International photojournalism exhibition in Barcelona

World Press Photo 2010
International professional photojournalism exhibition



Photographic Social Vision presents for the sixth consecutive year the exhibit World Press Photo to the Barcelona public. The traveling exhibit, which reached 35,000 visitors in Barcelona in 2009, is considered worldwide to be the most important in photojournalism because of the quality of photography and the debate and criticism that the presented work generates. It provides an occasiontosee the social, political, cultural and sport-related events from the last year through the eyes of the current best photojournalists, at the same time that it gives these photojournalists the opportunity to present work frequently censured by governments and the media.

The winning photograph from the current edition, from the Italian Pietro Masturzo, immortalizes the women on the roofs of apartment buildings in Tehran protesting the presidential election results in June, 2009. It is a suggestive image that invites the viewer to discover the story behind it slowly, even though as the author confesses, it was not easy to get published given the reticence of Italian and international editors. It is a story often repeated by other photographers in the exhibit.


The 170 winning photos in the contest enable the public to be informed about the state of the world. The show stands out for its esthetic excellence, informative quality, sensitivity and honesty.

In the words of Silvia Omedes, Director of Photographic Social Vision, “Our foundation celebrates the consolidation of the exhibit in the cultural calendar of Barcelona because it demonstrates the growing public interest in alternative sources of information.”

For yet another year, the international independent jury formed of 19 members has chosen the winning images from a vast array of participants including photojournalists, press agencies and newspapers from around the world. In the 2010 edition of World Press Photo, 5,847 photographers participated (among which 195 were Spanish) from 128 countries, with 101,960 images submitted in 10 categories: People in the News, Spot News, General News, Contemporary Issues, Daily Life, Arts and Entertainment, Sports Action, Sports Feature, Nature and Portraits.

Photographic Social Vision, the organizing entity for the exhibit in Barcelona, is a private non-profit foundation that this year is able to bring World Press Photo 2010 to Barcelona through ticket sales, just as it did with the 2009 edition. During the last nine years, the foundation has managed the creation, production and exposition of photojournalist reports and audiovisuals with the objective to inform and create consciousness in society about social realities and problems that receive little attention, and as such encourage public interest in photojournalism. Photographic Social Vision is well known for its coverage of social issues via documentary photography. DOMESTIC, the latest exhibit created and realized by Photographic Social Vision in April of 2010 in the Espai Cultural de Caja Madrid is a clear demonstration of this.

The Dutch foundation World Press Photo has been supporting international photojournalism for more than 50 years, and is the organizer of the most prestigious annual contest for photojournalism. The World Press Photo exhibit is shown annually in more than 80 cities in 40 countries, and is visited by more than 2 million people worldwide. These images educate us, impact us, and above all else they invite us to reflect upon our society. As a result, World Press Photo is an exhibit that communicates values, that generates public opinion year after year through the multiple points of view on surprising and remarkable situations that are selected.


More information: www.photographicsocialvision.org

From 4 November 2010 to 8 December 2010
Opening hours
From Tuesday to Sunday from 11a.m. to 8p.m.
Thusday 11 a.m. at 10 p.m.
Closed on non-holiday Mondays

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Exhibition prices
Price to one exhibition: 4,50€

Combined ticket for two or more exhibitions: 6€ / 4,50€
Concession: 3,40€ non-holiday Wednesdays, senior citizens, students and group visits (minimum 20 persons)
Free admission for under –16s, Friends of the CCCB, holders of the Tarjeta Rosa senior citizens card, the unwaged, members of the ICOM and on the first Wednesday of every month, Thursday from 8 to 10 p.m. and Sunday from 3 p.m. to 8 p.m.

Come to Barcelona to see and admire this exhibition and rent an apartment close to the museum!

Crystal Castles in Barcelona

Crystal Castles @ SALA APOLO
Sunday, November 7th

Price: 20 € / 23 € Time: 19:00

Don't miss the genius electro band, Crystal Castles.
They are playing in Barcelona, this sunday, november 7th.



Here are their story:
In the summer of 2004, Crystal Castles, the duo settled in Ontario and trained by Ethan Kath and Alice Glass, began his career brought to market by a few limited edition singles (which sold out immediately) and playing concerts for people found out by "word of mouth." In 2008, when they released their eponymous album, the duo had already thousands of fans around the world, attracted by the enigma that covered their electronic music and dance, which had an exclusive brand and uncompromising intensity . Received much attention from the media, Crystal Castles appeared in the press with reviews in Spin Magazine, Rolling Stone, Billboard Magazine, NME, Mojo and XLR8R among other international impacts. And that's how the UK public quickly rose to # 3 on NME's list of "50 best albums of the decade." Overcoming the media subgenres of "nu-rave" and "8 bit" prevailing in 2008, Crystal Castles influenced a new generation of electronic artists involved and by no restrictive labels to describe the music or the punk attitude, or electronic noise. During 2008 and 2009 Crystal Castles toured worldwide and will attend again this year during the summer festivals, including Glastonbury and Reading / Leeds, where certain repeated actions as sweeping as his last appearance at the Festival SOS 4.8 of Murcia. Its new and very recent album Crystal Castles II was produced by Ethan Kath in places as diverse as a church in Iceland, a self-built cabin in northern Ontario or in a garage behind a shop "24 hours" abandoned in Detroit . With the band in a moment of creative brilliance, aesthetic nihilism and diversity in their work suggest that the intentions of Crystal Castles and their potential is far greater now than at any previous time. And his concerts, where squander and destroy all their energy and attitude.

