Christmas Markets in Barcelona | Fira de Santa Llucia

 

Christmas Markets are famous every Christmas season. You will be able to see there a lot of stuff that are related to Christmas such as Christmas tree, Christmas decors, stuff that are related to Christmas beliefs of a certain place. Aside from that, there are a lot of countries that are doing this such as France, Amsterdam, Germany, Philippines, etc. This is an annual event that every places or countries are competing on.

   
Christmas is a season to gather with your loved ones; family, friends, workmates, etc. And Christmas Markets give its contribution to the season. But let us not forget the real reason for Christmas, the birth of our saviour Jesus Christ.

Location

 

Here in Barcelona, we also have Christmas Markets and they are located in front of the famous Cathedral of Barcelona in Barrio Gothic. It is an advantage if you are planning your vacation here because it is near to Las Ramblas. You can go there without travelling too long.



And for those who already live in Barcelona, you should take time to go there. It will give you a Christmas vibes, relieve your stress as well and have time for yourself or with you family and friends.

They have a lot to offer so without further ado, I will tell you the things that you can see and buy inside the Christmas Markets in Barcelona.

   

1. Nativity Scenes and figurines

 

The birth of Jesus Christ is the reason for Christmas and we all should celebrate it. In Christmas Markets, you will find a lot of manger that represents the place of His birth. There are also Nativity scene with figurines or just the figurines alone. We usually see Nativity Scene in churches, buildings. But now, you can have your own Nativity Scene with different sizes that is enough for your home.
  
 

2. Christmas Trees

  Inside the Christmas Markets, you will be able to see and buy your own Christmas Tree. And take note, they are real! They have a variety of heights to offer. 

As we all know, you cannot grow a real Christmas tree or evergreen fir tree just anywhere. There are specific cities or countries that has the best weather and land for these kind of trees. And if you want to have such Christmas vibe using a real Christmas tree, it is your chance. 

 

3. The Caga Tio

 

  The Caga Tio is a character in Catalan mythology relating to a Christmas tradition wide spread in Catalonia. It is being used during Christmas eve. It is a trunk from a tree to which children must spank in order to provide them with gifts that they will get from the back of the trunk. It is a good feeling of having different traditions from different countries.

 

4. Caganer

  Another thing that is inspired by Caga Tio are these small mannequins or Caganer that are pooping. You will see all the characters from President of US, heroes, cartoon characters, famous actors, football players, etc. If you are a fan, it is a good thing to collect this.

5. Santa Clause

Even we live in Spain, Santa Clause is still famous to people of all ages. So you will surely see different kinds and sizes of Santa Clause in Christmas Market in Barcelona.
  
 

6. Christmas Decorations

  If you are not fun of Christmas trees, Caga Tio, Nativity Scene. You can still have these Christmas house decoration. They are small that you can just hang on your doors, walls, or put above the table. By this, there will still Christmas vibes inside your house. 

  Christmas is the best season to spend time with your family, relatives and friends. But let us all be thankful for its reason, the birth of our saviour Jesus Christ. Let´s have time to pray, ask for forgiveness and change for the better. Let´s have spiritual encounter with God. 

I wish you a Merry Christmas and God bless you!

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Special thanks to Mary Rose for spending time with me and for taking my photos
Check out Darlene´s vlog featuring Christmas Markets in Barcelona  

Camera used: iPhone XS Max
Filter: VSCO AL3

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.

John 3:16 

CentOnze Restaurant Review | Le Méridien Barcelona

 

Las Ramblas in one of the signature places in Barcelona, Spain. It is a good experience to have lunch or dinner in this area. And one of the most attractive restaurants is The CentOnze Restaurant. The CentOnze Restaurant is connected with the 5 star hotel Le Méridien.
  

  

Location

  

CentOnze Restaurant is located in Las Ramblas 111, Barcelona Spain. It is near Le Meridien, Hotel 1898, Nike, Decathlon, etc. 

If you are walking around in Las Ramblas or near by places such as Plaza Catalunya, Calle Pelayo, or Barrio Gotico, you should not miss eating in this restaurant for it is just a few steps from those said famous destinations in Barcelona Spain.

