Hotel Caledonian Barcelona » Barcelona Culture

(Español) Un verano de museos

marta — Thu, 19 Jul 2012 09:00:13 +0000

(Español) La Barcelona de Picasso

marta — Mon, 14 May 2012 10:48:49 +0000

(Español) Nuevo espacio para la Filmoteca de Barcelona

marta — Tue, 14 Feb 2012 12:17:48 +0000

Museums in Barcelona

marta — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 13:05:43 +0000

Right in the centre of the city and near the Caledonian Hotel, the perfect one to stay so we can conveniently walk to most of the tourist sites, is Fundació Tàpies. This great museum displays the works of Antoni Tàpies, an artist loved by many and misunderstood by others because of his surrealist pieces that will always manage to make an effect. This museum is located inside the Modernist building L’Eixample that has been recently refurbished and it’s beautiful inside and outside. Inside you will be able to enjoy the works of this artist, with paintings and sculptures of different stages of his life. The terrace of this building is also something interesting that stands out, from it you will be able to enjoy wonderful views of the city and also enjoy some of the artist’s works. In Montjuic, Fundaciò Miró is one of the most enigmatic museums in the city. Author and teacher of Modern and Contemporary art par excellence, his most important works can be found in this museum, that also studies the artist and the current trends of this art. Its terrace is very spectacular as you will be able to enjoy views from almost the whole city, thanks to being on the mount of Montjuic with its great height, a great tourist sight. The building dates back to 1975 in white avant-garde style.

Original Museums in Barcelona

marta — Sat, 19 Nov 2011 16:05:59 +0000

Besides the usual and best-known suspects in Barcelona, there are other alternative museums and art galleries that we should also visit if we are visiting the city. We could start our tour by the Miba museum, a clear original one. It exhibits ideas and inventions of Barcelona. It is the private collection of an inventor who has gathered together some of the most avant-gard artifacts in the country, which will really make visitors leap into action. It is situated in Calle ciutat, in the the Gothic area of Barcelona. In the Borne area, you will find the Museo de la Xocolata or Chocolate Museum, which is really a temptation. This museum is especially designed for children, in its different rooms you will find all the information you need to know about the history of chocolate, as well as about the process of production and rooms where you will be able to see how it is roasted and prepared for sale, and some educational exhibitions. There is also a room with chocolate figurines that represent different real world art pieces like the Sagrada Familia, Ben-Hur’s chariot or Copito de Nive, Snow Flake, the white gorilla who lived in the zoo in Barcelona. Almost every big city has its very own wax museum, and Barcelona is not the exception. Its was museum is in a lane by the Ramblas in an old Palace that dates back to the 17^th century. In its rooms you will meet characters that look real flesh and blood like Henry VIII or Lady Di. You could easily miss the Gaudi Museum, just by the entrance of Guell park, but it is a must-see as Gaudi lived there for a while and you will be able to visit some of the rooms where he spent part of his life. Other examples are the Sewage Museum – Museo de la Alcantarilla -, the Shoe Museum – el Museo de los Zapatos-, the Clothes Museum – el Museo de la Indumentaria -, or the Music Museum – el Museo de la Música-. All of them very interesting museums, and most of them around the centre, like the Caledonian Hotel, which is dieal for our stay in the city.

Three museums to visit in Barcelona

marta — Sun, 30 Oct 2011 14:58:02 +0000

Art and culture. Barcelona is defined by its different areas and its squares and of course, by its museums. Among the most important ones are those dedicated to history and those art galleries with works by the most important artists in the world. Here, we are going to introduce you to three museums that you can’t miss during your stay in this city: Joan Miró was one of the most important painters and sculptors of his time. In Barcelona, the Miro Foundation is the only gallery that studies this artist in depth. In it you will be able to get to know the artist through his colourful paintings. We will find very famous paintings and sculptures in his particular imaginative world full of colour and surrealism. This museum is located in the mountain of Montjuic and opened in 1975. Up to now it is one of the most visited in the whole city. The foundation is investigating the works of Miro and in this museum, besides preserving his pieces, they organize presentations and events about the most avant-guard art tendencies. Other important museum is the Picasso Museum, that is among the top galleries by number of visitors because of its great importance. Located in a street in the area of Borne, in the old town, it is housed in a big manor house. Our third recommendation is Fundació Tàpies. Antoni Tàpies is another great contemporary artists, who is still alive and working. His works can be found all around the world. Tàpies’ surrealist and enigmatic art can be seen in this museum-foundation, situated in a modernist building in the Eixample in Calle Aragon, next to Paseo de Gràcia.

