Tarragona, Holy Mary of the Miracle.

Skating and surfing in Southen California.

When I arrived to southern  California, it was a great surprise to look at many gardens, full of flowers, well mantained,  with roses and other kind of plants and trees as very high palms, in the near of the ocean. 

On the beach there were many birds specially seagulls, they were everyehere. I could notice that seagulls don't bother people, and people don't bother seagulls.

In some cities, palms are higher than many buildings. Probably they are the typical plants from south of California, some of them are straight, giant, other are bent due to the strength of the wind, but they are always beautiful and awesome.

On the beach, the big seagulls are very quiet at sunset. All of them are placed in big groups, some of them, in a straight line, on the sand, resting and watching the ocean.
In the near, and on the same beach, young men make skating in a skating rink.

If you look around, you can notice the big waves, which arrive exhausted to the shore, but with a big strenght yet. When the sky is grey due to the fog,  the ocean is also grey, like the seagulls who are grey and white. 
 In sommer the grey fog hides the big and wonderful high mountains during all the morning, and sometimes during all day, but the seagulls are always walking pride on the sand. They are watching over, looking at the brave waves, and the surfers, who jump over the waves, and enjoy the beautiy of the ocean.

I especially remember Venice, CA: "One night the fresh air from the ocean crossed through the window. Four women were sleeping, in the same room.  The  waves were also sleeping. There was a total silent.  The big seagulls controlled the area. They have their own telepathic language. Their own world, they are also the quiet serene of the Pacific ocean, and the quiet serene of the Mediterranean as minimum.

Some hours later,  one of the four women got up in the early morning,  and she went to the nearby beach, she wanted to write, and  be quiet, without any person who disturbed her, just in front of the waves and surrounded by the seagulls. She met other women who wanted to be alone, in order to write, to create something nice, to be quiet, and enjoy the ocean, or to practice surfing with their friends.

Later, but also in the early morning,  the young surfers were  ready to jump  among the waves.

Waves were not enough high at this time in the morning,  before eight O'clock, but the surfers were  impatient to jump and play with the waves. They are higher at midday. But these young men and women wanted to swim and enjoy with their tables,  and to breathe  the fresh wind in the early morning.

Some minutes later, people from Venice and from south California were also ready to take their breakfast, tea and coffees... in gardens,  nice terraces or cafes with libraries.

At this time in the morning, some people also started to work in their offices, companies and stores. Others want to be artists also in the area of Hollywood in order to look for an opportunity in the film industry, and they also work very hard.







 Some visitors in California go to the very beautiful wood harbors to fish, and all walkers enjoy the summer. Some teachers are teaching to the children to respect the ocean, they show them, the different kind of  fishes and seagulls. In this area of the world, the seagulls are flying happy among the fishers, people, children, and boats. Nobody kill them. 
The seagulls are very happy like children.

If you drive along the coast, you'll arrive to Sail Beach,  and you can also find the wonderful area of Belmont, it's a historic neighborhood with different kind of architectural styles including Craftsman bungalows, Victorian, Spanish Revival, Tudor Revival and Mediterranean. This is a pleasant area to walk everywhere, and all the hauses have charm and special personality.
In this community people can enjoy a variety of water sports, many inhabitants own a boat, and practice rowing as well. Many tourists and visitors who travel to this area rent a pleasure boat to sail around the south coast of California.

The long and wide beaches and high waves always invite to the young people to practice some sports. As I mentioned before, they especially like surfing and skating during all day. But just to the sunset, when many joung people are free, and the red and brilliant, orange colours appear on the sky, the pirouettes of the skaters begin. They feel very very happy with their jumps.

The night is coming slowly, and at the end, the silent is total. 
Even the Pacific Ocean is going to sleep early in this area of California.

FESTA MAJOR DE GRACIA (Barcelona), the most creative and exciting parties in the world.

The neighbors from Gracia, a famous and well known district in center of Barcelona,  design their streets, with dedication and happiness year after year. They work very hard during months, in the cold afternoons of winter, They decorate their streets, and enjoy these holidays days of summer with the neighbors, and visitors from the rest of the world in armony and happiness.

Visitors like the very high level of creativity, and the high spirit of collaboration among many of the people who live here. It's important to highlight the kindness of the habitants from Gracia with the toursits, when they ask some questions, when they want to hear some kind of music, or to taste some kind of food.

The habitants from Gracia, will be happy to help you, and to inform you about whatever you like.

There are many activities which are organized during these holidays days in August, for exemple : dance exhibitions from different countries, and of course "La Sardana", the typical dance from Catalunya. which people dance in special events, parties and Sundays in many cities and villages from Catalunya. In Gracia many neighbors dance together this dance. 

 The neighbourhood is also well known because there are may dance schools with great dancers who have got important prizes  around the world in their dance modality.