But if you are coming away from these said places, there are two nearest Metro Station Stops such as Plaza Catalunya and Liceu.
    

CentOnze Restaurant

  

CentOnze Restaurant offers different variety of foods from Starters, Tapas, Meats, Fish and as well as different drinks. You can check directly in their website the choices of foods that they offer.
   

A La Carte

   
Here are some of their A La Carte:

Menus

CentOnze Restaurant also offers Menu. You can take a starter, main and dessert for only 16.50€ for weekdays, and 22.90€ for weekends. It is good if you have a tight budget and yet you want to experience eating in this classy and many to offer restaurant.
     

Ambience

If you really want to relax, this is the best place for you. The ambience inside the restaurant is relaxing, calm and classy at the same time. It also gives the view of the famous Las Ramblas. You will see people and car passing by and thanks to its soundproof, you will not get distracted nor disturbed by them. 

  

It is also a good choice of restaurant for couples for it also gives a romantic vibes inside. And they have big table for family and friends. 



I would like to also give a point the smell inside the restaurant. They offer seafoods and sometimes, most of the restaurant I went to, I always smell something stinky that I do not like it. But CentOnze gives you a clean smell and vibes that you will not get irritated about.

Le Pop Cocktail Bar

CentOnze Restaurant do not just offer meals but they also have their different signature drinks that you should not miss!
  

Comfort Room

One of the many things I check in any restaurants is their comfort room. I can say based on my experience that it is really hard to find a restaurant with a clean comfort room. Good to say that CentOnze indeed has a clean comfort rooms. For sure it is because the restaurant is connected with Le Meridien Hotel which is a plus point for them.

Discount!

Another tips for you, readers, you can have up to 50% discount in their A La Carte just by downloading ¨The Fork¨ on your mobile phones. By that, you will get notificated whenever they have promos. 

Camera used: Iphone XS Max
Photo Editor (For Effects): VSCO
Photo Editor (For Grids): PicsArt

I know that there is nothing better for people than to be happy and to do good while they live.

Ecclesiastes 3:12

Common Reasons for Delayed Flights

 Travelling around the world is such an exciting experience. But still, it has pros and cons. And sometimes, not everything that we planned before our trip really happens.

While travelling, we have different choices on how do we want to get to a specific destination. There are choices such as: By air, by land and by sea. By air, we can go by airplanes. By land, we can go by trains and by buses. Lastly, by sea, we can go by boat or ships. 

Any of the choices above does not guarantee you that it will be the fastest way. It all depends on availability of the place you are coming from and going to. Take not that there are places that only allows airplanes or sometimes ships and buses. So it is better to plan it as early as possible so you can make the analization.

Have you ever got your flight delayed or worst, canceled? I know it really pissed us off specially if it will affect our plans. But you need to chill! Because it will not give any help. I met a lot of travellers who got pissed off and started shouting at poor airline or airport stuff. So with this blog, let me  enlighten a little bit your mind  with the common reasons for delayed flights.

Traffic 

Yes, you read that right.  Even in the sky, traffic happens. Specially if there are amount of planes departing and taking off. Sometimes, it takes 1 hour, or more than, for a plane to depart.

Weather

As we all know, the airplane that we are flying with comes from different places. Weather in our place is not the same as the weather in the place where the airplane comes from.

For example, the plane that we are waiting is from Alaska and that plane cannot fly due to bad weather in that place, so it will affect the airplane´s next flight. 

The same thing if there is a bad weather in our location, it will definitely affect our flight.

Crews

Crews are indeed important in any flight. But because of the reasons above: Traffic and weather, those indeed affect the crews. They will have to finish their responsibility from the previous flight they had because they will be able to go to the next one. 

Those are common reasons for delayed flights. So next time that you will travel, remind yourself of those reasons before you get mad to any crew / land crew. It is indeed important to be nice and relax in any situation. Remind yourself that all theses crews are just doing their job and making sure that you will be safe during the flights. Any persons from airline or airport dont deserve to be disrespected by any customers. 

More than that, we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.

Romans 5:3-5

First Time Experience with Etihad Airways

 

Etihad Airways is one of the leading airlines in the world. They are line of the airlines from United Arab Emirates. Etihad Airways commenced their operation in 2003 and finally able to fly in Barcelona starting 2018. 

