You’re planning a visit to Barcelona in December? Let me suggest a couple of interesting exhibitions:
Exhibitions opening in December 2019
CosmoCaixa The Adventures of Tintin: the moon 2019
MACBA Charlotte Posenenske: work in progress until March 8th, 2020
Museum Maritim Drassanes and the galley until December 31st, 2022
Picasso Museum Éluard and Picasso November 8th, 2019 till February 23rd, 2020 Picasso as Poet November 8th, 2019 till February 23rd, 2020
Other events
Winter Swimming
Winter swimming takes place in the harbor basin on December 26th. Why on Earth hundreds of (mostly young) people take a dive into the cold water is, quite frankly, beyond me. I haven’t seen it for myself yet either – after all, I’m usually with my Family in Germany during that time.
New Year’s Eve
Should you be coming to Barcelona for New Year’s Eve expecting a grand party in the streets, prepare to be disappointed. The Spanish usually celebrate the new year in the comfort of their homes with their families. Obviously, there are parties here and there, but large firework displays, as they’re known in New York City or London, are not common in Spain. In Catalonia, fireworks are only allowed during the summer – the Night of Fires or Saint John’s night, to be precise. Should you be looking for fireworks anyway, be sure to show up at the Placa d’Espanya nice and early – the city has hosted a public fireworks display there for the past couple of years. Instead, the Spanish have a different New Year’s tradition: Eat a grape at every strike of the clock at midnight. If you make it, you’ll supposedly be lucky next year. On the other hand, this tradition prevents you from loudly celebrating or kissing when the clock strikes midnight… After all, you’ll be busy chewing! Oh, and make sure to get seedless grapes – for obvious reasons :D
