New animation serie in tv3

"Arros covat", which could be translated as brooded rice, is the new cartoon serie from TV3 and it is featured by a cool 30-year-old graphic designer from Barcelona. The style is simple and it remembers me the well-known serie of kevin in prison. Having seen 5 chapters so far, i like the stories because they talk naturally about things from young people, including funny sex scenes, not so common in a reserved public tv as the catalan tv.

Here it goes the first chapter (no english subtitles):

Short Film Dr. Mabuse

I finally was able to find a short film i saw in the open air festival in la plaza del rey in Barcelona. It's called: "Porque hay cosas que nunca se olvidan" (Cause there are things that you don't forget". It's published in youtube in 2 parts, enjoy it!

Pakito Latero

Oh my god, this should be the video of the year!

New videos from Calico Electronico

Part of Nikodemo team

Today i started a new working experience as a webmaster in a web animation company called Nikodemo, know for their superhero Cálico Electrónico, a mix between Superman, the tv character "Torrente" and the comedian "Chiquito de la Calzada", such a big freak.

So far, the job is very encouraging and i really like the informal and the creativity ambiance. I did not have the chance to meet carefully all my workmates, but i'm sure i will learn a lot from them and we will work together quite well.

As i'm now part of the web team, i have to promote now our cartoons animations. Honestly said, they're so much fun. Have a look!

A hidden shelter, Granollers 1938

Last Friday i was going back home when i saw a strange thing going on in the square in front of the library of Can Pedrals. Some standing people giving brochures, a small cue of random people and in the rear two concrete doors elevated creating an X. I asked what this was about, wanting to satisfy my cat curiosity. "This is a shelter from the civil war and we are showing it to the public" - a kind woman responded to me. "Is it a very claustrophobic space? There is artificial light, but in case you feel bad, you can leave immediately."

Inside and after some stone stairs, a humid gallery of 2 meters high and 10 meters wide (separated by 2 horizontal walls) moves us on the 31th of May of 1938. It was Tuesday, not Thursday, points our guide, when Granollers was bombed. I'm still amazed about the fact that i didn't know about this place. More than 200 people died in the main square of La porxada, continues the guide woman who goes on with the construction scarcity of the shelter.


I imagine poor citizens staying here, mainly women and children who saved their life, but totally terrified. They for sure experienced an unforgettable trauma for the rest of their lives. The conditions here were far from being reasonables, no place to sit, no toilets and flimsy ceilings as it was built in the last moments and it was not finished. They thought that the fascists wouldn't arrive to granollers.

30 minutes later, I go back to 2009 and i remember the words from my grandmother, who at the age of 90 is afraid of another civil war, observing the bad economic situation. We are a lucky generation, all in all.

"¿Barcelona es poderosa?"

Walking arround the center of Barcelona has become an intrepid experience. I always take any chance to discover new squares, random narrow streets, cool hidden restaurants and interesting musical bars. I enjoy my new favourite spots with the company of my "guiris" and though I am not totally local, I cannot avoid being proud of this mediterranian city.

On the other hand, there are some things that are not so great and unfortunately are part of Barna, especially in the center, such as: criminality (I had my car lock forced this weekend and it was parked in a central district), drunk annoying people, cervesa-beer omnipresent sellers (poor pakistanis guys), disgusting pimps and whores, pollution on the street and in the air, outrageous prices, jungle parking spots, crazy taxi and bus drivers, etc.

Facing this negative points, this last weekend we had a cultural weekend with free museums and exhibitions, open-air concerts, international gastronomy and exotic dance lessons. And this is the city we should promote, "la cultura es poderosa" ("culture is powerful"), as it cannot be outsourced and it educates and entretains our citizens and tourists.

Brasil e suas danças

Long time ago i discovered the dances from the country of Carlinhos Brown and Caetano Veloso. Those were crazy times with my friend Bruno from Natal and i was surprised to find such a big community of brazilian people in Barcelona.

Yesterday we searched for live music in the center and coincidences made us meet someone with a luggage and a white hat who transformed our boring monday to a cool one to remember. Afterthat, i was trying to dance Forró in a place called Roxy and though i felt a bit like a fish out of the water, i found myself again surrounded by brazilian and fans of their music and culture.

A wise say says "Si no sabes donde vas, acabarás en otra parte (If you don't know where you are going, you will end in another place)". I had a similiar experience in Prague, where some couchsurfers took me to enjoy the Tango night scene. Last night, i was in Brazil for a while, observing people dancing and listening this calm music and of course learning the basic steps through a master teacher. Honestly said, i cook better rice from Delta de l'Ebre than dancing, already tested.

What we remember

The past seems always a good source for feeding your mind, but i read once that you remember just a few and the rest you fill it out in order to fit the whole brain structure. My 90-year-old grandmother tends to mention that the present crisis in spain remembers her the times before the civil war. "A on anirem a parar!(Where are we going to end up?", she exclaims suddenly. Immediately i refuse her fears through arguments based on what i remember saying in the media.

Some people (i would include myself) prefer sometimes to live in or from the past, where one have the impression that everything was better and simpler. A nearly engaged friend was today kind of regretting to have lost the habitude of going out. I remember those party nights and they were not that great, being loyal the truth. But our brain is not precisely fair, and we remember things and people in the way we want to remember.

To sum up, it's a much more healtier attitude to say goodbye to your personal past and live in the present. Have always the feet on the ground it helps and as i saw in a bar from Madrid (a city which i'm visiting soon) if you drink to forget, remember first to pay!

Early morning conversations

It's 7am in the morning, the party is over and we end in a bar close to the market talking about colonization and atoms. I lose the rythm of the conversation for a while, remembering the latest events of our celebration in Gracia like flashing pictures. Lots of couchies, random interesting conversations, drinks and food, strangers united to contribute to the expenses, bad techno music later and finally here.

Honestly said, we had a busy night and it's a pitty i couldn't picture all the eyes i discovered, some of whom have fascinated me and inspired me. We agree with her, probably she is right with her arguments. I like the one saying that materials are empty inside.

We observe the preparations of the firemen run, the city is woking up, pip pip, granollers, home safe and sound.

Random friends Vienna March - December 2008

I left Vienna on the 28th of December to go on with my life in Barcelona. I have still in mind all the people I met and who made my whole experience in Vienna more interesting or much richer. Some of them are reflected in this slideshow.

A priorat, a region to discover

This was the second attempt to visit the region of Priorat in the Tarragona province from what i had heard great things, especially i wanted to try the wine and Esther wanted to climb some mountains.

And we succeeded in both, as we went to Scaladei where they have an amazing garnatxa wine and we walked up later to the monastry of Cornulla del Montsant. In the end, what we discovered was a region with little villages, vineyards, olives trees and the calm of being far away from an urban space. Very recommendable landscapes and also good affordable food!

Camp Nou, a dream comes true

After nearly all my life following the matches from Barcelona Club weekend by weekend, I went to see a live match, thanks to my friend Xavi. It was such a great experience, also an accomplished new year's desire. Pep Guardiola's brilliant team, a huge oval stadium and the cheering audience made us enjoy the game, despite the weather was rather cold. Result, victory, of course. Here it goes a video from the beginning of the match and a photo from us.

The beginning

Welcome my friend,

this blog is a tribute to the people i met during my stay in Vienna. It was my first experience abroad and i enjoyed as much as i could travelling, learning, cooking and living in a different and unexpected way.

Above all, long nights with Johnny Cash were my favourite.

Roger