2016 Nike Barcelona SLS Skateboard Contest

When I was maybe eight or nine years old, I started getting seriously into bicycle riding. It started out innocently with a BMX bike that my parents gave me and, over the years, moved into more and more higher-end bikes and got to the point where I spent almost every waking hour when I wasn't in school or working riding with friends. To pay for my addiction, I started peddling (ha - punny!) newspapers when I was ten and later other jobs included selling, doing repairs, and so on in bike and skateboard shops.

My biking "career" spanned the last couple of years of grade school, through high school, and even some time at university. A lot of it was racing BMX but, by the time I was in 10th grade, our group of friends started "doing freestyle", which was stunt riding on BMX bikes. It was right around then that we also got into skateboarding. Some of the same spots that were good for freestyle lent (and still do lend) themselves nicely to skateboarding. Plus, when it rained or snowed, the bikes stayed home; we were limited to skateboarding in Center City Philadelphia parking structures.

About half way through university, a friend from high school moved to San Diego to work in the skateboard industry. I went to visit him for a week or so one summer and, within a couple of hours of landing in Los Angeles, I was hooked. Right after university, I was off to California where I spent the next 19 years. The whole time I was surrounded by friends who worked in the skateboarding, snowboarding, and surfing industries. I was even lucky to work in the bicycle and snowboard industries for a while.

One those friends, John John, who managed what so many dream of doing - turn a love (of action sports) into an amazing job and lifestyle, recently messaged asking if I'd be around as he could get me tickets to the Nike Street League Skateboarding Pro Open contest.

I told John John that, of course, we'd love to go! When the day arrived, Diana and I took the train to the Skate Agora skatepark in Badalona, which is the next town north of Barcelona. We grabbed our V.I.P. bracelets and set in to enjoy watching pro skaters from around the world compete on the newish, well-designed, beach-side park.

Since moving away from California, I've only been marginally aware of the industry and sports that occupied such a majority of my time on this planet. Barcelona has its own (fairly big) skateboarding scene, the mountains are close, and you'll even see the occasional surfer at the beach but it's just not the same intensity as it was in Oceanside. It was nice to be back in the mix, even if just as an observer.

Thanks for the tickets John John! We had a great time (vicariously) reliving my youth. Maybe when you and the family come for a visit, we can roll around the park for a bit!

The (Travel) Force Is Strong With This One

Poking around my blog, you might guess that my love of travel is genetic and that I come from a long line of explorers. Well, that's really not the case. Actually, many in my family just don't get why I like wandering all over the world. There are a couple of exceptions though, like my aunt and uncle and, now, my niece.

Back in 2010, I was in Philadelphia for Thanksgiving when my cousin's daughter, who was in high school at the time, showed some interest in my travels. She asked me where I had been, what I liked, and some ideas of places she might visit one day. Even though she had yet to enter university, she was already thinking about where she'd could do an exchange semester overseas. As I had just come to Philadelphia directly from China, I think I said how impressed I was and that she might consider going there. I probably gave her some other ideas but I don't remember now.

Like all smart people, she's completely ignored my advice and is currently doing an exchange semester in London! By the way, it seems like that conversation was yesterday! I'm old!

When I found out she'd be in England, Diana and I told her she needed to visit during a break. It was an even bigger surprise when my cousin decided to visit her and that they'd do a quick Barcelona trip!

Even though it was for only a couple of days, we squeezed in all the best of Barcelona. The Magic Fountain above and the full Sagrada Familia tour. This was just a couple of days after we went for our private tour with Victor Ochen.

By the way, I was recently corrected that I'm wrong to call my cousin's daughter my niece but saying "my first cousin once removed" is just way too complicated, so you'll have to forgive me as I'll just continue saying niece.

I mentioned above about how my niece is a bit of a travel fan. She did a project in Belgium last year and has been bouncing around Europe for the last couple of months. I was jealous when I recently saw her posts from Croatia! It's good that the force is strong with (someone in) my family (finally)!

Taking in the view from Park Guell:

Between the wedding and several random visits like this one, maybe a third of my family's been, which isn't too bad when you consider it's like a ten-hour flight away. Now, about the rest of them...

At Casa Batllo:

It was a treat to have these guys stay with us. I can't wait to visit my niece when she's living somewhere in a land far, far away (hint, hint). Based on what I've seen, it won't be a long, long time...

