A Little Background
Who am I? And what qualifies me to tell you what’s great about Barcelona?
In a world of self-appointed internet experts, this is probably the first question anyone looking for information online should ask.
Short version: Most of my career has been spent in the magazine business, mostly with so-called ‘lifestyle’ titles. I’ve written and taken photographs for magazines around the world. I’ve done the junkets, and I know how that industry works.
I’m here, in part, because Spain Tourism brought me here on a junket. I wondered how a place with this much culture and history could be so underpriced. It also has amazing wine and gastronomy and is still cheaper compared with its neighbours.
I pay my own way these days.
And wear too many clothes to be a social media influenza.
Like influencers, too many lifestyle magazines earned themselves well-deserved reputations for providing unqualified recommendations that are bought. Not all of them are guilty, but an awful lot are.
Even the better ones tend to equate new with better. This means they’re recommending the latest, most happening place in any destination. Often it’s the place with the biggest marketing budget. Old and established isn’t newsworthy.
But what if old and established is actually good?
Even 1.5 decades after Instagram launched we’re still suckers for pretty things, as opposed to things with substance. Sometimes I wonder whether we deserve better (maybe we don’t).
But we can do better.
What do I know about Barcelona?
That’s also a good question. And I’m going to come out now and say I don’t actually live here.
Before you go, let me explain why I think that is an advantage.
Firstly, because it makes me like you. I want to enjoy my limited time in the city as much as possible. My limited time may be three to six months a year, but it’s still limited.
As I write this, I’m six weeks into a 10-week stay. I am worried I’m not going to get to everything I want to do.
And also, like most visitors, I arrive with a list of stuff to see and do.
Where you live, you’ve got the stuff you like close to home. You stick to that. Maybe you’ll try that new restaurant across town next month. It’s human nature.
And having lived as an expat for more than two decades, I have a particular habit. I take visitors to different restaurants than I normally frequent in my adopted home. Tells you something, I guess.
I eat all sorts of cuisine from around the world where I live. But in Barcelona my focus is on Spanish food. Why eat Asian food here, when I can do that (probably a lot better) at home?
What sort of egotist would I have to be to do a whole website like this?
Yeah, I’ll admit that’s a good question. The simple answer is that I bought an apartment here with a friend in 2015. After that, I started this site as a guide for friends and family who may come and visit. It just grew from there.
It’s not a job, it’s a labour of love. Love for what I do. And love for Barcelona. Like all cities it has its faults, but I really do love it here.
And I hope you do too.
Money Matters
As an Agoda partner I make a small commission if you book on Agoda through this site. So go for it! I’ve used Agoda for years, and have always been happy with the service and found the pricing to be competitive.