ATLÉTICO – FC BARCELONA, SUNDAY 14 FEBRUARY 2010
The black legend of Barça in the Calderón stadium lives another episode
The Jeffren-as-winger experiment horribly fails; debutant Bartra gets slightly better in the second half of the game
FC Barcelona looses its first game of the season, but remains two points ahead of Real Madrid
Ibrahimovic heads the ball between Perea and Tiago
Two defeats in their last visits to the Calderón and only one victory in the last eight years give away how hard it’s always been for Barça to win in the red-white feud. Well, a new episode of the black legend of the Atlético-Barça games has just been written.
A disastrous start and an incapacity to change course left Barça out of the game and the box “defeat” could be tacked when Atlético made their first goal. Barça had to do without several major players, and when there’s no Messi’s and Xavi’s, this obviously gives the team a hard time. Where left with having to think positively, and to speak about the two points that we’re ahead of Madrid. A little accident, that’s all.
Next Sunday, Barça will be playing home again the Camp Nou, where it most likely won’t have as many issues with Racing. If you’re around, check out Barcelona before the game on a guided Barcelona city tour.
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Barcelona’s official holiday calendar is, no doubt, one that’s very lively and rich in culture. On these holidays, the city is unmasked as a true party place, with many outdoor celebrations where its citizens are the protagonists of activities that show a cosy, enthusiast, and generous Barcelona. During the festivities, streets and squares turn into spaces of community culture, and collective creativity, artistic circulation, and participation are converted in signals of enrichment and shared vitality.
The Epiphany Parade
It all starts in january with the Epiphany Parade, a magical holiday for the youngest citizens and their families. February brings Carnival, the “lack of control” party where everything is possible. There’s Santa Eulalia, day of the patron saint of Barcelona, a traditional winter holiday. In april there’s Sant Jordi, holiday of books and roses, a traditional spring celebration. In june we have the night of San Juan, summer solstice, with its bonfires and fireworks. Another big summer holiday is the district festival of Gràcia, in august, where the people dance on the decorated squares of a whole neighborhood. Then there’s the Mercè holiday in september, when millions of person take part in almost 400 celebrations all over the city. Lastly is the Santa Llúcia festival, celebrated in december, which is a preparation for the Christmas festivities, and a celebration of the winter solstice.
Apart from all the here-mentioned holidays, we can see a rapid growth in the festivals that each neighborhood celebrates for its traditional patron saints. They’re festivities organized by groups of residents, together with the neighborhood’s cultural entities.
You can really feel the festive spirit while walking through the city, or while on a Barcelona city tour, and it might just be this spirit that brings solidarity upon all people that visit the city of Barcelona.
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The Montserrat Mountain
The mountain of Montserrat, according to tradition, the most important and mysterious mountain of Catalonia (Spain). It is located 50 km northwest of Barcelona between the Anoia, Baix Llobregat and Bages. On this mountain stands the Benedictine monastery and shrine dedicated to Our Lady of Montserrat.
Montserrat Tour Barcelona
The word means mountain and “serrat” in Catalan means “sawn”. That name comes because of its distinctive morphology in which it seems as if someone had tried to saw it with a giant saw. Both the word as serralada serrat (range) are from serra, derived from the Latin serra, name given to the instrument for sawing. In heraldic representations, Montserrat appears as a group of mountains of gold on a red field with a mountain of gold over the short.
This is a unique form massif that rises abruptly to the west of the Llobregat River to the 1236 meters high peak of St. Jerome. Other prominent peaks are the Cavall Bernat, the Agulles, the Serrat del Moro, the Montgròs, Sant Joan and Palomera. In 1987 he was declared a nature to ensure its preservation.
For millennia, tectonic movements, climatic changes and erosion have shaped sharp relief, with huge walls and rounded blocks of conglomerate rock and clay. Inside physical agents have opened caves and streams.
The quintessential Mediterranean forest is also the predominant vegetation type in Montserrat. With respect to wildlife, now you can find various birds and mammals, among which the squirrel, a bat or wild boar and wild goats.
Getting to Montserrat isn’t the easiest thing ever, so if you’re ever in Barcelona, it’s wise to take a Barcelona Montserrat tour.
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Bullfighting over the years
Bullfighting is tradition in countries like Spain, France, Portugal, and Latin America. It´s a fight between one or more persons against one ore more bulls. In Spain they have different names for bullfighting. The most common ones are tauromaquia, corrida and torreo.
Bullfighting is based on old traditions. The mythical powers of the bulls are adored since 1000ths of years. In the Greek mythology, there is the eternal fight against Minotautus (half man half bull). On the island Minoïsch Crete they used to do a ritual dance on the back of the animal where the dancers make a back-flip over the back of the animal. What the exact meaning of this dance is, nobody knows. In Roman times there where fights against the bulls in the arenas all over the country. In the 5th century there where fights with bulls in Spain. Young men fought with the bulls to show there manhood. After the 5th century the Mores fought the bulls from there horses.
Bullfighting, apart from the widespread criticism it evokes, can still be seen in Spain. In Catalunya it was banned for over a decade, but revived a few years ago. The one place to see bullfights in Barcelona is in Monumental, at the Plaça de Torres. You can take a Barcelona City Tour there to check it out.
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FC Barcelona´s Camp Nou
FC Barcelona´s Camp Nou
Camp Nou is a football stadium in Barcelona. It’s the home stadium from FC Barcelona and the Catalan national football team. Camp Nou was opened in 1957 and had a capacity of 98.787 seats. It was, and is the biggest football stadium in Europe.
FC Barcelona´s Camp Nou
The Camp Nou stadium is known as being one of the most impressing stadiums in the world. The facilities are enormous, witch gives the a 5 star ranking for the EUFA. Camp Nou is a hotspot for tourists, who come from all over the world to feel the ambiance of a game, even when the stadium is empty.
The whereabouts of its name
The official name is Nou Estadi del Futbol Club Barcelona. The name Nou Estadi del Futbol Club Barcelona, Catalan for new field, was already after the opening forgotten as all the cosios called it Camp Nou.
The architects of the stadium are Francesc Mitjans Miró, Lorenzo García Barbón en Josep Soteras Mauri. The building of the stadium took 23 months and was finished in the year 1957. The official opening was on the 24th of September 1957. FC Barcelona played against Legia Warschau( 4-2). Eulogio Martínez was the maker of the first goal.
At the moment Camp nou can receive 98.787 supporters. The stadium is 48 meters high and 250 meters long. Big, that is, but never as big as the football team it belongs to: the grand, and unbeatable, FC Barcelona. When you´re in this great city, and you like sports, make sure you take a guided tour of Barcelona´s favorite club.
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