Journalist Pilar Rahola doused in red paint by far-left group in La Garriga A disturbing attack on an Israel supporter unfolded in Spain as far-left activists hurled red paint at journalist and author Pilar Rahola during her lecture marking the start of the academic year The incident occurred while Rahola was speaking at Marti i Loma University in La Garriga "You're stained with blood - this is what happens to supporters of genocide in Palestine," the assailants shouted before fleeing the hall waving Palestinian flags and a large banner reading: "We'll destroy the Zionist state of Israel" and "Zionism is fascism." Video: Footage of a far-left group's attack on journalist Pilar Rahola pausing her lecture only to wipe off the red paint and change her shirt I'm a free citizen in a free country - and fascists will never stop me from exercising my freedom Barcelona's Jewish community swiftly condemned the attack while others seek truth and blessing," their statement read and today we face a clear choice: to be light or darkness there's no place in universities for those who destroy and attack — 🟦 Pilar Rahola (@RaholaOficial) October 8, 2024 The assault on Rahola reflects the hostile several leading Spanish newspapers published articles criticizing the Israeli government While Madrid's Foreign Ministry issued a statement honoring those killed in the Hamas massacre many far-left politicians used the occasion to criticize Israel a Podemos member of the European Parliament protested in the European Parliament against its support for "terrorist Israel committing genocide." On Oct a new phase in the Palestinian genocide by the terrorist state of Israel began." Recently Spain's former Deputy Prime Minister from the far-left Sumar party The atmosphere in Barcelona around the Oct "The anniversary again triggered an anti-Israel and antisemitic wave in Barcelona," says Shai Deutsch Community Development Manager at Israeli Community Europe (ICE) which was plastered with anti-Israel and anti-Jewish graffiti and posters covering the city overnight with posters about the hostages and information about the massacre's anniversary We also organized a major memorial event to ensure Barcelona remembers the events of October 7 and the past year." the goals are that "Gaza will be completely destroyed All its residents concentrated south of the Morag.. The Diplomatic-Security Cabinet has approved a wide-scale military operation in the Gaza Strip dubbed "Gideon’s Chariots," aimed at defeating Hamas.. The plan includes conquering the Gaza Strip and holding territory moving the civilian population southward for its protection Analysis  Archaeology Blogpost Business & Finance Culture Exclusive Explainer Environment Features Health In Brief Jewish World Judea and Samaria Lifestyle Cyber & Internet Sports Diplomacy  Iran & The Gulf Gaza Strip Politics Shopping Terms of use Privacy Policy Submissions Contact Us The first issue of Israel Hayom appeared on July 30, 2007. Israel Hayom was founded on the belief that the Israeli public deserves better, more balanced and more accurate journalism. Journalism that speaks, not shouts. Journalism of a different kind. And free of charge. [contact-form-7 id=”508379″ html_id=”isrh_form_Newsletter_en” title=”newsletter_subscribe”] Your Ads Privacy ChoicesIMDb, an Amazon company© 1990-2025 by IMDb.com, Inc. Spain's most coveted Christmas lottery prize, 'El Gordo,' was the 72480, completely sold in Spain's La Rioja The biggest prize in the raffle is 'The Fat One' in English and all 193 series (of 10 decimos each) were sold in just one lottery administration But how does Spain's Christmas lottery work with a total prize pool of €2.7 billion and over 70% of Spaniards participating It is also the second longest-running lottery in the world even surviving the Spanish Civil War and the Covid-19 pandemic including Catalonia's Sant Boi de Llobregat with 5.8 series Catalonia saw €31,253,000 of the main prizes Catalan lottery players may have been lucky if they had bought the 11840 Most of the décimos were sold outside of Catalonia but the lottery administration sold 200 décimos in northern Catalonia's La Pobla de Segur Many workers at the Blancafort Hotel in La Garriga were among the lucky winners of the third prize "A worker said we could look for the ticket numbered 1840 and that's what we decided to do," one of the lucky lottery buyers told the Catalan News Agency (ACN) surrounded by friends and family members who shouted with joy "I am very happy because not only have we won the prize many people have tickets and many of them have bought winning numbers for their relatives," said Eva León Alella and Montgat were also among the lucky cities that sold the 77768 The lucky winners will receive €20,000 per décimo Some series were sold in Sant Boi de Llobregat About 20 minutes after the start of the lottery at 9 am the students of San Ildefonso sang the number 37876 as the first big prize of the day The first of the five prizes is a €6,000 décimo While most tickets were sold in Valencia and the Canary Islands some lucky buyers in the northern city of Girona and the inland town of Sort also bought 37876 