Have a taste for fine wines? Barcelona is quickly outclassing many other European cities with many high quality and affordable wines from wineries nearby in the Catalonian area. Take the Barcelona Wine Tour with a specialized wine guide for a day of touring Barcelona while enjoying all types of red and white wines. The tour begins in the Cathedral Plaza and then follows through to the Gothic Quarter for a bit of sightseeing before the tasting begins. Groups are then led to a medieval cellar, an exceptional building with stone walls and antique furniture with the essence of a medieval castle.

The groups are served together at a large table, choosing 5 wines each, and then repeating their favorite. A medley of cheeses, meats and bread is served to the table to enhance the experience and taste of each unique wine. The tour generally takes about four hours or so, making it a great tourist activity to do in the afternoon before a late dinner. Reserve your apartment in Barcelona today and sign up for an unforgettable day of delicious wines and sightseeing in the beautiful city.

Want to really impress the locals you meet while in Barcelona? Read this guide to learn a few important phrases in Catalan; the native, and one of two official, languages of Barcelona and Catalunya. Don’t be afraid to use them while you’re here, either. I think you will be surprised and impressed with the response you receive simply from your efforts to use and acknowledge the local language, one which, incidentally, represents much more than simply a means of communication for the Catalan people.

"Use your tongue" campaign promoting the use of Catalan

BACKGROUND:

Catalan is a romance language, deriving from Latin, and is an official language of the autonomous region of Catalunya. It is one of the official languages of the Spanish state; along with Castilian (“Spanish”), Euskera (Basque), Gallego, and Valencia.  There are currently an estimated 10 million people who speak Catalan- making it more widely spoken than national European languages like Swedish!

Under the dictatorship of Franco, the language was outlawed and its public use could mean prison time, or worse. Yet, despite attempts to homogenize the Spanish state and extinguish Catalan from existence, the language continued to be spoken inside the privacy of citizens’ homes. Finally, upon the transition from dictatorship to democracy, the long repressed tongue exploded back into public view and has since become more important than ever in Catalunya, not only as a means of communication- but also as a symbol of the perseverance of the Catalan people and their interminable spirit to maintain their unique culture and traditions in the face of totalitarianism and adversity.

Read on to learn a couple of easy phrases that will really impress the native Barcelonins you meet while staying in your Barcelona apartment.

Useful Catalan Phrases: