Guide for Surviving Office Work During Summer.

09/07/2018

Summer Office Survival Guide.

Our Ghost Writer has already set us up with how to acquire a job in Barcelona (Link), so let’s stick with the topic and check out how to keep up your place during the summer heat.

Nobody really likes office work in the summer, but there’s always one rebel who has decided to take holidays at another time. During the summer holidays the change of personnel is especially frequent, although getting fired can be hard (and believe me, many desire that more than anything). When all your friends are having holidays, how do you cope and mentally survive the mind numbing office environment?

1. Be late accordingly

When you arrive late to the office, don’t say anything to anyone. Especially don’t mention it to your supervisor. If you are questioned because of your lateness, always blame it on the phone system or computer. Keep your lateness between 15 to 45 minutes. If you are late because of last night’s beach party, it is best to have a little hangover fixer before entering an office. I recommend good old carajillo, black coffee with a dash of cognac.

2. Manage your time off from your desk

Make the small breaks count. Whenever you are walking to get water, going to the bathroom or just dodging your tasks in general, always take the longest route. Go to the bathroom on another floor or at least the one that’s further away from your desk. Remember to drink a lot of water, so you can go to the bathroom as many times as possible. Make the number two count, if you know what I mean. Use handicap toilets for privacy – and don’t rush yourself!

3. First break

A basic rule is that you should never use your first break to go to the bathroom. Always do that before or after the actual break. This way you have an extra 20 minutes to use, if you are lucky. Usually the first official break should be 20 minutes, but try to make stretch it at least for 10 minutes more. When late, blame the elevators, gates, receptionist… Oh, and with a hangover, remember to drink! A cold beer is a good option.

4. Lunch – Operation Winelord

Now, this is important. Choose a lunch place that is not too far or too close to your office (5-10 minutes walk should be fine). At this point you should have already scouted-out which restaurants your bosses like to eat. Steer clear of those places. The restaurant should have relatively fast service and cheap wine. Always remember to ask the camarero/a to substitute your coffee/dessert for alcohol. Make sure that at least one drink is also included in the menu. Your target should be to drink at least three glasses of wine during lunch. Testing has shown that after 3 beverages you already get a little buzz going. With 6 – 8 beverages you can still see your computer screen and not stutter too badly. The weight of the world should have left your shoulders after 10 beverages. Oh, and remember to eat too…

5. Second break – Don’t watch it crash!

It is very important to stay awake and to maintain your energy levels. Dirty jokes with your colleagues work the best. Make note that a rowdy lunch can make you louder than you actually realise. A good trick is to channel that energy into things that *look like* working instead of *actually* working. Try to put-off having the last break for as long as possible without collapsing at your desk. Then spurt to the bar downstairs and re-juice yourself with either Jägermeister or delicious G&T. If you have flown under the radar, make it a double.

6. Leaving early

With this, you have to be a little tech savvy. Many offices have time management software that violate your privacy and make dodging work that much harder. But there is a useful trick. You can close all the other programs (besides the time management software) and set up and Automated Shut Down (Link), which kills your computer at a certain hour of your choice. Even if your boss gets all Sherlock, he/she will still notice that you logged out of the system at the appropriate time.

7. Off work activities

Remember not to rush straight home, even though you might feel like taking a nap. After a victorious day of blanking, flanking, dodging and ducking work (and drinking), the best way to unwind is to share and compare these victorious events with your trusted colleagues. Do it in the closest bar to your office, but be careful of prying eyes and ears.

Following these steps daily, you can start your own little Hunter S Thompson-summer Barcelona style.

Proofreading by Zeno Yadda Yadda

Why was the dualism of Good and Evil of the Cathars threatening the Roman Catholic Church?

Griselda Lozano

07/07/2018

The dualism of good and evil.

Catharism was one of several religious movements that emerged during the Middle Ages becoming deeply rooted in Occitania and threatening the foundations of Roman Catholicism.

The guiding ideal of the Cathars was to return Christianity to its primitive origins and, seeking to counter the opulent worldliness of the Catholic Church. This Christian reform movement won widespread social acceptance from the tenth to the thirteenth centuries. However, Catharism contains certain pagan reminiscences, most notably of a Gnostic and Manichaeist provenance, which influenced its interpretation of the New Testament.