The Day A Nobel Peace Prize Candidate Stopped By

Not too long ago I mentioned how a lot of random (good) things happen for Diana and me like the time we got an impromptu castle tour in Barbera de la Concha and when I taught the English class in Tibet. I figured this kinda' stuff happens to everyone but, after talking to some friends, it may come down to our openness to new experiences. The reality is that I can't remember a time when someone asked me to do something and I didn't except for when I was physically not able/there.

One recent example was when Xavi, the priest who married us, asked Diana if he could bring a few people by our apartment for pica pica one Sunday afternoon after a meeting. It's one of the reasons why we like living in the very center of Barcelona - people tend to stop by, which we really enjoy. Anyway, he didn't go into a lot of detail but, as usual, we said sure. Diana and I bought some food and straightened up a bit. Nothing special down to the plastic plates and cups. Hey, nothing screams class more than serving Cava and wine in plasticware!

Well, turns out that the guest of honor was Victor Ochen who was a 2015 Nobel Peace Prize candidate. D'oh, IKEA furniture and plastic cups!

Victor was in Spain to give a series of talks about his life and work. While my shallow self was worried about cutlery, Victor casually told us about how he spent his first 20 years living through civil war, surviving meningitis with no medical care, growing up in refuge camps, and trying not to get kidnapped and/or taken away to fight (like his brother who never came back). Then, if all that wasn't enough, how, for the last 15 years, he's been working for peace as well as starting and running the the African Youth Initiative Network. In other words, some amazing things.

We hung out at our place for about two hours before Xavi asked Diana and me if we'd like to go with them to the Sagrada Familia for a private tour. Sagrada Familia. Private tour. Hmm, is the Pope Catholic? Of course!!! And off we went.

Our tour was led by, you're not going to believe this, the parish priest of the Sagrada Familia, Father Lluis Bonet i Armengol whose father worked with Gaudi and whose brother oversaw construction of the Sagrada Familia for 28 years! Could this day get any better?

Father Bonet i Armengol took us through the entire church pointing out things like that the stained-glass windows each have a name of place, such as Lourdes and Guadalupe, where a miracle has happened. At one point, he asked Diana where she was from and, when she said Colombia, he said, oh, there's a window for Chiquinquira. What? The small farming town where Diana's parents are from here in the Sagrada Familia? Crazy. If you look at approximately 10 o'clock in the photo below, you'll see Chiquinquira.

We even had some fun during the tour. While in the crypt, Father Bonet i Armengol made each of us sit in a confessional that he said Gaudi designed. Here's Victor shyly looking out:

While in the crypt, I saw this lectern, which Father Bonet i Armengol said was also a Gaudi design. I love the dragons at the top and the bird feet down below:

After our church tour, we went to the parish office, which, if you're familiar with the Sagrada Familia, is the brick building to the left of the Passion facade. Victor signed the guest book and Father Bonet i Armengol showed us old photos and other Sagrada Familia memorabilia. Ah, yeah, that's me in the Sagrada Familia parish office with the parish priest and a Nobel candidate. Crazy day.

Father Bonet i Armengol sharing research he had done with Victor and Diana:

Victor had one more job to do after we left the Sagrada Familia. We went with him to a church where he gave a speech and met with parishioners. At this point, it felt like we were old friends so it was a bit strange to see him up on stage.

As you could imagine, Victor's an amazing guy. He's smart, funny, charismatic, humble, and even a bit shy. It was his humbleness that really struck me. Here's a guy who was nominated for a Nobel prize, who travels around the world speaking, who Forbes named one of the most powerful men in Africa, and who's got Desmond Tutu Whatsapping him, yet he was super humble. Like what he was doing was something anyone could do. Total respect.

Photo Credit

The thing that I'll always remember about Victor, well other than he invited us to come stay with him in Uganda, was when he and I were just outside the Sagrada Familia waiting for the others. Looking at the scene, he reached over and pulled me in close, looked me in the eye, and said something like "this is amazing". I looked back and said "really, this happens to me every day" and we laughed like a couple of old friends.

Dave Visits Barcelona

There are days when I look at my Facebook feed and enjoy all the languages. One of the benefits of having lived in so many places is having friends from all over the world, all over the world. On the up side, I'd like to think it means I could find a place to crash within a few hours of almost anywhere on the globe. On the down side, it can make it a bit tough to meet up with some of those friends on a Saturday night or, sometimes, to even just connect.

