Here's the second!

2 hours of nerve-wrecking wait. No voice at all in the end. Eyes wide open, mouth gaping, sweat. We finally got to the end of the match one goal ahead, which was scored just 10 minutes before the end. The game was tight and difficult. Arsenal scored in the first half after having their goallie sent out. That left a 10 aginst 11 match which wasn't easy at all. When many of us thought that the cup would be lost, Eto'o and Belleti moved the balance for Barça in just 4 minutes. Unbelievable!!
Second European Champions Cup, and the feeling that the team has a promising future ahead. How far will they get?

Just feelings

No pictures, no links... just feelings. Tonight Barça are playing their Champions League Final in Paris against Arsenal. I'll be watching it at a friend's together with a bunch of people and Clara, my eldest daughter (she does like football, indeed!). If they win, the blog will have a colourful post tomorrow. If they lose, never mind, there much more important things in life than a simple football match... but this isn't a simple one, by no means! Funny how we tend to be mesmerized by such vacuous things.

Goosepimples

Yesterday I happened to listen to a song... goosepimples!! It was a cry of sensitivity, of tenderness and lyricism. Katie Melua, a young singer of georgian roots sings a beautiful song called "I Cried for You"... amazing how I was moved by her voice! I think I will definitely have a look at her other songs... and so should you; but first visit her website and watch the video of this song. My colleagues might even find the video interesting as an activity in the classroom. Her voice is crystal clear, the tempo is good, ans the movie can be very helpful to practise parts of the human face. Don't miss it!

President of my country... tough job, indeed!

Pasqual Maragall, my president, must be really having a bad time. His colleagues at power fom ERC (independentists), say they will foster their voters' "NO" at the referendum for our new "Estatut" (something like an autonoumous set of laws and rules to govern Catalonia). They claim the Estatut is short of power for Catalonia and still depends too much on Madrid. That leaves Maragall in a very uncomfortable position. Part of his ministers (those from ERC) will probably say NO in the referendum whereas he and his sidekicks (PSC, the socialists and IC, the ecosocialists) will ask for the voters' support with a YES. The spanish nationalist conservatives (PP) also stand for a NO, but for the opposite reasons of ERC. PP claims that too much autonomy will finally break Spain into pieces, trying to cause fear in the more moderate voters. This tug of war will probably benefit Convergència i Unió, the catalan conservative nationalist party who was in the government for 23 years. Wrapped in a patriotic flag, they ruled the country with a full right-wing bias. This present catalan government, made up of the three left-wing catalan parties, raised many people's hopes for a more equalitarian country. This conflict may cause the government's downfall and subsequently new elections will be held. That would mena that many projects would be held at a standstill or, depending on the next government, probably put off.

May the 17th.... mmmmm!

Barça made it! They defeated Milan in the two-match semifinal with a total score of 1-0. Poor as it may look. Not many teams can really boast to have beaten the italians.
And now the final! Arsenal are waiting for us in Paris... Henry, Fàbregas, Reyes... It's going to be a beatiful tug of war, I'm sure. I won't be there, but I'll be on my sofa watching it. Next champs... us... I'm sure.

Sowing the seeds of love... green love

Last tuesday we were having dinner at home and Mònica (5) took a green bean seed from the plate and asked my wife Anna if she would have a baby if dad put one of those in her belly... so... vegetarians beware!!

Good news... fears away

A brief note: I've just been through a couple of bothering things... I had to undergo a gastroscopy and an endoscopy because of different reasons. My family has a history of intestine polyps (my mother and my grandmother Petra). Some were good, some were bad. After 40, you must get a check up in order to prevent polyp development. No polyps in the end!
I also had a gastroscopy because of some swallowing problems... that gave me the creeps! I didn't know what could be wrong with my swallowing. In the end, it has turned up that I have a moderate hiatal hernia... NOTHING SERIOUS!!!! These days I have thought about my daughters and my wife, about many things... I was afraid, but finally I can look at the future again with the same strength and optimism!

An oasis for teachers... and speakers

I've been told a new café has opened up in Barcelona: The English Oasis Café. There you can have a drink and speak English. There are activities and even learning modules of spoken English for low-stage learners, and different topics for everyone to choose. Magazines, boardgames... anything that might help you feel in comfortable in an English speaking atmosphere.

