me to realize the Spanish are completely obsessed with ham. Granted, I love ham and consider myself a ham snob (I raised pigs growing up) but it is nothing like the Spanish. I have seen ham flavored potato chips, bacon flavored crackers, ham legs hanging in every window, and even ham flavored ice cream. Yep, ham ice cream. Ham Serrano seems to be the ham of choice for most menu items. It is the cured and dried ham that is typically seen on tapas or in a bocadillo. Bocadillos are pretty popular too. They are typical American sandwiches but are usually prepared on a white crispy baguette. Naturally it is very common to combine these two hometown favorites into a typical lunch item.

The first time I was at a small Spanish restaurant/bar for lunch I was looking over the menu deciding what kind of bocadillo I wanted. I saw one called a “bikini.” I asked the waiter about it and he said that it is a typical ham and melted cheese sandwich. I asked him why it wasn’t called just a ham and cheese sandwich and he said it was only called a biking in Barcelona. If I went to any other place and asked for it, I would receive a bathing suit. HA! It was the first of many things I would learn that happen only in Catalunya or Barcelona. Regardless, I decided to order the Bikini and give it a try. I was not disappointed. It was warm and the cheese was perfectly melted and the sandwich bread was toasted and crispy. Needless to say the tiny bar with only 5 stools became a local favorite place to go for lunch.