Cervantes Garden or the Rose Garden

marta — Sun, 25 Sep 2011 13:59:25 +0000

At the top of the city of Barcelona, otherwise known as the “Ciudad Condal”, in Avenida Diagonal, next to the University, there are some very beautiful parks. The Cervantes Park or as it is popularly known the “Rosaleda” or the Rose Garden is one of the most beautiful of the city. In this park we will find a great collection of roses brought over from many different countries in world. These flowers can be found all around the park and in the top area mixed in with other species. All the different rose plants have been labelled, explaining their name and the country they came from. The best time to visit the park is spring, because that’s when most roses open and brighten up the park with their fantastic colours. With more than 10,000 rose plants of about 2,000 different species and varieties offering more than 150,000 open flowers. The park dresses as if for a party, with different colours and scents, it dresses in pink, red, yellow and white. A real “fiesta”. But this park is also an ideal place to relax. You can take a break sitting on the benches while we get to know more about the world of roses, walk around nature, running and exercising. Students are a common sight in the park, just coming to relax in between lessons. This park is one of those green lungs of the city in the midst surrounded by cars, buildings and offices. The park is also a research centre for roses, where since 2000 they have celebrated the International Contest of New Roses every May. An interesting event for flower and nature lovers. You can also visit other parks in the city from a hotel in the centre. From such a location you can also get to many of the local sites. That is why Hotel Caledonian offers the perfect location and first class services.

The Festivities of “la Merce”

marta — Fri, 23 Sep 2011 14:00:10 +0000

People have taken to the party in Barcelona, from now until Sunday 25th of September the city is celebrating the festivities of la Mercè.

This event attracts every year many locals and tourists who take part in all the different activities. After the opening of the festivities with the presentation at the council of Barcelona, the party starts. The concerts of the BAM’s cycle will take place all over the city: in the Plaza del Rei, Plaza Reial and Plaza Cataluña among others. There will also be different events for children like games and activities also other gastronomical events.

During the events, theatre goers can also benefit from a % discount on theatre tickets. There are many different shows on offer like musicals or smaller gigs. These theatre offers are part of the events every year.

However the Mercè is something else, because there will also be fire activities. Brave young men will, literally fire runners. It’s a way to celebrate fire and water. The festivities will also take over the beach and some areas will have street dances.

The festivities will end with the fireworks dancing against music. The fireworks will be fired from Avenida de Maria Cristina before Montjuic. The fountains in Monjuic will also display their water and colours.

Although the shows will be broadcasted on TV3, it is still worth to come in person to see the fireworks with hundreds of others. So, you can start booking your accommodation for these days, and find out about other sites from Hotel Caledonian.

CosmoCaixa, the most enjoyable museum experience

marta — Tue, 13 Sep 2011 14:41:05 +0000

CosmoCaixa stands out as the most visited and prominent cultural and educational centre in the city. The Picasso Museum and the Barça Museum, with its myriads of visitors all year round, are not too far off. In this case, CosmoCaixa is located in the mountain of Tibidabo in a tall building that was extended and refurbished only a few years ago. It is a great place to visit with the whole family, it offers an impressive tour through science, nature and the origin of man. It’s a different way to learn science through many different fun activities. Even at the entrance you can see some surprising examples. Inside, you will be able to touch the different exhibits in the rooms, play, walk into a forest with several plant species… all of the activities have a purpose. This place is ideal if you have children because they love it. You also have the Planetarium, a room where you can sit in the dark and see all the different planets and the universe while listening to very interesting information about them. This trip seems quite real and you will also feel relaxed after it. The temporary activities are the real protagonists of the museum. At the moment, it’s worth mentioning the dinosaur exhibitions, with some skeletons really well reproduced in life-size. The museum is, at the same time, a place for research and scientific debate. There are presentations, conferences and activities for different audiences in this wonderful building. When you want to visit this or other museums, it is very important to book a hotel located in the centre, so you can easily access all of these interesting places, such as Hotel Caledonian, that offers great quality services for all guests.

Frederic Mares Museum in Barcelona

Lidia — Tue, 23 Aug 2011 21:12:31 +0000

Frederic Mares, the founder of this museum was a sculptor, a historian and a professor. His collection includes pieces that all quite heterogeneous. It is the largest Hispanic sculpture exhibition from the 12th to 19th century. The entrance to the museum is through its courtyard, cool in summer and therefore perfect for a break during your visit to the Gothic Quarter during the summer months. Situated in Plaça de Sant Iu, 5 in the Gothic area of Barcelona, entering this museum is like entering the mind of an eccentric collector. The feel of its many rooms is that of eclecticism. The collector, Mares, went through times when he would obsess about one item and collect it compulsively. You can find entire rooms filled with umbrellas or pipes. The Frederic Marès is a unique collector’s museum that preserves the collections of sculptor Frederic Marès (1893-1991). He donated his collection to the city of Barcelona in 1946. For Frederic Marès his sculpture was something more than an artistic vocation, throughout his life he gathered an extensive collection of Hispanic sculpture from theancient times until the nineteenth century. Mares also donated some of his own sculptures that are on display in his study-library. The museum also offer guided tours to the sculpture collection as well as the artist’s office. The tours cost only 2 Euros per person, and are offered in a variety of languages that include Spanish, French, English and Italian. The minimum number of people on the group is 10 and the maximum is 25 people, and the guided visits must be book one week in advance. From the Caledonian Hotel it is very easy to get to the Frederic Mares Museum in Barcelona.