Posts Tagged ‘maremagnum’
Last night was one of the most unique experiences I have had yet. As thousands and thousands of Barça fans flooded the streets (with not a ManU jersey in sight….might I add), my roommate and I headed toward Maremagnum, where a big screen was being erected to show the Championship match between FC Barcelona and Manchester United.
Mind you, we are both 5 feet tall (around 1.5 meters), from the Midwestern United States, and accustomed to large crowds and fairly aggressive people. Yet.. nothing could have prepared us for the night that was to come. We laughed at the huge swarm of people crossing the bridge out to the mall area, and wondered where they could possibly all fit (I’m not sure it was the best choice of location, considering..). Then we realized, they couldn’t.
The majority of spectators couldn’t actually see the game, but a creative few climbed into plants, up light poles, and stood on chairs for more than 2 hours in order to watch Barça defeat Manchester United 2-0. After being shoved in too many directions to count, stepped on, and more or less physically assaulted (but not in a mean way), we made it to a ledge where we could sit and see (sort of) what was going on in the game. Looking over the crowd was incredible, and I am so glad I got to join in in such a great moment for the people of Barcelona. Tourists (aka guiris) and locals alike were decked out in red and blue, with scarves, flags, and banners wrapped around their necks to demonstrate the intense pride they feel for their team. After the final buzzer, pedestrians, drivers, and motorists flooded out into the streets, honking, waving, and yelling, and the noise level was unbelievable. It was certainly a once in a lifetime experience. Who would have though soccer (or should I say football) could be so exciting?
This Wednesday night, the entire city will be focused on one event… the final game of the Champions League, featuring Barcelona vs. Manchester United. The 54th season of the Champions League football tournament will end on Wednesday, and is set to take place in the Estadio Olimpico in Rome. Manchester United looks to defend their current title, hoping to be the first team to retain the European Cup for 2 years running since Milan in 1990. Of the 9 games played between the two teams, 3 were won by Manchester United, 2 by Barça, and 4 ended in draws.
Both teams are currently the champions of their respective countries, making this one of the biggest matchups in recent football history. If Barcelona wins, they will become the first Spanish football club to win a ‘Treble’, including La Liga, the Copa del Rey, and the UEFA Champions League. Even those Spaniards typically cheering against Barcelona throughout the regular season will band together with the Catalans for one night, to cheer on Spain’s representative in the championship.
In honor of this big night, the Ayuntamiento of Barcelona has made plans in case of the victory of the city’s football club. If Barça is proclaimed champion, the Metro and the Ferrocarrils will extend their hours to 2 a.m., rather than the normal closing time of midnight. Also, in order to make viewing of the game even easier (since every bar will surely be showing the game on every tv screen available), the city will set up two large screens in the Mini Estadi and the Maremágnum, and in the plaza de Catalunya. Public toilets will be installed for the spectators. With respect to security, the Consistorio recommends to all spectators to avoid troublemaking, as the celebrations of last month ended in 120 arrests, and the city hopes to avoid a reoccurrence of this on such a festive night.
Shopping in Barcelona
Everybody coming to Spain will at a certain moment think about shopping, buying souvenirs, clothes, shoes,… anything. This post will guide you around Barcelona and show you some good streets to go shopping. Make the most of the shopping by staying in a flat or hotel close to the best shopping districts! There is plenty of accommodation available in these hot shopping spots.
Barcelona has a wide variety of shops for all people with different tastes, styles and – of course – budgets. There is a 5km (3-mile) shopping strip, all the way from the water’s edge at Port Vell right up La Rambla to Diagonal. International chains, designer shops and modern department stores can be found in the area around Plaça de Catalunya, Passeig de Gracia and along Avinguda Diagonal. La Rambla and the Barri Gòtic are popular places for tourists to hunt for souvenirs.
There are many different districts in Barcelona, each offering different styles of fashion and different shopping areas. If you want to get a taste of the wide variety and diverse styles that Barcelona offers, than head to different districts.
Store timetables: from monday to saturday 10.00-14.00 / 16.30-20.00
Times may vary by a half hour or less and the full-day schedule is becoming more common in commercial centers and department stores in Barcelona.
Young / Urban
Most of the big high street clothes stores (Zara, H&M, Mango,…) can be found around Plaça Catalunya. One of the streets that you should head to is Portal D’Angél, one of Barcelona’s main shopping streets. This street starts at Plaça Catalunya and leads you to La Rambla. There are enough shops to spend a whole afternoon over there when it rains 
. Which shops can you find there?