Cat-worshipping Satanists?

Much has been written about the etymology of the word. Most scholars, if they accept that the term is legitimate, which some do not as it is noticeably absent from most of the extant medieval documentation, claim that its origin is probably in the Greek New Testament καθαροί (‘the pure ones’); others have claimed that it was a derogatory term derived from the low Latin cattus (‘cat’) or even the German ketzer, apparently denoting cat-worshipping Satanists.

These Christians were convinced that there was not one God but two gods diametrically opposed one to the other. The good god was the creator of spiritual reality, whereas the the evil god was the author of material reality contaminated by sin. The theology of Catharism was dualistic, and most scholars accept it took two forms, absolute and mitigated dualism (the latter being more easily reconcilable with orthodox Christian theology).

The Devil was responsible for the creation of material world

Cathars believed that the Kingdom of God was not this world. They were convinced that the good God was the creator of heavens and souls and, on the contrary, the evil God, or the Devil, was responsible for the creation of the material world, wars and also the Catholic Church.
Some scholars might argue that they did not believe in the incarnation of the Son of God, since they regarded Jesus Christ as a concept that showed the way to perfection. They defended the idea that a good God would never allow his son to incarnate in material form and, in this sense, pointed to the Old Testament God as the Devil himself and consequently rejected his teachings as well as the dogma of the Trinity and the concept of Hell.

Escaping the veil of the material world

The Cathars, like Plato and the Vedic scholars, believed that earthly life was simply a place of transit through which pure souls wrapped in a material body are reincarnated again and again until they attain the purity of being able to glimpse the Divinity, which is the only means of escaping the veil of the material world and of rising to immaterial Paradise. But for this, it is necessary to lead an ascetic life and renounce material pleasures that the the work of Satan provides.

They denied the validity of Baptism because water is a material element and therefore impure. They denied the value of sex for the purpose of procreation, since they considered it a grave error to bring a pure soul into this material world. And, for the same reason, they also refused to eat food deriving from sexual reproduction, including all meat, eggs and dairy products. Fish were exempt, since they thought that fish reproduced asexually.

Cathars cared for the most vulnerable people in society

These strict rules were only fulfilled by the Perfects, the spiritual leaders of the Cathar communities. In practice, few believers actually followed the doctrines strictly. Therefore, they were divided into two groups: ordinary believers (credentes), and spiritual leaders (perfecti). However, in spite of their rites, beliefs and radical way of understanding the faith, it was the Cathars who welcomed and cared for the most vulnerable people in society (poor, widows, orphaned children, etc.) by promoting gender equality between men and women.

Respected and appreciated by civil society, they translated the Sacred Scriptures from Latin into the Occitan language, the vernacular tongue of their parishioners. In addition, they taught orphans literacy skills while instructing them in the basic tenets of the Cathar faith such as nonviolence and the importance of honesty, which they considered the highest value of respect in a society. In fact, the honesty of the Cathars became proverbial, and all strata of society entrusted their money to them. They, in turn, lent usually to other less favoured citizens to set themselves in a trade and get out of misery, or to anyone who wanted to dedicate themselves to the arts or make progress in the field of learning and letters. The money loaned had to be returned little by little to serve others who needed it. The Cathars created the first European ethical banking system.

Occitania was declared a land contaminated by heresy.

They also contributed to making Occitània most splendid in the cultural, scientific and political spheres of Medieval Europe. However, the fact that they did not practise usury did not please those who did and over time this added to the threat posed by Cathar political and economic systems. This situation contributed an additional external motive for the persecution of the Cathars as heretics and consequently, Occitania was declared a land contaminated by heresy. The first to try to contain the advances of the Cathar faith was Pope Innocent III, who unleashed a crusade of Christians against Christians in those lands. Later, the interests of the king of France would be added, who seized the opportunity to annex to his small kingdom the extensive and rich lands of the Midi.