74778, was sold in many places across Spain some tickets were also sold in Catalonia in more than a dozen towns from the north to the south of the territory was also sold all over Spain but not in Catalonia Barcelona residents could have been lucky if they bought the fourth-fifth prize, 45456 there were no lucky tickets for the fifth-fifth prize and 450 décimos (45 series) were sold in Barcelona Tickets can be redeemed from December 23 to March 24 Can Mariano de Baró had bought several series of the 11840 number with several regular customers among the ticket holders Bar owners were serving breakfast when the number was prized "Celebrations will have to wait," Maria Pilar Devissa as many customers were still having breakfast Loteria Merche is a small family owned lottery administration in Girona currently managed by Carlos and Andreu she sold some awards for the Christmas lottery the two siblings sold tickets for the 37876 "It is very emotional," Carlos Voz told ACN on Sunday they sold some tickets for the 'El Niño' lottery's first prize but never a winning ticket for the December 22 drawing but we learned it was us when they called from the radio," Carlos and Andreu Voz said All the winning tickets of the 37876 were mainly sold in person "between different customers" at the Loteria Merche in Girona minutes after the 'El Gordo' was announced one of the San Ildefonso school students sang a second time because "a boy asked me to do it," she said The 43226 was the second "El Gordo" to sing which sang earlier in the morning at 11:27 am The event takes place every December 22 Only in Catalonia residents bought tickets worth €423,498,540 an increase of 3.64% compared to the last edition people have spent the most on average, €108.44 per person and each number is printed on 1,930 décimos which means "a tenth of a ticket," is the most common ticket people buy a cashback prize where you receive your €20 back if your ticket’s last digit matches the last digit of the winning number Catalan News' podcast Filling the Sink explores the history of this festive prize draw and discovers how it is celebrated We visit some of Barcelona’s most iconic ticket outlets to meet lottery vendors and discuss the odds of winning ‘El Gordo,’ as well as the controversy surrounding state taxation of winnings We also chatted with some of the players about their lucky numbers and how they hope to beat the odds this year Listen below to the Christmas lottery episode of Filling the Sink. Get the day's biggest stories right to your phone The "Queen's Gambit" miniseries has become a huge hit with viewers since it premiered in October last year. The show also brought fame to Rechapados Ferrer, a Spanish chessboard manufacturer, whose sales have soared since being featured on the popular Netflix series An employee of Rechapados Ferrer makes chessboards in La Garriga near Barcelona Employees of Rechapados Ferrer make chessboards in La Garriga near Barcelona A picture shows colored wood planks that will be used by Rechapados Ferrer to make chessboards in La Garriga near Barcelona An employee of Rechapados Ferrer makes a chessboard in La Garriga near Barcelona Chessboards made by Rechapados Ferrer at a production site in La Garriga near Barcelona An employee of Rechapados Ferrer looks at finished chessboards in La Garriga near Barcelona A chessboard made by Rechapados Ferrer seen at a production site in La Garriga near Barcelona « Back Text description provided by the architects. The Can Luna industrial complex is located northwest of La Garriga, adjacent to the Congost river (which delimits the urban fabric), and in a key position for the urban development of the municipality. achieving two essential effects: to generate much wider openings that allow better sunlight inside and to create multiple accesses to the interior of the building while maintaining the prototypical morphology of walls and openings of industrial buildings to achieve a great visual permeability that crosses the building connecting the Can Luna courtyard You'll now receive updates based on what you follow Personalize your stream and start following your favorite authors If you have done all of this and still can't find the email He cut short his college career to join LIV Golf in 2022.Turned pro in September of 2022.Puig’s prodigious exploits as an amateur in Spain earned him a place at Arizona State he won three events and recorded seven top-10 finishes to highlight his talent and potential Please enable JS and disable any ad blocker The dates displayed for an article provide information on when various publication milestones were reached at the journal that has published the article activities on preceding journals at which the article was previously under consideration are not shown (for instance submission Automation in ConstructionCitation Excerpt :This work assessed the capacity of combined sewer systems (CSS) by monitoring the durations of overflow from individual CSO structures incorporated in CSS against rainfall event data The statistical probability of overflow is determined for a CSS network with several CSO whose chronological order of overflow has