Eating Out
Everyone knows that the golden era between the two World Wars was the best time to be alive. Even if you weren't going to be for born a good 50 years or so. Pictures don't lie. Truth is, we've never known glamour and good times like it, and who can...
Eating Out
Four years in and there's a bit of reshuffling going on at Tickets – the post-elBulli bar and restaurant project from the Adriàs – as the Barcelona phenomenon continues to evolve. Designers El Equipo Creativo have been back to add a little...
Bars & Nightlife
Take a tour with us around Ocaña, where five different spaces co-exist at one venue, united by a central principle: creativity. This cafe, club, restaurant, cocktail bar and terrace can be found on the historical Plaça Reial in Barcelona, and has...
Hotels
If a neighbourhood is good enough for Pablo Picasso then it's good enough for us, although Barcelona's Passeig de Colom has probably changed quite a bit since the artist was here; Picasso painted his early piece Ciencia y Caridad at his first studio...
Hotels
In Barcelona, somewhere between a hotel and a rental apartment, exists the eco-friendly concept yök Casa + Cultura. It's three homes in the turn-of-the-century Catalan Modernism style, crowned with a magnificent roof terrace, combined to form what...
Eating Out
The Barceloní love a bit of cheese, you know. So much so that the entire city seems to eat it for breakfast in baguettes, which is a fabulous way to start the day (albeit murder on the waistline). But that is amateur stuff compared to Cheese Bar...
Culture
Cosmo es una bonita cafetería en Barcelona. Cosmo es también una galería de arte. I'm afraid that after just six weeks of Spanish lessons, that's about the size of my descriptive prowess. I think we've just learnt how to connect two simple...
Shopping
Two thirds of our planet is covered in water, and the bit that puts the blue in The Blue Planet is crucial to the survival of every living thing. Important to keep our oceans in good shape then, which is one of the most important aspects of...
Culture
There's so much going on at Artte, in the Eixample district of Barcelona, that it's quicker to mention what isn't on offer here. Paintball. Pretty sure there's no paintball action here. And we didn't see any lion tamers. But other than that,...
Eating Out
Sometimes you need a break from pounding the tourist trail in Barcelona, and it can be well worth walking a little further away from the throng to seek out a place which has more of the “real” Spain about it. With this in mind, a brunch-time...
Eating Out
Beach holidays are not like they were in the good old days. One can't just cover oneself in cocoa butter and lie in the sun for eight hours a day, turning occasionally. Now we are in more enlightened times we know that sort of behaviour will give us...
Hotels
Reaching up towards the Catalonian sun, the two towers of The Renaissance Barcelona Fira Hotel contain a “vertical garden”; the structure has a core of vegetation that snakes up the central atrium and spreads through two areas of public space,...
City Notes
“A masterclass in conceptuality,” a hotel that “takes you on a fuzzy trip of vague recollection,” and “a paradise of inimitable escapism.” That’s what we said about Port de Sóller’s impressive Bikini Island & Mountain Hotel three...
City Notes
Hidden in the quiet heart of rural Spain, La Torre del Visco Hotel offers unrivalled luxury and adventures walking in a shepherd’s footsteps across the ancient Aragonese landscape that once inspired Picasso… In the early 20th century,...
City Notes
The world’s first StandardX hotel has opened in Fitzroy, Melbourne, the offshoot of the renowned global The Standard hotels, officially touted as the brand’s “rebellious younger sibling” with an offering of “intuitive hospitality without...
Stuff Crush
See captivating, never-before-published photographs of 1970s and '80s USA cultural hotspots including New York City, San Francisco, Las Vegas, New Orleans, Miami Beach and more in Street Walker, a new publication from revered street photographer and...
Dispatches
The purpose of nursing homes is to provide older people at risk with the care and attention they require in a secure setting. For some residents, however, the truth is unsettling: abuse by doctors and other medical professionals. Nursing home...
Dispatches
China, the United States of America, and Japan do it again, the three powerhouses ranking 1st, 2nd and 3rd for the fourth consecutive year in the A’ Design Awards' World Design Rankings. Using a slick methodology for ranking countries, the...
Dispatches
It's important to pick the right company to clean your air ducts so that your home stays healthy and safe. When your air ducts are clean, the air quality inside your home is better, which is good for everyone's health. But how do you choose which...
Dispatches
We’ve all seen them. You know, rickety and rusty carports dragging down a property’s curb appeal. In fact, the eyesore is all you pay attention to. Even though carport designs have improved over the years the structures still lack some curb...