We are spending this winter in Barcelona, and the weather has turned colder with temperatures in the low 40s. Winter reminds us of our frailty. We approach the winter season with its colds, flus, and, of course, its numerous festive holidays, reunions, and parties.
The social season begins in mid-December and ends with the New Year celebration. Do you celebrate Christmas, Hanukkah, or Kwanzaa? Do you relish this time of year by turning into a party animal? Or are you an introvert who hides for the month?
Celebrations
Many households celebrate the holidays with traditions that have been established for generations. My small immigrant family consisted of a mother, a father, and three little girls. We spent most of our time together because the neighborhood we lived in [predominantly Italian] didn’t encourage intermixing among immigrants. The Italians all played together, the Puerto Ricans all spoke Spanish, and the Poles all spoke Polish.
This neighborhood
This neighborhood was located next to one of the Holland Tunnel’s entrances on the New Jersey side. Lots of dirt, noise, and traffic. We lived on the 5th floor walk-up in a two-bedroom apartment that was cramped and dark. The rooftop served as a playground. No guardrails. No safety features. Just a large expanse of open roof with a view of the Hudson River and the Lower East Side.
The neighborhood was diverse. There was an Italian bakery, a Kosher butcher shop, a fishmonger and fruit store, and, of course, the corner store. Supermarkets as we know them now did not exist, except for the A&P, which was a small, localized market.
The corner store
The corner store was not only a convenience shop but also a social connector. It was a place to hang out and drink your soda, and chat with a friend. This was the place your father sent you to buy cigarettes at 27 cents a pack or buy that container of milk late at night.
Besides the 5 story brick high-rise buildings, this neighborhood had a few two-story homes. Multiple generations of family members lived, sometimes sleeping three kids to a bed. The chatter of voices never stopped. On any warm summer evening after the supper together, people would hang out on their stoops [modern-day porches], chatting with folks as they walked on by. Sharing a joke, asking about a family member’s health, or simply trying to connect with others.
Living in Gracia
Currently, we are fortunate to live in Barcelona, this city has a connection which permits us to enjoy an easier-going lifestyle than Buenos Aires or Seattle.
The city offers incredible fresh food markets, cultural and artistic museums, a wide assortment of
restaurants, and bars all offering their wares at very reasonable pricing. These spaces all provide encounters with local culture.
And now, with the holidays imminent, there are a few special holiday activities in Barcelona, such as the Santa Llucia Fair, which dates back 237 years. “Located in front of the majestic cathedral, the fair’s distinctive charm captures the essence of the holidays. The stalls, filled with traditional Christmas products, offer a fantastic selection from nativity scenes, figures, and trees to crafts, moss, and herbs that fill the air with a heady fragrance.
At the moment
At the moment, it’s beginning to look and feel a lot like Christmas, with lots of decorations and sparkling lights. There are lustrous lights hanging on all major streets, creating a nightly magical glow. Massive holiday ornaments are strung across other streets, forming giant ribbons of light that blink on and off.
The night air is festive, and people seem delighted to celebrate the holidays.
Barcelona is situated on a plain with the Collserola mountain range to the west and the Mediterranean Sea to the east. We live in the neighborhood called Gracia, which is a hilltop. Here, there are predominantly 4- and 5-story brick apartments, with retail stores scattered across most first floors. This neighborhood, Gracia, was once a separate village but is now incorporated into the city.
Barcelona is a conglomerate of many small neighborhoods with stores, restaurants, and bars. With so many unique spaces, I am always marking new places on my map to visit as we pass by on the bus or taxi.
Such a different type of energy from a typical American city. Whose attributes include a myriad of box stores that present a very homogenized approach to retailing, with most merchandise identical to that in other stores.
Enjoying the differences
What I enjoy is the vast selection, whether it is food or clothing.
There’s a process of discovery here that doesn’t exist in many cities. Over the years, the world has become a smaller, more homogenised place without the diversity of the past.
Except here in Spain, where the spirit of diversity seems to have been nurtured and encouraged. On a typical block, there might be 3 fruit and vegetables stores, a few restaurants, the obligatory nail salon, and at least one pharmacy.
Walk another block, and the scene is repeated, but the order might be different.
For me,
For me, Barcelona has become a city that we are exploring neighborhood by neighborhood. There are many barrios ib Barcelona including Eixample that is totally about Gaudi, Barrio Gòtic the old section of the city, and of course, El Born, which is pretty trendy now.
When we are out at night, we have never felt we are in harm’s way but then again, we have both spent much time in big cities. We are not careless, and we always try to take a taxi home.
As we continue to get to know the city that we have chosen as our new home, we also discover the quirks of the people. Most people start working later and work much later into the evening. The city is very garrulous as the locals are friendly, insisting on embracing new friends with two kisses, one on each cheek. In this country, people love to chat about everything and anything. Engaging with strangers while waiting in a line is the standard.
A major nuisance
The major nuisance that we have noticed is the folks who travel to the city to get totally wasted and vomit in the streets, generally behaving stupidly, mostly 20-somethings from many different EU countries. Overtourism can ruin a city, but Barcelona, like a few others, is trying to limit it. Only the future will tell if the measures they are trying out today will be successful, encouraging tourist taxes to go up, probably as rigorous as other sanctions.
But with this city being the cultural mecca it is, the proposed limiting of tourism is difficult. Starting in 2026, cruise ships will be limited as to when they can visit the city, especially the day cruise boats. The town, like many other popular destinations, is trying to encourage cruises that start and end in the city, therefore attracting a better caliber of tourist.
As we have chosen to live in Barcelona for many reasons, we watch this dynamic city change and grow. It is such a pleasure to live in this city and to become a local, learning the ways of this city and sharing the stories of these discoveries.
Links
https://www.eseibusinessschool.com/culture-shocks-when-m