On the other hand, many kind of concerts take place these days as theater performances, children activities, snacks for children (xocolatades), outdoor cinemas, community dinners with neighbors. However one of the most beautiful activity is the decoration of the streets, before enjoying these holidays days.

The concert will start soon.

Verdi Street with musicians and dancers playing and dancing Sardanas.

Children had a special place to play, and design their decorations...As these parties take place in summer, August, some special swimming pools are built in order to children and mums... can enjoy themselves.  The most important day is August 15, the Assumtion Mary into the Heaven. We have to note that in these days, many villages and cities from Catalunya celebrate their own parties. 

Mothers with children or without children in these kind of decorations and constructions show their claims, for exemple : the fundamental rights of women, and of course, in some streets children can enjoy with books, as Gracia neighborhood has big, modern, sunny and interesting public libraries with many acitivities during all the year.

Children enjoy in the swimming pools, with short tales, and many activities which are organized for them.

Moreover, the different culinary organizations from Gracia will invite everybody to taste traditonal samples, and culinary tests, catalan dishes, tapas from Mallorca... these exhibitions are organized in nice gardens from Gracia, for exemple : Jardi del Silenci, Jardins del Mestre Balcells, or Jardins de Salvador Espriu.

Every street, and garden is decorated according to a "subject", for exemple : Tourists  can also  dive to the deep of the ocean, or to travel to the Roman or Creek era.

The empowement of the women is also present in thsese parties.

Children and also adults can also learn about the most well known comics from Japan. In addition  visitors can find other streets which represent villages with his farm animals, or  they can find a typical square with a very beautiful dress workshop with dresses exhibition, as Gracia had a very important and well known textile industrial fabric, during the 19 and 20 centuries.
Nowadays Gracia neighbourhood  is a center of small and very innovative fashion boutiques.

Dresses made of paper in Rovira Square.

During these holidays days of August, in the morning, in the afternoon and at nights, the streets, squares, and gardens from Gracia are full of people who make pictures, film and enjoy the different activities, or meet old friends. After the parties the inhabitants from Gracia can rest at the "Jardi del Silenci".

Jardi del Silenci.

Sant Jordi in Barcelona.

Casa Batlló by architect Antoni Gaudi, decorated with red roses, on the day of Sant Jordi.

It was in the early morning, when I could admire the red roses in Casa Batlló. The sky was totally blue, and the sunlights lighted up the cool morning. 
It was an indian salesman. the first, who wanted to sell me a rose, but someone gave me the first one, the day before Sant Jordi. And after this special day, of course, many aromatic  and beautiful roses bloomed in my garden.
This special morning was a pleasure to take the breakfast  in Passeig de Gracia, the wide and long avenue seemed a  beautiful,  and colored carpet made of different kinds of roses and books.

Red roses in Passeig de Gracia (Barcelona).
 Mercantilism and romanticism walked together by the long avenue until the sea. And after finishing my breakfast, I decided to follow them until the harbour, and there I discovered a big catamar with music, which  travelled around the harbour of Barcelona.

In the early morning booksellers prepare their bookstells with the latest library novelties.

There, on the soft aparent bay, the gentle sea breeze became almost as a hurrican, there were some clouds in the sky,  but there were also  many roses everywhere, and many children were playing in the mouth of a giant dragon made of cardboards and other materials0, and most of them discovered new tales, and toys to share and read with their friends. 
There were also many books in other languages, not only in Catalan and Spanish, but also in Russian, French, English, and Italian languages, because many toursits from these countries Russia, France, England and Italian have been visited  our city for many years ago, and they specially love to read on the beach, in terraces, in the harbour, in gardens,  swimming poola, hotels, and of course at home.

More roses in Passeig de Gracia.

There are different kind of Roses for different kind of couples and friends. Sant Jordi is not only celebrated in Catalunya but also in Japan, USA, Paris, London, Berlin, and other more cities, where the Institut Ramón Llull (URL) organizes the "Sant Jordi al Món" with activities in more than ten countries. 
In Madrid for exemple, the citizens had the opportunity to learn catalan language in this special day.  On the other hand music has been the protagonist in London, New York and Berlin during this event; and in Budapest has taken place "El Simposio de Catalanistica"in order to commemorate forty years of these studies at the University from this city.



The atmosphere in Barcelona  was  as a holiday day, and many catalan men rushed quickly to buy the roses for their lovely partners,  and in some flower stalls, in busy hours, they made long queues.
 It was the same situation  that I could appreciate every year. The magical moments are always there.

Many books are published in catalan language, and many authors of different fields publish in this language.


Rosebushes, and roses glamorize the streets, gardens and inside houses with their beauty and fragrance.