Back from the hills!

So we are back. We had a great time there, in spite of the dangers you'll see later on this post. The house was cute and tidy, and there wasn't many people around, we met a family next to our place, but we didn't see much of each other.

On our arrival, we had the opportunity to celebrate Clara's birthday, and we took advantage of the present she got... a Monopoly!! We played and played, and she got used to winning pretty quickly.

The weather was fine, we had some fog (really thick), and sunshine, but scarcely any rain, so we managed to do some walks in the area.
We went into a vegetarian diet of barbecued ribs and spiced pork meat... together with boiled vegetables to compensate.
We met a very interesting man and his family. Mr Valentí Garrigasait, the owner of the place where we were staying. He is a very trustworthy man, always ready to help you and give any assistance you need. A man with a solid background and sympathy that make of him an outstanding character. He was the one who restored Hotel Sant Roc in Solsona, a beautiful art noveau building of 1929, and turned it into a fashionable hotel worth visiting run by his efficient daughter Dolors. On our way back, we stopped by and had lunch there, and were welcome by the staff with such kindness that my daughters behaved like sheep (easy joke... they usually do). Dolors showed us the newly decorated rooms, some of them painted by Tate, another one of Valentí's daughters. Really astounding!! I really encourage you to pay a visit to this nice hotel in Solsona.

Here's a little show of the things we had to endure up there in the wilderness!!

Bork

Bork

Bork

Bork

Bork

Bork

Bork

Bork

Bork

Bork

Bork

Bork

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...and the prince will come

...and there will come a time when the prince will come, and he will take away my two princesses. Oh, god, how hard it must to be the king in your palace and see your beautiful daughters part!
Fathers and mothers rule in their palaces of bliss... but their kindred goes away when the time comes. That is something I will have to endure. But as I look at them now, I see how strong I will have to be... to see my daughters flee!

Up to the hills!!

Saturday... two days and we are out on holiday!!!
The four of us (my two little carrion-eating sparrows, Anna and I) are going to a nice country house in Canalda, a nice little village in the Pyrenees, or pre-Pyrenees. We have booked a little cozy place probably surrounded by cow dung and swarms of insects. We'll probably hear the bleeting mountain goats, and taste the delicious ingredients of catalan cuisine.

My daughter Clara doesn't know, bus she's getting a Monopoly game for her birthday on the 8th -yes, the very same day we are setting out-. That means that evening activities will be probably based on playing board games and eating sunflower seeds. I'll be peeling off Mònica's, probably; my wife can manage an Clara too.

I'm looking forward to some days of relax, good reading, good walking, good eating and... ey, you dirty reader don't think any further... and good sleeping.
You'll have a proper report in due course.

Two very outstanding people. If you ever met them, it would be difficult to find two adjectives to describe them out of: sympathetic, friendly, helpful, humble, honest, hard-working, cultivated, resourceful, sociable... and others. Here's a little homage to them, Toni and Mercè.

Got it!!

Row 19, seat 6.... I'll be there, Emmylou!

She's coming... and it's for real!!

I was in my teens. I loved music (I still do), and I loved her. I was crazy for Emmylou Harris. Together with my friend Jorge, we used to listen to her warm sweet songs. Her songs were the soundtracks of my love affairs. We wrote a letter to her fan club in the States... and we received a hand written reply!! I still remember, she said: "For Richard, all the best". And she signed it!

I have never forgotten her songs. In fact, I've never stopped listening to them. One of my biggest disappointments in life was when, years ago, one day I got a call from Jorge saying that she was giving a concert in Barcelona. But, just my luck! I was flying to England that very same day with some students from my school... no escape! I felt down in the lumps, but there was nothing I could do... and now she's coming back! I just read it in the newspaper this morning. She will be at Palau Sant Jordi on the 13th of june, together with Mark Knopfler. I've just learned they are about to publish a new record of duets. And they'll be on a tour... and in Barcelona. I'll run for a ticket. And I'll see her on stage. I'm not a teen anymore, but she still makes me tremble like a leave when she sings.

BETT Prizes

The 2006 BETT prizes put their stress on the use of ICT in Education. Here's a link to the winners list. It is worth a visit, believe me.
Click on http://www.becta.org.uk/corporate/display.cfm?section=21&id=4978 and go!