When it does happen though, it's extra special like when my good friend Dave from California came to Barcelona for a two-week visit:

Dave and I met about ten years ago at work. We hit it off almost immediately partly because we are both originally from Philadelphia and partly because...well, I can't remember. It just kind of happened, I guess. Whatever.

Every time we go back to San Diego, we stay with Dave. This past March, it was for about half the trip. He and his dog Miles are great hosts who live in a great house near the beach. Dave makes it easy as he likes to cook (and is really good at it) and share a good bottle of wine. Diana and I pushed and pushed until he finally committed to coming to Barcelona in the fall.

Waiting for our fish to be prepped over at La Boqueria:

Getting the chance to spend so much one-on-one time with Dave made me both happy and sad. Happy because it was super nice to be able to share my daily life with such a long-time good friend. We went to the Sagrada Familia one day,

which impacted Dave even more than I would have ever imagined.

There were the meals together like at the Colombian place and, my current favorite, tapas at El Xampanet:

We even went shopping together! In other words, boy-bonding at the highest level.

But, all that Dave time also made me sad because, after he left, it occurred to me how much harder it is to make good friends as you get older. Anyone who's over 30 might realize upon reflection that most, if not all, of our good friends are those we made when we were young. (I even came across an article theorizing as much.) Yes, the downside of being a bit nomadic is that some of your best friends might be half way around the world.

But, like I said, it makes getting together that much more special. Looking tough (with Gara) in Barceloneta:

Diana and I really enjoyed having Dave over. He's an easy guest and, best of all, we got to play Parcheesi almost every night! It something he introduced us to when we visited a few years ago and that we enjoy. And, like a good guest, he even let us win a few rounds. So nice.

A lovely afternoon in Sitges:

A couple of days before Dave arrived I found out that I needed to make a quick trip up to Dublin. I was bummed to say the least. After Dave flew almost half way around the world, I would need to be gone for a chunk of time. But a day later I got a crazy idea and sent him a message. Would you be up to going with me? The hotel's paid for and you'd only need to buy a ticket.

Guess where this flight with these two crazies was headed!

Side note: I'd forgotten until writing this that Dave and my first week working together was spent up north of San Francisco on new manufacturing operation I was developing. I remember it ended up being a really fun adventure.

Anyway, Dave got to check out a wee bit of Ireland while I was working and says he had a great time. Unfortunately we didn't get to hang out too much but it was still great to have him along. Oh, and if you find yourself on a Ryanair flight and there's an emergency, make sure to remove your shoes, earrings, glasses, and dentures when evacuating.

I once heard a saying about aging that goes "the days are long but the years are short". I can't believe how fast time flies especially those two weeks Dave was here. Whoosh! Like the wind.

Here's to good friends, whatever language they speak and wherever they happen to be!

Freixenet Cava Factory Tour

When I was growing up in Philadelphia, my parents would sometimes buy Champagne to celebrate New Year's. Even though it's been way over 20 years, I can remember that they'd buy Freixenet.

Oh, and, by the way, "Champagne" is called Cava in Catalunya (and Sparkling Wine in California). At the time, I didn't know the difference; it was all Champagne...

So, anyway, the Freixenet Cava factory is only about a 45-minute train ride from Barcelona. Time for a visit!

There's a whole wine-and-Cava growing region just outside the city with many different places you can visit. Codorniu, which I went to a few years ago, and Freixenet are located near the village of Sant Sadurni d'Anoia. Both offer similar tours where they teach you about Cava and walk you through some of the storage and production areas. Although the Codorniu buildings are more beautiful, the Freixenet's underground storage areas are also very cool.

I got lucky as my tour was in English. Score! The guide did a good job explaining the different types of grapes and Cavas. I think I know enough now that I have some reference and can actually absorb the information.

This time I learned the difference between the sugar content of the various Cavas and Champagnes. Not that sweeter is better or worse but only Brut Nature has no added sugar, which I often prefer because it's dryer. I never really knew why until now.

It was pretty late in the day when I did the tour and the production and distribution facilities were closed (although I'm really not sure if they're ever included on the tour). We did get to see some old production methods and equipment in one of the underground rooms.

A barrel-storage area on our way to the tram for our ride back up to street level:

Freixenet and Codorniu have similar offerings and prices. Freixenet wins for their tasting/tapas bar and convenience (right next to the train station) but, like I said, Codorniu's Cadafalch-designed building wins for beauty.