Persecuted, condemned and systematically executed until their extinction, with the fall of the Cathars fell beautiful Occitania devastated, razed to the ground and ravished, with her people subjected to genocide for their valiant attempt to defend tolerance and the freedom of ideas, putting people’s lives before religious beliefs . Surprisingly, most Occitans remained Catholics and disagreed with that Cathar duality of good and evil, especially with the concept that the world was the work of Satan. Nevertheless large sections of the Occitan nation were willing to die to defend the rights of the believers.

Shame at the crimes committed against the Occitans

In the midst of the apocalyptic vision of the Holy Roman Inquisition, we must assume that Catholics felt a deep sense of shame at the crimes committed in their name against the Occitans. At the same perhaps not a few of them wondered whether it was not Satan himself the only God capable of being worshipped by a world fuelled by violent fundamentalisms. The only purpose of religious fundamentalism is to remove our fragile souls away from the consciousness that guides us to Paradise, where lives and freedoms are respected.

#Òc

Do you know how the drug business works in Barcelona?

Iuca Drap

26/02/2018

Welcome to the Monkey House! An underground report of the street drugs in Barcelona.

All of us who live in Barcelona know that there are a lot of drugs on the streets. Spaniards consume the most cocaine in the EU (EU drugs report from 2012) and for a teenager it’s easier to get drugs from the streets than a bottle of rum or a pack of cigarettes.

“Hashcokeextacyhashcokeextacy” is the sales pitch that everyone has heard in the center of the city, but do you know how the drug business works and where the stuff comes from? Here is an inside story straight from the Monkey House.

My Man

A few days back, “I was waiting for my man” (a reference to the legendary Velvet Underground song) at Plaza del Tripi located in the Gothic Quarter in the heart of Barcelona. I had made an appointment with George, a local drug dealer, who had agreed to show me the tricks of the trade.

George is a handsome and normal looking guy. He is smiley, polite and extremely talkative, and insisted that he doesn’t use the stuff that he sells. “It’s just a job”, he said. “If I used drugs, they wouldn’t let me do what I do. Drug addicts are the most unreliable dealers – I’m sure you know what I mean”.

Me and George decided to walk to a small shop to buy some beers and chat for a while to break the ice. While we were drinking he started to explain: “You have to have an eye for the right customers. The first rule is never to sell drugs to teenage beginners, even if they offer to pay you double – that’s when you’ll get into trouble. The teenagers will overdose or they’ll rat you out to the police if they get busted”. Then he looked at me and said, “You could be a really good customer”. I took it as a compliment.

He claimed that he chooses his targets carefully. The people having fun in bars or the ones smoking outside are the easiest targets. He’ll just have a chat with them, and if the situation is clear, he closes the deal.

The Base

While we were drinking our beers, George phoned the “Base”. The Base is where the stuff is stored, where the drugs are cut, weighted, and where the street dealers collect the merchandise for the customers.

We had to walk just 5 minutes from the Plaza to a house with heavy iron gates. George knocked 3 times and an armed guy opened the door.

Inside The Base there were two guys with guns. I recognized one gun as a .38 automatic. George said we should go further inside. The place was huge. The guards with guns were sitting alone on one side of the room, which was about 70 m². Ignoring them, we went straight through to the end of the room. On the left side, there were sofas to hang out, and a really cute girl who was injecting heroin… I thought to myself: “Welcome to heaven and to hell.”

The Trusted One

Inside, I met Sandra, who claimed that she was 55 years old but looked much younger. She’s “the trusted one”, and didn’t want talk about her personal life that much. I think she is aware of the risks that she takes, but as I understood the situation, there are not many other options for her.

As an illegal immigrant from South America it’s almost impossible to earn a decent living in Barcelona, and as a mother of three with no social benefits, working with drugs might be the only thing that she can do to survive. And she also makes a point of not taking drugs.

Her job is to weigh the drugs, manage the money for the street dealers, and find new dealers if someone gets caught. While you could buy anything you want in The Base, and I really mean anything, most of Sandra’s time and attention was focused on heroin and coke.

Finally, as I made my way out of the base, the dealers offered me a snort of coke – and I asked them, “If you don’t use drugs, why should I?”.

The names and the places in this article have been changed.

