Week 6 Activities: Beach, Mountain, City!

This weekend the Barcelona Dreamers crew headed to the beautiful seaside town of Tossa de Mar on Catalonia's famous Costa Brava. The Costa Brava is a picturesque stretch of coastline that extends about 40 miles from the area just north of Barcelona to the French border. Its rocky cliffs and small private beaches have given it its name, which translates to "rugged coast."

The day started with a huge buffet full of different dishes. A long day at the beach requires a good meal! 

Off to the beach! Tossa de Mar is one of the most well-known and economically important seaside towns along the Costa Brava. It has been settled since Roman times and there are various structures and ruins throughout the area dating from every period of time since. One of the most recognizable landmarks is the medieval castle perched atop the highest point in town, directly next to the main beach. This structure dates from the 12th century and gives an incredible view over the area!

The Barcelona Dreamers crew spent the day lounging on the beach, enjoying the refreshing Mediterranean waters, and playing paddle ball in the sand.

On Sunday, Resident Director Meritxell organized an unsponsored event to Tibidabo, a mountain directly behind the city of Barcelona that gives some of the best views of the city. The top of the mountain has many attractions, including a small amusement park, a large church, and a communications tower designed by famous architect Norman Foster.

On Monday, staff member Tom met a group of Dreamers outside one of the most famous works of architecture in Catalonia- Antoni Gaudi's Casa Mila, known more locally as 'la pedrera' which means 'the rock quarry.' The group took a tour of the facility, which was constructed between 1906 and 1912 for the very wealthy Mila family. The structure is one of the best examples of Gaudi's focus on nature, ironwork, and sculpture.

Also this week, Grupo Intercom CEO Gonçal Pagan was the featured speaker at our weekly seminar. Grupo Intercom is a Spanish company that focuses on Internet-based startups and online advertising. It has grown significantly since it was founded in 1995. This summer, 10 Barcelona Dreamers are interning at various Grupo Intercom startups.

In his presentation, Mr. Pagan discussed some of the differences between the American and Spanish work environments, as well as some of the recent trends in startup and Internet businesses.

It has certainly been a busy week for the Barcelona Dream Careers program!!

Week 4: Carcassone Overnight + Dali Museum!

Week 4 was one of our most exciting weekends yet for the Barcelona Dream Careers Program! For our sponsored weekend event, the group traveled to the medieval city of Carcassonne, France about 3 hours north of Barcelona. 

The small fortified city was developed by the Visigoths in the 5th century, although the settlement has existed since Roman times. The entire fortified section was restored in 1853 and was finally added to the UNESCO World Heritage Site list in 1997.

The Barcelona Dreamers enjoyed a complete guided tour of the city including visits to the two concentric fortified walls, the Basilica, and the cathedral of the city.Later, night fell on the walled city and the group was able to explore the centuries-old alleys and enjoy some of the many terraces around the quiet ramparts.

After spending one night in Carcassonne, the group moved on the next day to the small Catalan city of Figueres, Spain. This city- located in the province of Girona- is the birthplace of famous surrealist artist Salvador Dali, and is now home to the Salvador Dali museum.

Salvador Dali is perhaps the most famous surrealist painter, and his works include paintings, drawings, drafts, sculptures, photography, and film. He was also known for eccentric and ridiculous behavior in public, which many feared would devalue his artwork. 

The Barcelona Dreamers spent a few hours at the museum exploring the interesting and bizarre examples of Dali's work before taking the opportunity to explore the small city of Figueres. After two amazing days in the south of France and the northern parts of Catalonia, the group finally returned to Barcelona.

Some of the other events going on throughout the week have included soccer games organized by our staff member Collin as well as our weekly seminar speaker.

Week 3: Seminar, Camp Nou + Flamenco!

Week 3 of the Barcelona Dream Careers program was packed with activities and events of all kinds. It was no doubt our busiest and most exciting week yet!

To start the week Dream Careers CEO Eric Lochtefeld paid a visit to the beautiful city of Barcelona and delivered an emotional presentation at our weekly seminar. Eric recounted the highs and lows of his life and his determination to create a program that would allow young people to pursue their dreams. This idea developed into his company Dream Careers, which has let thousands of young people follow their own dreams.

Our sponsored event for Week 3 was a combination of attractions: first the Barcelona Dream careers crew visited the famous FC Barcelona football stadium. The Barcelona football club was founded in 1899 and is one of the most successful and richest soccer clubs in the world. The club’s current home stadium was completed in 1957 and is the largest stadium in Europe. Our group enjoyed a comprehensive guided tour of the stadium and other facilities such as the locker rooms, press box, and museum.

Afterwards the group headed to Plaza Espanya to spend some time in Las Arenas, one of Barcelona’s old bullrings that has been converted into a shopping mall! Here are Alexa Van Sickle and Samantha Blank enjoying a fish pedicure.

Finally our Dream Careers crew headed to Poble Espanyol, an open-air museum that features typical architecture from 15 different regions of Spain. The complex was originally built for the 1929 Barcelona International Exhibition. Here our group enjoyed a great dinner while watching a traditional Flamenco dance performance. The show lasted about an hour and was an excellent way to start Sant Joan, the longest night of the year!

Our staff member Collin has continued to organize unsponsored sporting events on campus throughout the week. Pretty soon we will have some Barcelona Dreamers playing for Barcelona!

And lastly a special shout out to Danielle Peterson, who turned 21 on June 24^th!