been observed using sensors [28] Modelling the hydraulic performance of a complete operational sewerage network requires up-to-date rainfall event data including duration and spatial distribution across a catchment along with current asset condition information [18] Journal of HydrologyCitation Excerpt :Decreasing the influence of overflows is an important part of reducing pollution in water bodies (Garofalo et al. Several cities have employed Internet of Things (IoT) to monitor the performance of sewer systems and to provide useful data to managers and engineers (Montserrat et al. The basic idea of IoT is to let ‘things’-such as sensors -be able to interact and cooperate with each other through wireless communication protocols (Giusto All content on this site: Copyright © 2025 Elsevier B.V. Timberlake x Nike shoe collab early access David Puig will make his LIV Golf debut on Thursday in Chicago On Friday afternoon in Chicago, David Puig will become a first of sorts for LIV Golf At noon local time, when the 20-year-old from La Garriga, Spain, tees off in his first professional event at LIV Golf Chicago, he will become the first major amateur golfer wrangled straight from the college ranks by the new league. That might not sound like big a deal for the deeply-funded, Saudi-backed upstart, particularly next to the nine-figure contracts awarded to the likes of Cameron Smith and Phil Mickelson Puig comes to LIV as the ninth-ranked amateur golfer in the world, a star player at one of the biggest college golf programs in the country, Arizona State Despite his success at the collegiate level (including three individual wins and a successful Palmer Cup performance in ’21) Puig was not a household name for most golf fans when LIV announced his signing last week Puig is a different type of “get” for LIV — a projection who has the potential to develop into a homegrown star Signing for a reported $4 million (a pittance compared to the deals of his more established competitors) Puig is a penny stock worth taking a chance on his signing also represents a small piece of the league’s bigger crusade in golf: turning the PGA Tour’s inequities into LIV’s gains As Puig explained in a press conference on Thursday afternoon his decision to join LIV had as much to do with the money as it did with the opportunity As an international player competing in the U.S. on-course success at Arizona State wasn’t enough to guarantee professional playing opportunities I actually think I had a pretty good amateur career and I didn’t get a lot of — or basically just one opportunity — to play with pros before LIV even started and they gave me two exemptions as an amateur which I really appreciated them a lot.” Pretty interesting insight from LIV Golf's newest signing, 20-year-old David Puig, about the inequities of PGA Tour exemptions. Puig, the world's 9th-ranked amateur, earned 1 exemption in 3 years at ASU before LIV called 2x to offer a slot. He signed with them a week later. pic.twitter.com/aMM1ELpgSe After accepting invitations to play in LIV’s pro-ams before the events in Bedminster and Boston a pro golf outfit had showed interest in him — something he couldn’t say about the PGA Tour even with the Phoenix Open held in his college team’s backyard getting into the Phoenix Open is pretty tough especially when a guy is from Spain,” Puig said he had the chance to play in the Phoenix Open but I think when he was 10 years old he was already a member at TPC Scottsdale or helped with the tournament somehow or something like that and I think the last amateur that competed there was Jon Rahm when he was playing awesome at ASU.” Soon after Puig’s pro-am appearances For all the (well-justified) chatter about money Puig’s story is actually one of opportunity “It was obviously a tough decision to leave ASU but it was a pretty easy decision to join LIV,” Puig said James Colgan is a news and features editor at GOLF writing stories for the website and magazine and utilizes his on-camera experience across the brand’s platforms during which time he was a caddie scholarship recipient (and astute looper) on Long Island He can be reached at james.colgan@golf.com All of our market picks are independently selected and curated by the editorial team Four Seasons Hotel Silicon Valley a contemporary urban getaway in the Bay Area announces the appointment of Daniel Garcia as Executive Chef brings a wealth of knowledge and experience as a leader of the culinary team Daniel earned his Culinary and Pastry Degree from the Escuela de Hosteleria Hofmann in Barcelona and worked his way up to become the sous chef at Moments the famous two Michelin star restaurant at the Mandarin Oriental in Barcelona In 2014 Daniel moved to the Bay Area and worked for James Beard Award nominee Coqueta restaurant in San Francisco Daniel joined the Meritage Resort and Spa Hotel in Napa Valley to become their executive banquet chef Daniel held the executive banquet chef position at the iconic Hotel Del Coronado in San Diego Coming from a family of travellers and hospitality professionals travelling to different parts of the world and the hospitality world was natural to him he