Maybe it’s because I’m a Londoner… you know the tune! – Believe me, London and being a Londoner offers up a HUGE list of weird experiences about London life – But today, I want to share what I find strangely weird (and beautiful) about Barcelona.

Barcelona has it’s own character! And I enjoy finding out more about it, kind of like getting to know a new person in a relationship 😜 Building connection. The funny thing is that all of these points don’t apply to other cities I have been to in Spain – like Madrid. Feel free to let me know what you think – Or if you start noticing them too!

Here we go… The weird and wonderful BCN:

This city is a dog lovers paradise…

While the humans talk in the middle of the pedestrian path, so do their dogs lol! I’m not joking… I will see around 5 people chatting away while their dogs are happily doing their own doggy communication things together.

I have never seen so many types of dogs (and all super cute) in the same place. I have to admit, I am more of a cat-lady, but this city has definitely found a soft spot in my heart (which I never knew about) for doggies. Awwww!

I see twin babies everywhere….

Yes, it is weird (for me) – Is that a good luck thing? Believe me, this was not something I was out looking for lol! But I can honestly say that this is the first time that I have noticed how many twin children there are in the streets. Uh, what’s in the water?!?

 I have a collection of abandoned beautiful old books…

OK, I get that some of you might think this is an unhygienic thing to do – But I have found my Self collecting and being spoilt by the amount of beautiful books that are just left in random places for others to pick up. No joke… take a seat in a random bench and there you go – a pile of books for someone to enjoy! That’s one way of learning Catalan quickly.

Conversations across borders…

Languages feel universal here – I will see a group of friends all speaking different languages and answering back in another. For example: One girl will talk Catalan first, followed by her friend who will answer back in Castellano, followed by 2 comments in Italian and Portuguese from their friends in the group. All understood by all. I love that!

Manspreading (and womanspreading) all over the pedestrian pavements too…

Madrid has recently banned manspreading in public transport (read more here)… I really wish there was such a thing for the way people walk too! Can we get a sign for that please!

I think I must have picked up my walking habits from London. Yes, I can be an uptight Londoner, used to walking quickly in an efficient robotic stiff manner! I will admit, I could relax a bit (that’s what I’m re-learning to do here) – But sometimes, it can really challenge me when I see a group of people taking their sweet time walking across a very wide pavement, with no thought about other people around them. Or groups of people who will just stand in the middle or walk in a straight horizontal line – while everyone else has to make their way around them. It reminded me of trout struggling to go upstream for some reason. Can’t people think about others around them too? Weird – but not something I love.

Sunbathing with your luggage is normal

Barcelona is a touristy city, especially for short-term travel to soak up the sun over a weekend break. I love how people make the most of it – From the moment they leave the airport… to the minutes before they catch the bus back. So, it’s not unusual to spot beach lovers sunbathing with their luggages packed. The above picture is a tame version – I’ve seen bigger groups in bikinis and sun umbrellas with luggages… I can’t remember seeing this in any other beach city. No, they are not beach bums – they just really want to make the most of every second on their holiday.

And who can miss this! S**tters everywhere in Christmas…

Behold the amazing Caganers – Yes, it translates to “shitters“. Don’t freak out if it’s the first time you see them – It’s a Catalan tradition. These are proud little statues squatting down over a neat roll of doo-doo… Lovely 💩 You will also find many cheeky Tió de Nadal, or Caga Tió (which means “shitting log”) around this festive time of the year (read about this tradition here).

The first time I saw them in Christmas, I couldn’t stop giggling at this funny unexpected encounter… And just like that, I knew Christmas was on its merry way 😀

I might add more soon – Stay tuned!