Children are important protagonists in this special day, and they enjoy with their new tales, but not only they can play and read their books in Sant Jordi, they can also read, loook for new adventures, and play in their special corner or area for children in some of the bookstores from the city.

Roses with the colors of Barça. 
Finally,  it's nice to remember that the best football team in the world, is a great exemple for children and young people, so some roses are decorated with the colors of this star team.

Boston, the elegance of the east coast.

The beautiful Boston, capital of largest city of Massachusetts in the United States, is worldwide known as a cultural center, and world leader in innovation. 
The city was founded on the Shawmut Peninsula in 1630 by puritian settlers from England. It was the scene of several key events of the American Revolution, such as the Boston Massacre, the Boston Tee Party, The Battle of Bunker Hill, and the Siege of Boston.

In the Boston's area there are many important colleges and universities, and may students from all the world come to the city to improve their knowledges or to work with some of the best brains of the world.

Boston, Back Bay area and Charles River at sunset.

But Boston is also a very elegant city, and perhaps the most european city from the United States; we can realise of that, if we appreciate the french and italian influence in some of its architecture, the design of its parks, the elegant decoration of  its hauses, and even in the lifestyle of people. Boston is not so noisy as New York or Chicago, and people can walk around the city without taking the subway, and at the same time ejoying its parks, the Charles river, and the Atlantic Coast.

Funny squirrels can be seen at the Boston Public Garden during all the year.

The best seasons to visit the city are probably in autumn and in Christmas season.

When the autumn leaf color takes place, the beauty of the nature is stunning. This phenomenon affects the normally green leaves of many trees, which they take on various shades of red, yellow, purple, balck, orange, pink, magenta, blue and brown. colours. During a few weeks, tourists and inhabitans from the city enjoy this wonderful natural picture. 

The Boston Public Garden in Autumn is a very nice place to walk, and enjoy the leaf colour and the nature. It was stablished in 1837, when philanthropist Horace Gray petitioned for the use of land, as the first public botanic garden in the United States. The 24 acres landscape, which was once a salt marsh, was designed by George F.Meacham, the paths and flower beds were laid out by the city engineer James Slade, and the forester John Galvin. The plan for the garden included a number of fountain and statutues.

Autumn is also the time to watch the whales in the ocean, which approach in this season to the east coast, and they follow and play with the tourists and fishing boats in the surroundings.

The port of Boston is a major seaport located in Boston Harbor and adjacent to the city. It is the largest port in Massachusetts as well as being one of the principal ports of the east cost of the United States.


After this romantic season, the autumn, shortly the first snow will come on the scene, and the landscape will turn into a Christmas postacard, as you can notice in the picture below.

These are typical hauses in Back Bay East Area, and in Christmas season. This neighborhood is the most famous for its rows of Victorian brownstone Homes, considered one of the best preserved exemples of 19th-century urban design in the United States. As well as numerous architecturally significant individual buildings and cultural institutions.

As I mentioned above, Boston is a very cultural city, and its Boston Public library stablished in 1848 is a very well known exemple, as it's the oldest library from the United States, and the first large free municipal library of the country. The present Copley Square location has been home to the library since 1895, when the architect Charles Follen  Mckim completed his "palace for the people".

In fact it's a very pleasant and welcoming place for people all over the world.

New story time area for children at the Public Boston Library.


Boston is also a city with a healthy life style.
The famous Boston Celtics are an example about the sport activity of the city. Through the year important sporting events take place in the capital of Massachusetts.

We can also notice the french influence in Boston, looking at its elegant fashion boutiques, and art galleries, specially in Newbury Street, where the first  french fashion designers have their boutiques, and also in this place, small and pleasant  french and italian restaurants are located. This is also a retail and tourist destination. The street has taken on a life and meaning far beyond its achitectural design. It serves as Boston's representative of fashion and style.

Newbury Street has long been the place to see and be seen. The street is lined with Chanel, Vera Wany, Valentino, Diane von Furstenberg, Armani and Burberry among others.

This picturesque street is a window shop at upscale designer stores.  You can also visit the prudential Center or Copley Place for the larger chain stores.

Autumn in New England.

Parks from Boston in Christmas season.

Boston events, holidays, celebrations, parades, and festivals take place during every month of the year. 
Some of them are the Boston flower and Garden show, Columbus Day Parade, Halloween,  and the well known Thanksgiving;  in this date, the Boston's best restaurants go all out to prepare their best meal of the year.
Of course families and friends celebrate in December Christmas. They decorated their hauses with Christmas ornaments, and also many of the trees of  the Boston Public Garden are decorated with lights of colours.  Many firs are placed in strategic places in the park, as well as in important places and streets.

                                             

  Christmas season is a very nice time to visit and enjoy the town with your partner, familiy and friends,  and to know much better the traditions, discover the beautiful lights, Christmas ornaments,  and the heart of this elegant city.