moved to Barcelona at a very young age where most of his summers were spent in the countryside which later sparked his interest in the culinary world the Executive Chef has plans to work with local producers with an added focus on seasonality He also plans to offer an increased number of vegetarian options keeping in mind the prevailing trends which include small portions of food that can be shared with the rest of the table Daniel loves to travel around the world to discover new flavours He is also an avid mountain biker and enjoys visiting farmers' markets and picking the freshest seasonal produce The Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office released the booking photo and arrest report for Le’Keian Woods detailing what led up to the arrest and the reasons for the physical tactics used that prompted a video that went viral The photo shows both of the 24-year-old’s blackened and reddened eyes swollen shut and bloody lip and chin The family said he had to be taken to a hospital for treatment and the Sheriff’s Office has said it is looking into the incident Following is the lengthy narrative all attributed to the arrest report that includes some redactions under the state’s privacy laws It began early Friday afternoon with the Sheriff’s Office Gang Unit conducting surveillance in the area of Toledo Road and Powers Avenue The detectives were wearing tactical vests in unmarked police vehicles equipped with emergency lights and sirens Detective J. Garriga set up in a gas station parking lot at 6680 Powers Ave He observed a gray Dodge Durango parked at a gas pump but the driver never pumped any gas during the entire surveillance a gray Dodge Ram arrived with three people inside A Black male wearing all black with the hood of his jacket pulled over his head exited the passenger seat of the Ram The detective noted his pants were weighing heavy on the right side and notified the other detectives that the passenger was believed to be armed Garriga further observed him standing with a man from the Durango engaged in a conversation It appeared that the man in the Durango had been waiting for those in the Ram Garriga also recognized the passenger from the Ram as Woods although the next part is redacted that likely explains how he knew him Woods got into the back seat of the Durango and began counting money we are handling business.” Another portion of the report is redacted and it continues with the man getting back into the Durango as the occupants of the Ram began backing out of the parking lot and the detective noted the seatbelt wasn’t being used Garriga notified the other detectives that the Ram was on the move The driver’s side back seat window also was down and Garriga recognized that passenger as well Sullivan followed the Ram in their unmarked police vehicles the driver of the Durango backed into a different parking spot at the gas station Racially profiled? Jacksonville state attorney deems officer justified in shooting of Jamee Johnson The detectives followed the Ram to South Old Kings Road and Plaza Gate Lane with Daigle attempting to initiate a traffic stop there The driver turned onto Plaza Gate and did not stop the driver continued to the 8200 block of Kensington Gardens Lane a dead end of an apartment complex driveway Daigle and Sullivan attempted to conduct a “high-risk takedown” at that location As Daigle was giving commands to the occupants Woods fled from the front passenger seat through the apartment complex Sullivan gave chase and was able to catch up to him prompting Sullivan to deploy his conducted energy weapon so Sullivan fired a second set of probes successfully But Woods began to “violently resist” the detective’s attempt to take him into custody He continued to attempt to throw Sullivan off of him and flee It then took three detectives and a patrol officer to get Woods into handcuffs The rest of the narrative in the arrest report is accounts from three of the officers involved beginning with Sullivan who had multiple abrasions on his arms from the struggle he said he observed Woods holding onto the front of his waistline on several occasions After the second successful attempt to incapacitate him I commanded him multiple times to ‘Put your hands behind your back!' or he was going to be tased again I immediately observed blood on the suspect’s face from falling to the pavement,” Sullivan said in the report He held him in place trying to maintain control of his arms but he actively resisted “by keeping his hands underneath him toward the front of his waistband.” Then a line is redacted followed by “I delivered a strike to the front of his face with my left fist I was able to maintain control of his left hand which he kept trying to pull toward the front of his pants.” Sullivan said he placed his chest on the suspect’s back to keep him on the ground Woods tried to stand up and “I delivered four more strikes to the suspect’s face with my right fist and one strike to the right side of his ribs while other responding detectives and officers arrived to assist me." The struggle continued but one of the officers was able to cuff him Shortly after he arrived following