Important Tips How to Avoid and Outsmart Pickpockets in Barcelona

Esa Ennelin

25/02/2018

Barcelona is the pickpocket capital of the World.

Generally speaking, Barcelona is a safe city to visit, but unfortunately it is the pickpocket capital of the world. Sophisticated and hi-tech pickpockets roam around the streets especially in the city center. Here is a collection of important tips how to avoid and outsmart pickpockets during your stay.

On your arrival pay close attention to your luggage at the train, bus and metro station.

Unfortunately, too many arriving visitors get pickpocketed before they even reach to their hotel rooms. The train, bus and metro stations and the entrances to hotels are hot spots for pickpockets and thieves. Pickpockets love arriving tourists, because they carry all their valuable belongings with them. In a new place, just arriving tourists are usually exposed, tired, confused and a bit disoriented.

Newcomers are marked in front of the ticket sales offices and machines. As you pay for your transport, pickpockets are observing where you keep your purse or wallet.

When you arrive, the best way to avoid pickpockets is to book in advance a transfer to your hotel. Also remember to keep your transport tickets and money in separate places. And don’t forget to take out travel insurance.

Tip: “To avoid unnecessary attention, remove your luggage tag after landing.”

Before you hit the streets.

When you have arrived safely into your hotel room, it’s time to plan some precautionary safety preparations.

Before you go out, leave all your valuables in your hotel room. For example, your laptop is much safer in your room than inside your bag-bag on the streets. Don’t leave your camera or tablet in plain view. Hide your valuable belongings out of sight. If you want more safety, lock your stuff inside the safety box or behind the hotels front desk.

Separate your money. Always make sure to keep your money at least in two different places. If you use more than one credit card, leave the others inside your room. In case your credit card gets stolen or lost, keep a copy of the overseas emergency number of your bank.

If you are planning a “Wild Night” in Barcelona, a great tip is to emulate the dress code of local people. Standing as a tourist out from the crowd, you are an easier prey for the thieves.

Tip: “Spanish law requires you to carry an ID. But a photocopy of your passport or ID card is usually enough.”

Pick pockets and scam merchants often work in groups

Pickpockets hang around in crowded places. They pick up their victims in bars, restaurants, shopping streets and escalators.

When you enter in a crowded place, hold your one hand on top of your bag and protect your mobile phone or wallet with your other hand. The safest place for your bag is against your chest.

Do not give money to beggars. If you do, keep some small change in a separate pocket or purse so that the thieves can’t detect where you hide your real money.

When you sit at the terrace, keep your bag always in front of you or on your lap. If you leave your bag on the ground keep it between your feet or attached in your body. And, when you pay the bill, don’t count your money in front of everybody.

Watch out for distraction and avoid theft scams. Thieves start their scams with a distraction. Sometimes they surprise you asking for directions. Some of them may drop money or a valuable looking item in front of you. Sometimes they ask for a donation to a charity. The only thing what these scoundrels really want is to find out where you hide your money. It’s a bitter irony that the person who distracted the victim often stays to pretend to help them to find the missing item, although they were the one who helped to take it.

Tip: “Only carry the money you really need for the day.”

ATM – Danger Zone

If you have to withdraw money, try to avoid street side ATM’s. It is easy to find an ATM located inside a bank. Before you tip your pin code, check out that no one is lurking behind your shoulders. Remember always to cover your pin number with your hands.

Precautionary Tip: “Set a limit for your card withdraws.”

During the night pickpockets and scoundrels prefer to choose easy victims.

If you really wish to keep your money and belongings safe, don’t use too much alcohol and other mind-numbing drugs. The abuse of alcohol and recreational drugs diminishes your ability to absorb the stimuli from the world around you. During the night, drunken tourists are the first targets of Barcelona’s notorious pickpockets and small-time thieves. You can always find long queues at Barcelona’s police stations where confused and wasted tourists try to fill out a declaration form of lost or stolen belongings.

“If you decide to celebrate without limits, try to avoid street dealers and prostitutes!”

Brothels are illegal in Barcelona since 1956, but the majority of brothels are loosely disguised as “whiskerías” or “clubs”. After the sunset, street prostitutes and dealers come out to offer their services. Most street prostitutes are inoffensive, but others are really pushy… They come close to your skin trying to find your money by touching your “valuable parts”. Sometimes they roam in groups and it is easy to get surrounded and robbed.

The drug dealers on the street corners are shady characters. For your own safety, do not get in contact with them.

Tip: ”Avoid street prostitutes! There are many safe semi-legal clubs specialized in all kinds of sexual pleasure in Barcelona.”

What to do if you get robbed?

Finally, if you lose your wallet, purse or bag, keep calm and a level head. Although you are pissed, please do not get angry. It just makes things more complicated.

It is better to act immediately. Find out and write a list of what was stolen. Go to the nearest police station and file a police report. You need it if you want to get back some refund from your insurance company. In the main police stations they give necessary phone numbers if needed and a telephone to make a call to your credit card agency.

If you lost your passport or ID card contact your airline in order to find out whether they will require a temporary passport for your return flight.

Locations of Police Stations in Barcelona

Main Police Station:

Comisaria de Policia de Barcelona (Ciutat Vella)

Carrer Nou de la Rambla, 76-80

08001

Barcelona, Spain

Metro Police Station:

The police station for the passengers is located within the Plaza Catalunya metro station.

The Satirical Tabarnia Movement is Reflecting a Democracy in Crisis

Esa Ennelin

23/01/2018

barcelona is not catalonia — Barcelona is not Catalonia

An ironic introduction of Tabarnia

“What is Tabarnia?” – is the question that most people have asked themselves after last month’s Twitterstorm. The word ‘Tabarnia’ has been trending for weeks on social media in Spain and especially in Barcelona. Even the political leaders from different parties in Spain have stated their opinion about Tabarnia. Now also international newspapers like the Guardian and the New York Times are getting interested in it.

Because I am not an expert on Tabarnia, I decided to dig a little deeper into the subject. Here is what I found.

A satirical political project?

According to Wikipedia Tabarnia is a satirical political project seeking a referendum to create a new autonomous community that would remain part of Spain if Catalonia somehow becomes independent. Tabarnia is a combination of the names of Catalonia’s two main cities on the Mediterranean coast – Tarragona and Barcelona.

flag tabarnia — The Official Flag of Tabarnia

The idea of Tabarnia was born in 2012 with the platform “Barcelona is not Catalonia”. The movement was formed by professionals, among them teachers, small businessmen and historians concerned about seeing Barcelona involved in an independence process deeply negative for their interests.

Catalonia robs Tabarnia

Supporters of Tabarnia are trying to distance themselves from the Catalan separatist movement, because in the metropolitan area of Barcelona the support for separatism from Spain is lower than in the countryside. Also, under the current electoral law, in the province of Barcelona 48.521 votes are needed to choose one representative in the Catalan Parlament for the 20.915 votes needed in Lleida, resulting in a 2.3 ratio. Tarragona requires 31.317 votes and Girona 30.048.

Tabarnians use same types of arguments in their propaganda as the Catalan pro-independence counterparts. “Tabarnia is not Catalonia” rings similar as “Catalonia is not Spain”.

Catalan separatists have used an interpretation of economic facts to argue they have an unfavorable finance balance towards the rest of Spain. In the same way, Tabarnians argue that Tarragona’s and Barcelona’s under-representation in the Catalan Parliament has resulted in an unfavorable finance balance towards their region. The Tabarnians back up their arguments with a similar interpretation of economic data as the Catalan separatists.

In their manifesto they argue that “It is not logical or reasonable that the Generalitat collects in Barcelona’s metropolitan area 87% of its overall revenue and only invests back 59% of the collected money”. They also attack the corrupt Catalan Government, arguing that bad politics has accumulated a multi-million Euro debt of the Generalitat with the city of Barcelona.

Even history can justify their existence: The County of Barcelona, during the Middle Ages, had a similar territory to the one proposed by Tabarnians, today.

Fictional nonsense

Especially the supporters of the Catalan independence movement are quick to criticize the Tabarnia movement as fictional nonsense. But it seems obvious that they face a reflection of their own populist demands and arguments.