Come to Barcelona, and listen to Crystal Castles and much more concerts!

La Castañada, a typical Catalan Holiday

During a stay in one of the great , you will certainly learn about the Castañada. For the past years, Halloween has invaded most big European cities, and Barcelona is not aside of this movement. However, there is also a typical Catalan holiday that takes place during the same period called La Castañada.

La Castañada is a traditional holiday from Catalonia originally celebrated on the day of All Saints but that is more and more celebrated at variable dates around October 31st. Like Halloween in Anglo-Saxon countries, this holiday finds its roots in an old funeral ritual party. During the Castañada, Catalans eat chestnuts, panellets (small round cookies made of marzipan), boniatos (orange sweet spuds) and sweet fruits.

Along with the chestnuts, panellets y boniatos, Catalans usually drink the muscatel, which is a sweet white wine. During this period, you will find many vendors of chestnuts in the streets of Barcelona and other areas of Catalonia who usually offer stewed chestnuts generally wrapped in newsprint.

It also seems that the habit of ingesting very energetic foods during the Castañada comes from before when during All Saints Day ‘eve, friends and relatives of the death were taking care of the corpse alongside with the mortician. Thus, to avoid collapsing, they ate this type of food.

The Castañada is often represented by an old-lady selling chestnuts and dressed with poor clothes.

If you want to learn more about this Catalan tradition or others traditions, come to Barcelona and rent an apartment for this weekend or another one in November!!!

Barcelona International Boat Show

The benchmark show for the nautical sector in Spain is back

The Barcelona International Boat Show, the biggest in Spain and one of the top events of its kind in Europe, will be showcasing all the services, products and innovations in every sector of the nautical industry.

The event marks the start of the annual sales season for exhibitors. During the show, some 70% of all the boat sales in Spain are initiated.

You can’t afford to miss it! From 6 - 14 November 2010 at the Gran Via and Port Vell venues. I want to exhibit.

Innovation Zone, the benchmark for design and R+D+I projects

The Innovation Zone will be showcasing the new projects from design centres, engineering practices and shipyards and featuring some of the most innovative ideas for the nautical industry. This is a great opportunity to discover the latest trends in new technological developments.
Organized by: Innovamar.

Fun Beach, revealing the secrets of the sea

To be a good sailor, you need to know the secrets of the sea. And there’s no better way of learning them than by paying a visit to this zone, aimed primarily at young people, where they can set sail in the dedicated pool on canoes, kayaks and dinghies.

Traditional Sailing, a homage to our historical heritage

‘Sea wolves’ and fishermen recount their stories, sharing space with artisans building boats in the traditional way, with a backdrop of schooners, dornas and other traditional wooden fishing boats. You can also join in workshops, view exhibitions, listen to performances and taste some typical seafaring tapas.

Looking for an accommodation in Barcelona during the Boat Show ??
Visit TOP BARCELONA APARTMENTS
**** Special discounts if you mention that you find the web in our blog!!

HALLOWEEN PARTY IN BARCELONA 2010

Event date: Saturday 30 October 2010 (technically 31st of October, but most parties will be on 30th this year)
Event location: Many clubs and hotels in Barcelona organise Halloween parties



The Halloween tradition is celebrated in Spain and Barcelona in much the same way as in other European cities with Halloween fancy dress parties featuring all manner of ghouls, ghosts, witches and zombies having a fine old time. Check out the parties at Shoko , Monasterio and for an upmarket party try Hotel Casa Fuster. For other top clubs in town that will probably have Halloween themes tonight visit our Barcelona clubbing section. A fun new Mexican tradtion started in Barcelona a few years back called Ruta de Altares, where you can visit different "El Día de Muertos" (Day of the Dead) alters in 19 bars, shops and galleries around Barcelona in memory of the recently departed. Visit http://www.rutadealtares.org for more information.

The 1st November is a public holiday in Spain called "Todos los Santos" (All Saints). On this day you can enjoy the Catalan tradition called La Castanyada and also on all Saints' Day it is a tradition to attend church services in honor of Catholic saints and martyrs and to visit family graves and place flowers, wreaths and candles. The cemeteries in Barcelona have longer opening hours during Halloween weekend from 08.00 until 18.00 and you will see special flower stalls at the gates.