the chase “I observed Le’Keian attempting to push up off the ground while Det Sullivan was on his back attempting to gain control … I observed Le’Keian’s right hand under his person towards his waistband Sullivan was actively fighting to gain control of Le’Keian’s left hand I delivered four knee strikes to the upper shoulder area targeting the shoulder muscle to gain compliance … It should be noted there were unintentional knee strikes to Le’Keian’s face during the struggle.” Woods would violently rip away from Garriga’s grasp prompting the detective to hit him four more times in the ribs McCullough and another officer then arrived to provide assistance and get him cuffed He arrived to see Sullivan and Garriga trying to restrain the suspect saw the suspect attempting to rise from the ground in an attempt to flee and heard the detectives shouting commands Due to Woods’ failure to give up along with concealing his right hand near his waistline “I delivered three elbows to the right side of the suspect’s eye area.” That allowed the detectives to gain control of his right arm resulting in Woods being handcuffed Rescue personnel arrived to treat Woods and take him to UF Health Jacksonville two others from the Ram were held at gunpoint and detained One was released at the scene after being interviewed and the other was charged with being a habitual traffic offender possession under 20 grams of marijuana and traffic violations Woods was charged with resisting arrest with violence armed possession of a controlled substance tampering with evidence and possession of a controlled substance without a prescription The report’s only reference to an actual gun states that part of the tampering charge was for giving the firearm to one of the other individuals “The three sculptures presented here are part of Partegàs’ Baskets No Retention series that plays with scale and unexpected materials to make a ubiquitous and familiar object both alluring and strange The works channel the history of Modernist sculpture Starting with the reproduction of a complete plastic laundry hamper the three pieces emerge as fragments of a reality that is in a constant state of collapse and subsequent repair suggests a homemade animal trap ready to catch its victim while its white interior presents a cozy nook complete with children’s doodles scrawled on its walls – drawings made by the artist’s 5-year-old daughter – suggesting an intimate place for freedom and play consists of the half-broken handle of the basket precariously balanced atop a column of sponges  reminiscent of the repetitive and tedious labor implied in daily life Corner is a corner section of the basket that in order to remain upright has to tenaciously wrap around a heavy piece of lumber by a rope made out of t-shirts’ collars Ostentatiously flaunting what’s normally hidden the care instruction and brand labels take the spotlight in an effort to bring together privacy and care with politics and consumerism a prevailing issue underlaying most of Partegàs’s works Turning the anonymity and powerlessness of ordinary objects on their heads these works combine aggressiveness and destruction with a sense of sensuality and care inviting us to interrogate our established convictions of safety and progress 1972) lives and works in New York City and Marfa She holds an MFA from the Universitat de Barcelona and postgraduate studies in Multimedia Art at Universität der Künste Exhibitions include: “What’s Love Got to Do with It?: Open Sessions 2018-2020,” The Drawing Center NY (2019); Transborder Biennial / La Bienal Transfronteriza Mexico (2018); “The Passerby,” Nogueras Blanchard Spain (solo)(2017); “The Passerby,” Foxy Production NY (solo)(2015); Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía (solo) (2007); and the Athens (2013) and Busan Biennials (2006); and a Chinati Artist-in-Residence in 2012 The artist’s public project “The Source” was commissioned by Percent For Art for Plaza de las Americas PURE JOY Marfa and website in this browser for the next time I comment Δdocument.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value" HAA Cultural Events Calendar Archive REMODELING-RENOVATION director Christopher McQuarrie has shared an update on the upcoming Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One and Part Two announcing that Mariela Garriga (NCIS; NCIS: Los Angeles) has joined the massive ensemble cast of his two-part action sequels Further details on her role are being kept under lock and key at the IMF "We cannot escape the past…," which seems to suggest this mystery character is either running from something or has something to hide As for how that connects to Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) and his adventures we're betting she has a relatively important role to play in the 2024 installment but we wouldn't be surprised to see her introduced in Part One before taking on a more prominent position in the Dead Reckoning conclusion the highly anticipated McQ-directed action blockbuster will also see the return of Ving Rhames as Luther Stickell Academy Award-nominee Vanessa Kirby as the White Widow Newcomers to the franchise