Zara:
A popular Spanish clothes chain with shops all over the world. There are several Zara shops in Portal d’Angél, each having more or less their own collection. Expect good quality at low prices. Website Zara
H&M:
Another popular clothes chain, but this time Swedish. Like Zara, H&M has more than one shop on this street. There is, however, one special H&M which you will recognize from the trendy entrance! Worth paying a visit. Website H&M
Stradivarius:
A shop that is part of Inditex, the company that owns brands such as Zara, Massimo Dutti, Bershka and Pull and Bear. Very nice concept with big stores and great designs for low prices. Website Stradivarius
Mango:
Clothes shops with decent clothes of very good quality. Website Mango
Jack and Jones:
A nice, trendy and cheap clothes shop for young men. Website Jack and Jones
Pull and Bear:
Clothes for young urbans, a bit edgier than its sister shops Zara and Bershka. Website Pull and Bear
Desigual:
A clothes shop with a delightful concept: “Nobody is equal”, they sell very colourful and trendy clothes, using eye-catching, bold prints. Website Desigual
MI-SA-KO:
No clothes but a wide range of handbags and wallets for more than reasonable prices, the perfect place to find accessories. Website MI-SA-KO
Besides that, there are also: Bershka, Spirit, Oysho, Springfield,…
Many of these shops not only have a branch in Portal d’Angél but also one on Passeig de Gràcia, on the other side of Plaça Catalunya.
Design
Most of the designer and more expensive labels can be found on Passeig de Gràcia. This street full of hotels, art (Gaudi’s “La Pedrera” and “Casa Batlló”) and shops is wellknown. Among the design shops you can find big international names such as: Louis Vuitton, Armani, Chopard, Gucci, Chanel, Cartier, etc.
Besides these shops there are also some luxurious shops such as: Replay, Diesel, Tommy Hilfiger, Ralph Lauren, Massimo Dutti, Guru, G-star, etc.
A good tip for some real Barcelona-styled clothes is Custo!
Cheap
If we step away from the big shopping streets and large chains, we can find ourselves going to Barri Gotic. This Medieval district has lots of small streets in which you will find charming, independent shops. Most of the time they are souvenir shops but there are also a nice number of cheap shoes and clothes shops, with original and quirky designs.
In El Raval (the other side of La Ramblas) has similar little shops. Alongside the many souvenir shops in this district you will find a number of shoes and clothes shops.
LOGO is an outlet shop that can be found in both El Raval and Barri Gotic, selling different brands such as Fornarina and Calvin Klein.
Sports
Barcelona is the city of Football, Running and Skating, so a variety of sports shops is indispensable. On Passeig de Gràcia you will find some stores from big brands such as Nike, Adidas and Puma. Nike and Adidas are omnipresent in Barcelona. Nike is co-operating with Fc Barcelona and has planted many FcBotiga stores – the official Fc Barcelona stores – throughout the city.
If you are looking for more specific things, you can always try to go to the Decathlon shop in C/ Canuda or the Corte Inglés in C/ Portal d’Angél, where they have three floors offering a wide range of sports equipment by different brands.
Streets to go to
La Rambla
La Ramblas is probably the busiest street in Barcelona, but this means that there are many shops too. Especially in the northern part (near Plaça Catalunya). Next to all the souvenir shops, you will find many known shops on La Ramblas and in the streets surrounding it.
Avenida Diagonal
For shoppers, Barcelona’s Avinguda Diagonal has it all, from massive department stores such as El Corte Ingles to tiny boutique clothing and shoe stores. It starts at Plaça Francesc Macià, where a quality department store has become a national institution. Just next door is Pedralbes Centre, an exclusive shopping mall which houses just about anything you could want, including brand-name shops, shoes stores, a jeweler’s, perfumeries and high-quality accessories, as well as shops which sell arts, crafts and plenty of great gifts. Further down stands L’Illa del Diagonal, a huge shopping mall with an entire floor dedicated to gastronomic delicacies.
Creu Coberta
C/ Creu Coberta is located a bit outside of the city centre and starts at Plaça Espanya, this is said to be one of the longest shopping streets in Spain, filled with many small clothes and shoes shops. There are almost no big chains present in this street and you will find yourself walking through an area full of character as you pass the neighbourhood full of locals, a very charming experience.
