12 Friday Oct 2012
Posted in Uncategorized
A while ago I was asked if I would like to write a little something about Barcelona for the blog Homage to BCN. You can find the story of our love affair here!
The blog itself is well worth a visit, it has lots of interesting information on Barcelona and what it’s like living here!
05 Friday Oct 2012
Posted in Travel
My Soul Man’s birthday is in December, and we always try to go away for a couple of days around that date. This year the destination will be Santiago de Compostela!
(Source Council of Europe)
I have never been there, but from photos it looks beautiful and I’ve heard that the food is fantastic. Furthermore we booked a hotel in a place that used to be a monastery, and it looks so inviting! I’ve never been excited about a hotel before!
It wasn’t very expensive at all and it looks gorgeous:
(Sources: trip advisor and ad13)
And apparently Santiago is great for eating really, really good food! Can’t wait!
20 Thursday Sep 2012
Posted in Travel
Here I am, in Bologna! I’m here to work so not much play I’m afraid. But the little I’ve seen of the city it seems beautiful. Old historical buildings, little alleyways, beautiful churches… And the food didn’t let me down so far..!
Here are a few pictures I took:
And let’s just finish it all off with a little Bresaola and Parmesan, shall we?
19 Wednesday Sep 2012
Hello dears! Today I couldn’t resist anymore: I ordered books on Amazon. I’ve almost read all the books I bought from my trip, so of course it’s time to get some new ones, right? I have a loooong wish list in Amazon, so the choice was difficult. And once I’ve pushed the order button then I want the books to come right away. But I just have to wait, 3-7 working days…
Meanwhile I will go to Italy! For work I’m afraid, so not much time for diversion at all. I’m going to Bologna, where I’ve never been before.
And when I come back I will celebrate Barcelona! The biggest, most awesome party is taking place, the Mercè. Google it and check out what is on offer, you will certainly find something interesting going on this weekend!
17 Monday Sep 2012
Posted in Shopping and beauty
I haven’t been shopping for a while and I thought I’d have a look at what’s available online so I could find some inspiration. I started with the Mango website and I can really recommend it, I discovered that they have a lot of things there that they sell only online! And really nice stuff too! And if you order for more than 30 euros you get free shipping, at least here in Spain. Here are a few of the things I found that are only available online (even beautiful dresses for weddings!):
12 Wednesday Sep 2012
Posted in Me
I forgot to tell you: I have a new job! I found out already in June, but because these things are always a bit hush-hush and I never want to jinx anything so I have kept quiet about the whole thing. But last week on Monday was my first day!
I still work in the same company, but with completely new tasks, very interesting ones I might add. Exciting times ahead!
11 Tuesday Sep 2012
Posted in Barcelona and Spain
Tags
I love animals. Most animals I think. I’m not afraid of spiders or snakes or bees. But one living thing that I really can’t stand is the cockroach.
On Saturday evening we were sitting and watching a movie, and on the TV stand I could see something shiny, but I thought it was just a reflection of the TV. I ignored it. After a while Otis started chasing something, but I thought it was something imaginary as he sometimes plays with imaginary things (one of the crazy things cats do…). But when he was insisting on trying to reach something in a corner I got up. I moved around some stuff that was in the way and out came a HUGE cockroach. I screamed, obviously, and my Soul Man came to the rescue with a broom. We chased it around the apartment, me accompanying with a few screams of disgust here and there, especially when the awful thing started to FLY! Finally my Soul Man killed him mercilessly. It’s not easy to kill a cockroach, it’s hard and flat and even though you part it in two it’s still alive. Yuck.
We’ve luckily never had a cockroach before in our apartment, and I hope it never happens again. This time it flew in because we had the window open. Better to keep the windows closed from now on. Before I had no idea that the little creatures were able to fly..!
10 Monday Sep 2012
I usually get up at 6.30 in the morning. Little Otis makes sure that I start the waking up process in time, so at 6 AM he jumps on the bed and starts purring. And can he purr… I have never heard a cat purr as loud as he does. Strategically he lies down on my pillow to make sure I really hear his purring. He changes position several times and accidentally throws his tail in my face so my mouth is full of cat hair. If I don’t react he might pull my hair a little. If that doesn’t work either, he puts his paw in my eye and on my mouth. If still no reaction he gets up and throws himself on top of me. He lies there for a while and continues purring like he has swollen some kind of power tool. After this kind of torture I feel I have to get up, there is no remedy…
Happy Monday to you all!
09 Sunday Sep 2012
Posted in Cats
Tags
Since we came back from our vacation we’ve been taking care of a little kitty cat:
Now she has left and the house feels empty. And poor Otis no longer has anyone to play with. Hopefully they will meet soon again!
06 Thursday Sep 2012
Posted in Barcelona and Spain, Food
Today I was on the lookout for halloumi, and I knew it would be complicated. I went to one of the markets in Gracia, Mercado de l’Abaceria, to have a look. I hadn’t been there for a while and I was positively surprised, there was a lot of ecological food to buy there. But the biggest, loveliest surprise was this stand:
It was a lovely gentleman selling wonderful things. Except for halloumi he had falafel, hummus, baba ganoush and kefir to name a few examples, all that his wife had made. Fantastic. The prices were good, considering the size of the portions.
So go and have a look, and a chat with the lovely gentleman! He will give you good recipes and suggestions, too. This is what I had for dinner after my visit there, salad with halloumi and a kefir sauce with feta.
Maria Katarina Barcelona 