There's also a bunch of other wineries and tasting rooms around Sant Sadurni d'Anoia, which I haven't yet visited. When you come to see us, you could easily do both factory tours in the same day. Hint hint!

Casa Lleo Morera

Just up from Plaza Catalunya, on Passeig de Gracia, is a block called la Manzana de la Discordia (literally the "apple of discord" but meaning something like "the mismatched block") where there are several Modernist buildings. The most famous of which is Casa Batllo and next door to that is the lesser-known but also beautiful Casa Amatller. At the other end of the block is the Casa Lleo i Morera, which was just renovated and opened to the public not too long ago. Again, using our local's 50% off coupons (got love that stuff), we went for a guided tour.

It's a bit hard to tell in this photo but the building's facade is full of sculptures of things like dragons, flowers, and even high-tech items of the day such as the camera, the phonograph, and the telephone. If they did the building today, they'd probably only have to have a sculpture of a smartphone.

It's been a while since I've written a story about a particular house or building but this one merits it. Like its neighbors, the house started out as an older, much plainer building. Remodeled in 1902 by Lluis Domenech i Montaner, who also did the incredibly-ornate Hospital Sant Pau, the Hotel España, and the even-more-incredibly-ornate Palau de la Musica Catalana (yes, there's a theme here), the house is, well, pretty amazing.

At street level looking in the front door.

Domenech i Montaner was chosen by Francesca Morera i Ortiz to redo the house after she inherited it from her uncle. Unfortunately she died and her son Albert Lleo i Morera, who was not only a doctor but a researcher and inventor, added his touches and lived in the house with his family.

A sitting room and, through the doors, a larger living-style room.

Situated at the corner of two streets, the house's first floor wall is all glass, which allowed both lots of light in as well as the family to be (well) seen from outside. The local term for the floor above street level is "la planta noble", or the noble level (or floor). The Lleo i Morera clan were certainly living large.

The royal view out towards Passeig de Gracia and the cross street, Consel de Cent.

Probably the most surprising feature is the Eusebi Arnau designed sculptures depicting "The Nurse of the Child King", which is a Catalan children's story. It's, if I remember correctly, about a nurse who cares for the prince but wakes up to find him dead. She then does several things to gain God's favor so he'd help her. Depending on the version being told, the prince either ends up alive or dead. Lleo i Morero chose this theme to honor his second child who died not long after birth.

The reception area of the house where you can see the nurse and the prince:

At the other, more-private end of the house is another of the highlights, a stained glass atrium and sitting area. Beyond the glass wall is a large outdoor patio.

As we were just about to head out, the guide pointed out a section of wall where the tile mural had been left unfinished due to a large piece of furniture blocking access. If you look at the photo below, you'll see blue-and-white tiles just above the wood-paneled wall. It's really not that big of a deal but it reminded me that, no matter what job you're doing, it's the details that really matter. After all these years, what's noticeable is the tiny part the artist didn't finish...

Oh, and Diana pointed out that the repair job was a bit Ecce Homo. I loved the analogy and am laughing even now while writing this. Remember kids, details.

I'm constantly amazed at how many things there are still to see in such a relatively small city. If you haven't been here yet, get on it!

Modernist-Era Bar Crawl

Like most cities, Barcelona is divided into a bunch of different neighborhoods (districts), each of which developed at some point during the city's approximately 2000 year history. There are newer, semi-suburban areas like Vall d'Hebron. Places that used to be different towns, like Gracia. And many more. Each has its own feel and, for many, a typical architectural style that matches when they were built up.

Probably the most iconic areas are the old city (Ciutat Vella), which dates from even before Roman times, and the Eixample, which grew during the 1888 Barcelona Universal Exposition era. The Eixample in particular is known for its many Modernist-style buildings, which include famous building like Casa Batllo and La Pedrera among thousands more. (Oh, and in case you haven't been here or aren't familiar, Modernism is what Art Nouveau is called in Barcelona.)

One district that's not as well known for Modernist-era buildings is the Raval. This neighborhood developed just outside (or, to the left of) Barcelona's second, "newer" city wall, which ran down where La Rambla is today between the older Gothic and newer Poble Sec neighborhoods.

So when we recently found a Friday night Modernist tour and Raval bar crawl in a locals-only discount pack, we couldn't resist.