Grief... or rage?

I was going to edit a post about my daughters skiing in the Pyrenees, but I don't have the guts. I've just read the paper and I've come across a piece of news about an american attack. American troops were trying to capture an Al Qaeda member in a town north of Bagdad. All they got was 11 people killed, 5 children amongst them.
Just look at the picture and tell me if all this is worth. Innocent children dead because of political interests.. who is the criminal?
I can only think of my daughters... and the picture. And you?

The photograph belongs to REUTERS Agency

Beware!!

I've just sent an invitation to visit this blog. Don't be afraid to leave your imprint! The only thing that could happen was that I could set Mònica loose... she's wild!!

On to the next!!

I was there... not a hairpin could fit into the stadium. And it was worth! Barça played a serious and intelligent game against a team who wasn't able to carry out his role: Chelsea didn't know how to take up their task; they had to create and attack... but there was no siege in Valdez's area, no missed chances. They show the way they can only play... hidden behind the midfield line, waiting for a mistake. But theirs was the mistake. Football must be something else, and the red and blue in front tried to show that... and Ronaldinho took over Messi and succeeded. Football at its best. So... now on to the next match!

Do they really know?... or don't they?

I'm having a bad time lately. Everything's fine at home, at work, even at my wednesday's football matches ( I even get to score!) The thing is... there's some people who are trying to make a fuss of my little country. We catalans want to be ourselves. That could mean different things: Some would like to live on their own, out of spanish bonds and with Catalonia's own State system. In other words: They want to be independent. Some others want to show that, even though they might feel Catalonia is a part of Spain, they want to make sure they are not left aside as a simple outer satellite of Madrid. They claim for recognition of their own identity within a multilingual and multicultural country like Spain. That takes money, and money is what catalans give to the state every year. But they want to see some more of it reinvested in their own territory, and they want to decide what they are going to give to the Spanish government in order to contribute to the future of Spain. These two options might be right or wrong, but they are legitimate.
Last september, the autonomous catalan government voted a new legislation to administrate the territory in terms of economy, society and all aspects of the country: a new "Estatut". This law is being negotiated in Madrid now, and the spanish conservative party PP is trying to make a benefit out of that. Their aim is to defeat Zapatero's socialist government. In order to achieve that goal, they claim that the negotiations for the catalan "Estatut" will lead to the disappearance of Spain as a national entity. Former Prime Minister José Maria Aznar says Spain will enter a process of "Balkanisation" that will lead to the destruction of Spain. Conservative radio stations and newspapers are giving out biased comments trying to make the rest of the country believe all catalans want to destroy Spain, that spanish is an endangered language within Catalonia (more than 98% of catalans speak it, in front of the scarce 70% of catalan bilingual speakers). This strategy of constant attack and confrontation will achieve nothing but the creation of a crack between Catalonia and the rest of Spain. Many spaniards will not fall for that, but a large number of people are beginning to believe that Catalonia is at the verge of a conflict where Spanish speakers will be taken to concentration camps.
Is the victory in the elections and the fight for the power worth the division of a country?
I know it isn't, but I want to feel comfortable in the big home of Spain, not like an alien. If catalans are treated like enemies, they will probably decide to leave the big family alone.

Gorgeous

There was a football match yesterday... but it was more than that. We had been waiting for this day, a day of glory for those who like football. We Barça fans witnessed the victory of art and poetry in motion in front of sheer strength and power. Barça defeated Chelsea F.C. at Stamford Bridge in a match full of images to remember. Players fought bravely in a muddy potato field. The pitch was awful!! Barça played and Chelsea ran. Two different views of football met in London last night: No one can criticize Chelsea for the way they play. They fight for every single ball and pass it with a swift kick to their forward players who run like arrows towards the goal. No one does it better than Chelsea, and this is why they are on top of the Premiere League. But they met something different. Barça offers constant struggle to recover the ball as well, but there is something else... art! The Catalans are constantly trying to dribble and pass the ball through the most unbelievable space. Their most outstanding sample is Ronaldinho... or at least he was, now there's another one. Lionel Messi. English spectators could witness yesterday the rise of a new star. He drove Del Horno mad (he got a well deserved red card for his tackle), and later all the other defenders. Don't miss the wise comments on the independent page.