The main difference with these two separatist movements is that the Tabarnians are not trying to act against the Spanish constitution as the Catalan separatists did during the unilateral independence referendum and the failed declaration of independence. Tabarnians argue that a declaration of a new autonomous region inside Catalonia is legally plausible under the current constitution.

“We will go as far as the Catalan independence supporters have gone,” said Jaume Vives, a spokesman for Tabania. “Tabarnia will become secessionism’s nightmare just as they have become ours. We are a side-effect of the process. We are multicultural, free, Spanish and European.” Link

As the movement gets more followers in social media, the fictional Catalan region has appointed a 74-year-old theater director Albert Boadella for its first President. The new president abandoned Barcelona to Madrid over 10 years ago claiming that his work was being boycotted by Catalan nationalists. He did his first appearance through a video link, the same way as Carles Puigdemont who is trying to rule Catalan Parliament through video screen from Brussels.

From fiction to reality

The great thing about the Tabarnia movement is that it has brought some humor in to the bitter and divided Catalan politics. It clearly reveals some of the weaknesses in the arguments of Catalan independence supporters.

But a movement that started with irony is now becoming a reality. In Change.org there is a petition going on, where the Tabarnians are demanding from the congress of the deputies the right to decide to be a new autonomous community within Spain and independent of Catalonia. The petition has collected already more than 276 000 signatures of the required 300 000.

There is a clear warning for the Catalan Separatists that populism in political debate can lead to strange outcomes and counter movements. The petition and the movement itself is also reflecting the democratic crisis and the standstill in Catalan politics.

The Yellow Ribbon is a Polemic Symbol in Catalonia and South Korea

Esa Ennelin

05/01/2018

Did you know that yellow ribbon is a symbol of division and unity both in Catalonia and South Korea?

The yellow ribbon is used for various symbolic purposes all over the world. But there are only two countries – Catalonia and South Korea – where yellow ribbons are used as decorative objects on a massive scale. Big and tiny yellow ribbons dangle from people’s backpacks, wallets, bicycles, on the windowsills of small cafés, church walls, town halls and lampposts.

Symbol of ‘political prisoners’ in Catalonia

In Catalonia, yellow ribbons began to be used in late October 2017 by the Catalan independence movement as a symbol of solidarity with the leaders of two secessionist organizations, ANC and Òmnium Cultural, (Jordi Cuixart and Jordi Sànchez).

Spain’s state prosecutor is seeking to punish the duo for encouraging civil disobedience (sedition) prior to the ‘referendum’ held on 1 October 2017. On 2 November 2017, also other senior Catalan separatist politicians were placed in preventive custody with charges of sedition and rebellion.

town hall calella — Image: Ilona Ennelin

Sewol and ‘comfort women’ in South Korea

In South Korea, yellow ribbon was first just a symbol of the Sewol incident, a ferry disaster that killed 304 passengers almost four years ago. Now, the use of yellow ribbons has spread also in a row of over ‘comfort women´ forced to work in Japan’s wartime brothels during the Second World War.

The comfort women issue has been a regular cause for contention between Japan, China, North and South Korea since the war. Japan colonized the Korean peninsula between 1910 and 1945 and occupied parts of China. Today there is a diplomatic quarreler going on over a ‘comfort woman’ statue decorated with yellow ribbons. It is placed just in front of the Japanese Embassy in Seoul. Japan is demanding the removal of this polemic statue, but the South Koreans have responded by placing more of these statues all over their country.

A symbol of division and unity

In Catalonia and South Korea, the yellow ribbon is as much a symbol of division as unity. It’s a testament to how politicized the popular movements have become. Unfortunately the yellow ribbon has become a polarizing symbol that’s dividing the Catalan society.

In South Korea, yellow ribbon is dividing the political left and right. To one side it is a symbol of political corruption. For the other side it symbolizes injustice.

Popular symbol within celebrities

The use of yellow ribbons has also spread to celebrities and football. In Twitter some celebrities have posted tweets with the hashtags #prayforsouthkorea or #prayforcatalonia. FC Seoul, a top local football team, has donated yellow ribbons in their games. Also FC Barcelona icon and Manchester City Manager, Pep Guardiola, pinned a yellow ribbon for several weeks to his jumper in a show of support for imprisoned Catalan politicians.