The Raval has always been working-class and, more recently, a bit hippy/artsy. It was (is?) known as Barcelona's red-light district complete with bordellos, sketchy drinking establishments, dance halls like La Paloma below, and other places you'd prefer your teenage daughter not go.

Many of these businesses developed as people began to have the time and money to eat and drink outside the house. Stuff we take for granted, such as restaurants and bars, didn't become "a thing" until the mid-1800s. The nearby Rambla and Passeig de Gracia are probably the best examples of this societal change in Barcelona.

Even today, I'd venture a guess that the vast majority of Barcelona natives rarely go to the Raval. It's still has a somewhat-bad reputation and remains, well, let's say, a bit "rough". One of our stops was at the Bar Mariella, which is located right in the mix of what gives the Raval its reputation. An old artist-and-absinthe place, it bills itself as the oldest continuously-operating bar in Barcelona.

Like pretty much every other bar in Europe, Hemingway used to hang out here (that guy got around!) as did a bunch of other famous folks in their day. Who knows if that was/is the case, but today it seems to be mostly drunken students and tourists. It's intentionally un-renovated complete with peeling paint, black sticky muck on the "decorative" liquor bottles, and a flavor you can, umm, taste when you walk through the door.

The tour included a drink of our choice at the last bar we visited, the London Bar, which is just up from Palau Guell. I, of course, opted for the absinthe, which included getting to watch the dramatic preparation process.

Absinthe, if you haven't had one, is something like a flaming Jagermeister. Here's a video of the preparation:

Even after living in Barcelona this long, I am still learning so much about the city's history, which our excellent guide brought to life. Now, onto the next tour!

Finca Guell (Guell Estate)

I've lived in Barcelona on and off for just about five-and-a-half years now and full time since we moved back from Germany three years ago. For pretty much the whole time, Diana and I have been trying to visit the Finca Guell (something like Guell Estate or Farm in English). Like lots of other places with the Guell name (like this, that, and another), this one was designed by Gaudi.

I had pretty much given up as, seriously, we'd gone there I can't tell you how many times and it was closed, or had just closed, or was never open, or who knows what... Here's a photo of me being attacked by the front-gate's Gaudi-designed dragon during my first visit just over five years ago...

Diana and I, against my better (and overly-pessimistic) judgement, decided to try again, this time using a locals-only 50-percent-off summer-discount ticket. Well, finally, after what seemed like a lifetime, it was to be the day. We got there and...the gate was not only unlocked but...actually staffed...by an actual human...actually selling tickets!!!

The original property was fairly large and what's in these photos is basically the property's back door near where they kept the horses. The rest is now the Palau Reial (where the Spanish royal family stayed when visiting Barcelona), the big Avenida Diagonal, and a university.

La finca, built between 1884 and 1887, was one of Gaudi's first projects for Guell and the stables are one of the largest things that remains. Classic Gaudi touches include the catenary-arch door and the tile-covered cupola:

The stable doesn't look particularly big but, step inside, and it's surprising how much space there is. As you can probably tell in the photo below, they haven't over-renovated the property and, other than this building (and the front gate), there's not much to see (which is probably partly why it's only a few euros to get in...if you manage to get in).

The rest of the grounds, which basically cover a large city block, is park-like reflecting the original Garden-of-Hesperides design.

The Garden of Hesperides is a Greek myth about a garden located somewhere on the Iberian peninsula (where Spain and Portugal are). Legend says that a golden-apple tree grew there and, when eaten, the apples granted immortality. But, the Hesperides, who were nymphs (of course), sometimes ate the apples themselves when they were only to care for the tree. So the god whose garden it was introduced a hundred-headed dragon to act as a guard, thus the gate. My take on the story is a warning against how some (most?) companies introduce complex rules and policies rather than directly address problem individuals...but I digress.

Unfortunately, we didn't see the hundred-headed dragon the day we were there. It is possible, though, that the dragon is there during other parts of the year but, since it was August and all of Spain is on vacation, maybe the dragon was too.

With the dragon a no-show, the surprise find of the tour was this old crane. I took a photo but didn't think much of it until I saw a photo inside the stable showing people building La Pedrera using this exact piece of equipment.

...and a close-up...

Yeah, if you can tell, after all the waiting and trying, the Finca Guell was just okay (Yes, I know, maybe I'm too spoiled by all the great things to see in Barcelona!). But the gate, which you can see from outside is awesome and I did enjoy learning about the Hesperides story.

Five years later and, this time, full of golden apples...