Last December 2018, we planned to spend our yearly vacation in the Philippines. So from Barcelona Spain, we booked a flight going to the Philippines through Etihad Airways. They are the only airline who was offering a promo for the dates that we needed.

Service

Just like any other airlines, they are there to help you throughout the whole flight for all your needs. Being in Hospitality Industry, we expect them to be nice and bringing smile most of the time. But is just a sad thing that I did not see any smile from them during our flight. The first and last smile was when we were leaving the plane.

As part of hospitality industry, smile is one of the most important thing to offer. It makes the clients feel warmed and at home so it is really a big thing for me for I travel with them almost a whole day.

Equipments

During our flights, especially for those long flights, we are always looking for something that will intertain us. But one of the first thing I noticed when I sat, is the monitor. That type of monitor is what I had during my first flight with Singapore Airline way back 2009. That is more or less, 10 years ago.  I just hope, they upgrade their facilities as they go wider the globe.

Another thing I noticed was the space on our sits. It is indeed smaller than Singapore Airlines and Qatar Airways that will make you feel uncomfortable during the whole flight. You won't be able to stretch your legs and feet.

I was really dissapointed because our seat was really uncomfortable. I travelled with my mother and my brother, but my brother´s seat was away from us. And during our last flight, we seated on the last seats in the plane. But maybe, the problem was with the agency where we booked our flights. So it is really important to book your flight with a good reference travel agencies.
                        Overhead Bin

During our flight from Barcelona to Abu Dhabi, we did not have any problem. But from Abu Dhabi to Philippines, we had.Due to old aircraft that they have, we had to put our luggages in check in. Bad thing because of issues in Philippine Airport. The fact that we prepared those luggages as our hand carry but they had to get it due to small airplane. I hope they upgrade their planes to be able to access the needs and wants of new generation.

Entertainment

Etihad Airways offers you a variety of movies and series to watch from different countries specially in Asia. They also offer games for us to get entertained. 

In front of our seats are magazines to read and the menu that they offer during the flight. As well as the safety guide during emergency situation that we should always check out to remind ourselves. 

Foods

Etihad Airways offers variety of food, from meat to chicken. But of course, Etihad Airways is an airline from United Arab Emirates, so they have a middle eastern type of food to offer and if you are fan of it, good for you. But if not, sorry. And it is a bad thing for me because I did not like it that much. I am not really familiar with curry. Food is really depends on your appetite and preferability. 

If you finished to read this whole article, I know that you noticed that I did not like anything from this airline. I know I paid for a promo ticket but still, I paid a quiet amount of money, and I did not receive the service and comfort that I was expecting and needing. For now, I am sure I will not fly with this airline anymore unless they change their service and facility.

¨For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us whoa are being saved it is the power of God¨

-1 Corinthians 1:18

Enchanted Kingdom

 

Travelling around will give you variety of choices on what to do and where to go. And aside from visiting the most historical places or the natural resources, you can also visit some theme parks.

Here in the Philippines, we do have " peryas" that you'd be able to see in some Baranggays. But of course, we still have big theme parks that people of all ages would surely love. We have Star City that is located in Pasay and that is near to Manila International Airport. But do not be sad if you are from the South or planning to visit especially Batanggas, Mindoro, etc. because we are proudly present to you the Enchanted Kingdom.

Location and Directions

Enchanted Kingdom is located at San Lorenzo South City of Sta. Rosa Laguna, Philippines 4026.

And for transportation, Enchanted Kingdom is offering a shuttle from the following locations:

• 2nd floor, Ayala Park Square Carpark (in front of Dusit Thani Manila) 
• Starmall Alabang (from Enchanted Kingdom Only)

Shuttle Rates:

• Makati

• P360 – Roundtrip | P180 – One ways

• Starmall Alabang (from Enchanted Kingdom to Alabang Only)

• P100 – One way

Entrance Ticket

• Weekdays

• Regular P698

• Junior P490

• Weekends/Holidays

• Regular P785

• Junio P590

You can directly book it here and to use my code for discounts, just share this blog post on your social media accounts and directly message me on my social media accounts with the screenshot as proof that you did.

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.

Romans 15:13