My favourite places after a month in Barcelona

Sofi goes to Barcelona

13/11/2017

1. Barceloneta beach

Barceloneta beach is a beautiful place with good vibes. In October there can be pretty good waves so if you want, you can practice surfing. Now there is not as much people as in summer months so it’s a nice place just for a hangout.

2. La Maquinista

La Maquinista is outdoor mall in Barcelona. It is the biggest shopping mall in Catalonia. I think that tells enough why I like it. There are many restaurants and over 200 stores. It’s a shopper’s dream.

3. Tibidabo

Tibidabo is a place for all age groups. If you want to get a good exercise, you can just walk up there and if not, there are also train and bus you can take. On top of the hill you can find a Tibitabo Amusement Park. There you can enjoy great views and breathe fresh air.

4. La Rambla

If you want to see more hustle and bustle, go to La Rambla. You can find all kinds of things along the way from stalls to human statues. However, keep your bag close to you because there are a lot of pickpockets.

5. Escribá

Escribá is a coffee shop next to La Rambla. It is not just a coffee shop, it is the coffee shop where you can get the best coffee and croissant you’ve ever had. At least I think so, and I’ve heard that they have won some competitions too.

Spanish and Finnish differences

Sofi goes to Barcelona

08/11/2017

There are so many cultural differences between Finland and Spain. I have seen a few of them while living here. Now, I’m already getting used to this culture, and I like it. Here are some differences that I have noticed.

People

The Spanish people are louder than the Finns. They joke around and laugh a lot. Finns talk quietly with fewer words and seem to be more reserved and usually shy. Maybe it sounds like that Finns don’t laugh or talk with their friends, but that is not the case.

The biggest difference in introducing yourself is probably that in Spain everyone gives a couple of kisses in both cheeks. Sometimes there is a third person who introduces people to each other.

Finns do mostly just a handshake or maybe a hug, and everybody introduces themselves.

I’ve been trying to give handshakes to everyone new while they were trying to give kisses, but now I’ve learned that, and getting used to it.

People in Spain look more open and outward. They seem to do more stuff together. My first impression is that people don’t plan anything beforehand. Here you can go for a coffee at any time with your friends, but Finns have to make a plan and put it on a calendar.

Prices

Well, there is a huge difference in the prices between Spain and Finland. In here almost all the food is cheaper. You can get a great beef for 5 euros, a bottle of wine for 1 euro and 6-pack of beer for 3 euros. I think those were the most important ones, right?

Clothes are kind of the same price category as in Finland but the electricity is more expensive. Because of the lack of heat and easily installed windows, the air gets inside. This is why it is cold inside when it’s cold outside. In Finland, houses are always heated (underfloor heating and even ceiling heating in some houses). The normal indoor temperature is around 23 degrees, even on a -15 degree winter day.

The internet is also more expensive than in Finland. That was one of the things to get used to. A small amount of data in Spain costs the same amount of money than unlimited data in Finland.

However I like it here, so there are some things to get used to when I go back in Finland..

Tip of the day:

Go shopping to La Maquinista. It’s the biggest shopping center in Catalonia. You will find everything you need, and get fresh air at the same time.

Internship in Spain. Working, collecting great memories and experiences

Sofi goes to Barcelona

06/11/2017

About me

I’m 18 years old business student from Finland and I came to work as a trainee in Barcelona. The journey started on 22. of October. First week and a half I was living in Calella and then the trip continued in the center of Barcelona, where I live now with two other students. I don’t speak Spanish yet, but I am going to take some classes and learn.

The first weeks

First thoughts of Calella are very good. Place was beautiful and so nice to live. There’s always something happening, so many beautiful places. Calella feels like everyone is happy all the time.

There was water damage just before I moved in to my house, so the whole time I stayed there I couldn’t use any water. I had to use imagination to get through daily basics. But life would be boring without any problems, right?

31.10 I moved into my flat in Barcelona. The house is nice and in a great location. I really like living in the city and I hope I can experience so much. Now that I’m settled, I can start to work properly and start Spanish course. Hopefully I can get to know many people and learn the language.

Welcome to join my journey!