The Origins of Halloween
Although the modern Halloween is based on traditions from the USA, the origins of Halloween can actually be found in Celtic Britain. The Celts lived in the British Isles during ancient times and worshipped the gods of nature. There were two important festivals in the Celtic calendar, Beltane and Samhain. Samhain was pronounced something like "Sow-win," which might be origin for the modern word Halloween. Beltane celebrated the beginning of summer and Samhain the start of winter, and was the first day of the year on the Celtic calendar. The festival of Samhain started on October 31 and finished on November 1. The Celts were afraid of winter because the days were short and cold, and the nights were very long. and they associated winter with death and evil spirits.

The Celts believed that on the night of October 31 the spirits of the dead rose from the tombs and they made big fires to frighten the ghosts off. They also wore scary costumes and played games on October 31 to bring good luck in the year. Nuts and apples were eaten as these were considered lucky food. The colors of Halloween are also of Celtic origin. Black was the colour of winter and long nights. Orange was the colour of the harvest. The black cat is another symbol of Halloween. The Celts believed that the black cat had special powers.

Come in Barcelona right now in order to discover the city and then to do parties for the Halloween night!!!And rent an apartment with your friends!!

International Fantastic Film Festival of Catalonia from October 7th to 17th

SITGES International Fantastic Film Festival of Catalonia is the number one fantasy film festival in the world and represents, at the same time, the cultural expression with the most media impact in Catalonia. With a solid experience, the Sitges Festival is a stimulating universe of encounters, exhibitions, presentations and screenings of fantasy films from all over the world.

Born in 1968 as the 1st International Week of Fantasy and Horror Movies, today the Festival is an essential rendezvous for movie lovers and audiences eager to come into contact with new tendencies and technologies applied to film and the audiovisual world.
Sitges’ status as the number one fantasy film festival in the world allows it to receive visits from top-level movie stars, directors and producers like Quentin Tarantino, Sir Anthony Hopkins, Jodie Foster, Paul Verhoeven, Ralph Fiennes, George A. Romero, Cameron Diaz, Viggo Mortensen, Terry Gilliam, Rutger Hauer, Sarah Michelle Gellar, John Landis, Joe Dante, Zoë Bell, Dino de Laurentii, Takashi Miike, Wim Wenders, Tony Curtis, David Cronenberg, Vanessa Redgrave, Darren Aronofsky, Brad Dourif, John McNaughton, Peter Greenaway, John Woo, Park Chan-Wook, Johnnie To, Paul Naschy, Ray Liotta, Jon Voight, Sam Raimi, Robert Englund, Tarsem Singh, Roger Corman, Mira Sorvino, Santiago Segura, Narciso Ibáñez Serrador, Guillermo del Toro, Kim Ki Duk, Álex de la Iglesia, Aitana Sánchez Gijón, among others from the long list of people who, year after year, are a media attraction. The Festival is governed by a Foundation, made up of representatives from the Sitges Town Council, the Generalitat de Catalunya (Catalonia’s autonomous government) and other institutions, associations and public and private companies.

Most of its resources come from the sponsors, companies and collaborating institutions that consider their alliance to the Festival to be an excellent platform for widening their scope and branding.

If you don't want to miss this huge festival and all is horror films, Come to see us and rent an apartment!!!

The Pope Benedict XVI in Barcelona in November 7th

As you probably already know, Pope Benedict XVI will be paying an official visit to Barcelona on the 7th of November where he will be celebrating mass in the Sagrada Familia Cathedral. The Pope will be blessing the Cathedral and the altar. Once the Sagrada Familia, the Cathedral that Antoni Gaudí designed, has been blessed, it will be designated a basilica for its monumental and artistic features by the Pope himself.

This is a once in a lifetime opportunity for faithful churchgoers to take to the streets and show their devotion via the itinerary that will span the different streets of Barcelona.

His first visit in Spain will be in Santiago de Compostela, after which he will be travelling to Barcelona where he will arrive on the 6th of November. During his visit to the city, he will be staying at the archbishopric and will be escorted to the Sagrada Familia by an entourage where the consecration of the Cathedral will be taking place. The Pope will make the journey to the Sagrada Familia in the Popemobile and will be making a detour beforehand round the Cathedral so he can greet his faithful followers already gathered there.

Following the consecration of the Cathedral, Benedict XVI will be celebrating the Eucharist before the Kings of Spain and once all this has been done, the Ángelus will be recited from the Sagrada Familia`s façade of the birth of Christ.

The Sagrada Familia has a 9,000 person capacity, but for security reasons only 7,500 people will be allowed to enter and celebrate mass inside the Cathedral. However, those faithful followers that have congregated outside the Sagrada Familia can follow the homily thanks to the gigantic screens and chairs that will be placed in the streets and the plazas adjacent.



In the afternoon, the Pope will be visiting the Nen Déu en Guinardó Institute, where religious Franciscans will be looking after down-syndrome children and other disabled children. Meanwhile the Pope will be chatting with families and carers, and will receive a present from the children.

For security reasons, the Sagrada Familia`s doors will be closed a few days prior to the Pope’s visit.

I am sure you will not miss these event!! Then we propose you to rent an apartment for you and your family which is really much cheaper than an hotel. Barcelona is full of apartments for rent, so don't hesitate!!! Come to our beautiful city to visit the Pope visit!!!