Shopping Malls in Barcelona
On occasional days in Barcelona, it might rain.:) A good way to spend your time when it’s raining here is going to a mall, they have everything you need to spend a nice morning, afternoon or even the whole day there. Cinema, Restaurants, Fast Food, Clothes shops and gadget shops, plenty of things to keep you occupied. A lot of shopping malls even have bars and nightclubs to keep you entertained all evening too!
El corte Ingles
The most famous shop in the city – or even Spain - is the imposing El Corte Inglés. In Barcelona the biggest one is located on Plaça de Catalunya. In this department store you can find anything you need: clothes, make-up, shoes, perfumes, luggage, bags, electronics, furniture, interior decorations, electrodomestics, tickets for concerts and a great supermarket too. They are open from Monday to Saturday, 10 am until 10 pm and also every first Sunday of the month. Website El Corte Inglés
Diagonal Mar
Diagonal Mar is a shopping centre located a bit outside the old city centre, near Forum. There are many stores throughout the two floors such as Zara, Fnac, Mango, etc. The top floor houses almost exclusively (fast-food) restaurants, a cinema and some bars. It is really fun for the whole family to go there!
La Maquinista
La Maquinista is an outdoor, open shopping centre with lots of light and answers to a new concept with a variety of shops, leisure, catering and services spread over 230 establishments and more than 31,000 m2 surface. The shopping and leisure area is distributed over three floors and also has two underground floors with 4,000 parking spaces. You can get there by metro with L1 and get off at Sant Andreu.
Gran via 2
Gran Via 2 is Barcelona’s shopping centre near to the airport. It is at about 5-10 minutes from the airport and right next to the Montjuïc/Gran Via District where the International Trade Fair is located, so a good access is guaranteed (metro, bus and taxi). It is an impressive mall where you will find more than 200 shops with Spanish and international fashion brands; men, women and kids, sports, household goods, beauty, accessories, specialised food, etc. A good tip is to ask for the Personal Shopper and Image Advise Service and be assisted when you are shopping in Gran Via 2.
Maremagnum, Open on Sundays
The Maremagnum Shopping centre is a big American style shopping mall located at the end of La Rambla del Mar. Not only can you find the best shops in Barcelona but also good pubs and even a nightclub.
Stores in Maremagun: Bershka, Jack and Jones, Havaïanas, Oysho, H&M, Quicksilver, Springfiels, Stradivarius,…
Open:
All the stores in Maremagnum are open from 10 am until 10 pm.
The restaurants stay open until 1 am.
The bars are open from 23:00 until 04:30.
Outside Barcelona
La Roca
La Roca is an outlet store / village located outside of Barcelona, in La Roca de Vallès. They are open from Monday to Friday, 11 am until 8:30 pm and on Saturdays from 10 am until 10 pm.
If you want to buy clothes and shoes of international brands at a better price, then this is the place you should go to. To get to La Roca de Vallès you must get a train or a bus. They all leave from Sants- estació.
Whether you believe it or not, there are days when it´s raining in Barcelona, too. It might feel like a pity. Especially if it is Saturday, you´re off from work but still feel as going out and do something! The perfect activity for such days is called shopping! One of my favourite shopping malls is La Maquinista. It´s a huge and modern three stories building with all kinds of famous brands stores. The closest metro station is Sant Andreu on the red line (L1), about 25 minutes from Plaza Cataluña. As it is not in the center of the city it rarely gets too crowded, which is good if you hate standing in lines!
The one and only shopping mall that is open every day of the year is Maremagnum in Port Vell. It seems as the whole city goes here on Sundays when the bridge over the water gets crowded with people. This mall has a fantastic location with views to the sea and the harbour. There are also several restaurants and the Aquarium nearby which can be a nice place to visit. Outside is a small hill where people sit down in the grass and relax, enjoying the sun!
Sometimes you might want to make some changes at home. One of the Spaniards (and foreigners too!) favourite home decoration store is IKEA with it´s affordable prices and scandinavian design. A visit here can easily be combined with shopping in the Gran Via 2 mall as they are so close to each other. The easiest way to get here is to take a metro to Espanya and change to the L8. The stations are Europa-Fira and Ildefons Cerdá. Gran Via is a nice and big mall with many Spanish and international brands.
And then there are other days when you are tired of the malls and just want to stroll quietly down a street in Gracia. This district has amazingly many small, charming stores with a little bit of everything. Actully Gracia feels like a little town inside the big city. Its design and style is so unique that you know you will never find it anywhere else.