You can also follow me on my Twitter @sofigoestoBCN, Facebook @sofigoestobarcelona and Instagram @sofigoestobarcelona

The information war in social media is tearing Catalonia apart

Esa Ennelin

19/10/2017

How to fight against the misinformation and propaganda that is dividing Catalan society?

During the last two months I have observed closely how Catalan society is tearing apart into two opposing sides. I have worked hundreds of hours walking around Barcelona taking photos and talking politics with a lot of people. Also, I have participated in demonstrations, protests and passionate debates where citizens born in Catalonia, from both sides of the conflict, have argued bitterly with each other.

I have witnessed how the political climate has been polarised during recent weeks. After the October 1st independence referendum and following the images of police brutality against peaceful voters, the debates between Catalans have become more vicious. A more complicated change happened after the massive October 8th demonstration for the unity of Spain, when the opposition to the independence movement took the streets first time in Barcelona.

“You are ‘forced’ to choose sides. There is no middle ground. I have tried to choose my side for years, but now I can’t because I don’t believe in either of them. I’m really frustrated and tired of the whole situation” – stated one Catalan friend of mine with tears in his eyes.

Here in Catalonia, when a debate boils over, you can really taste the hot Mediterranean temperament. Both sides of the conflict accuse each other of being fascists, undemocratic or corrupt. In recent days I’ve witnessed angry shouts, Nazi gestures, tears, frightened faces and even death threats.

The loss of trust and the 21st century information crisis

We are experiencing a new kind of 21st century information crisis here in Catalonia. Every day our mobile phones are bombarded with thousands of homemade propaganda messages where objectivity is buried under manipulation and surrounding noise. The political arguments are based on simplifications of complex issues and half-truths. People seem to no longer be able to critically read the information they are receiving. As they constantly read and hear the same story – filled with Catalan or Spanish nationalistic fury – they come to really believe in it.

I got the impression that many Catalans have lost their trust in the mainstream news networks altogether. It seems that most people trust only the filtered information from channels that blindly support their own points of view. People are force-fed info, shared on Twitter, Facebook, WhatsApp and Instagram, where facts are transformed into tools of disinformation. Opinions are built on disturbing images filled with messages with passionate feelings where the basic understanding of history, democratic rights and the rule of law becomes distorted.

Now, the information crisis has started an information war in Catalonia and the situation is out of control. The social media is infected with propaganda and the gap between the two opposing sides of conflict is widening fast.

Simplified and false accusations

The pro-independent Catalans believe that their democratic rights have been oppressed with violence by the corrupt Spanish government. Some of them have totally lost their trust in the Spanish democracy and the Spanish legal system.

On the other side of the conflict, the unionists feel that their opponents are victims of propaganda fabricated inside the pro-independent organizations and the Catalan Government. They feel that the pro-independence movement is a minority without any legal rights to go forward with secession.

The social media information war is intensifying as the Catalan independence movement is trying desperately to find international support for a dialogue with the Spanish government. Unfortunately the Spanish government and the international institutions state that the crisis is an internal matter of Spain. The situation is blocked and there is no solution in sight.

How to fight propaganda in social media?

As a political researcher and a freedom of information activist, I think there is still a possible solution to unblock the information crisis in Catalonia.

We are facing a new type of information crisis, where the individual citizens have lost the control of access to trusted information.

In my opinion, the right medicine against misinformation and propaganda is to match it with information that is accepted and can be trusted on both sides of the conflict. In this complex crisis of trust, we need a commission of national and international investigators who are able to study the real story behind the crisis in Catalonia. I think we need a kind of transparent 21st century truth and reconciliation commission, where the investigators are recognized experts of political science, history and human rights. The members of the research group should be chosen in an agreement between the Catalan and the Spanish governments.

The both sides of the conflict should also agree to support the end results of the investigators. The politicians and civil organizations in Catalonia should also agree to distribute the research outcomes through their communication networks.

In my opinion a widely accepted, transparent and objective body of research is the only way to fight against the misinformation circulating out of control on the internet. A new type of commission of truth and reconciliation would work as a database for healthy dialogue and help the reunification of the Catalan society in the future.

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