include the aforementioned Hayley Atwell (Avengers: Endgame; Captain America: The First Avenger) as Grace Shea Whigham (Perry Mason; Marvel's Agent Carter) Pom Klementieff (Avengers: Endgame; Guardians of the Galaxy Vol Indira Varma (Game of Thrones; Carnival Row) Charles Parnell (Top Gun: Maverick; Transformers: Age of Extinction) and Greg Tarzan Davis (Top Gun: Maverick; Grey's Anatomy) Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One lights the fuse in theaters on July 14 Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part Two set to arrive the following year on June 28 1972) career began to take shape outside Spain with good critical reception a momentum which facilitated the presentation of her projects in our country Since her first exhibitions in the late nineties Partegàs has developed a theme that explores the urban landscape of the consumer society although in the formal development of her work volumetric and spatial aspects persist which lead to a definition of the artist as a sculptor Partegàs expresses her interest in the power of the word and its confrontation with the realm of the image In this way the artist rearranges advertising messages and proposes an unnerving reading of public billboards or covers the heads of passers-by with branded bags At other times she places the spectator in the waiting room of an airport and thus represents a 'no place' to nowhere a project created specifically for the Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía Productions Programme and under a suggestive title of movie somewhere between horror and science fiction generated from a debris that invades the surroundings The brightly coloured images painted on methacrylates are not the other side of the pop icon coin but something more distressing; they carry a sense of loss of contempt towards something important that is abandoned in some corner of the city and which layer by layer manages to build the landscape that contemporary humans inhabit a reference that has already been used by the artist on other occasions but in a more geometric and constructive form emphasising the concept of landscape proposed by the installation and by the projecting of a mood with the invasion of the surroundings which is the artist’s field of exploration Collaboration with different agents and international political and cultural collectives A confederation of artistic internationalism made up of seven European museums The TTC audio-frequency track circuit designed with Thales technology has been included in the register of products and companies validated by Adif, publicly accessible through the Adif and Adif AV web pages. The UNESCO-recognized Patum de Berga, however, did not go ahead due to the pandemic ACN | Sitges Catalonia has celebrated Corpus Christi once more with some celebrations taking place in Sitges this year after being cancelled in 2020 due to the pandemic a Christian festival involving rituals of pagan origin is celebrated across Catalonia at this time of year Processions take place throughout squares in towns and cities to celebrate the Blessed Sacrament ornate carpets of flowers are created and then trampled on during such processions.  Around 30 floral carpets normally line the Sitges streets in pre-pandemic times however this year only 5 were on display throughout the town’s historic center on Sunday five familiar figures that are representative of the city’s typical festivals presided over the floral displays: three giants the usual street procession did not take place this time around there was a symbolic exit from the Sant Bartomeu i Santa Tecla parish the town’s iconic church looking onto the sea said to the Catalan News Agency (ACN) that the restricted return of Corpus Christi has been marked by “greater participation from locals” with more people “decorating their streets and balconies” than normal While she lamented that the festival is back in a reduced format she added: “We have been able to preserve the festival's essence which is essentially people placing these flowers on the ground” The small town of Berga, in northern Catalonia, announced at the end of February that they would cancel the annual 'La Patum' Corpus Christi celebrations it is famed for due to the risk of Covid-19 transmission among attendees Normally, large crowds gather in the town to celebrate one of Catalonia’s most popular festivals in a carnival-like atmosphere of traditional music and dances that 'La Patum' will not be held since 1937 and 1938 which is when festivities were interrupted by the Spanish Civil War Despite challenges presented by the pandemic, the traditional dancing egg celebrations for Corpus Christi, l’ou com balla in Catalan, are taking place in the Catalan capital this year. This Catalan tradition dates back to the 15th century, and although its exact origins are up for debate, the festivity itself generally consists in placing an egg shell over the water jet of a fountain that has been adorned with flowers. The egg’s "dance" comes from the movement of the egg turning in the water, which is highly amusing to onlookers as it is said to never fall. This year, the egg danced once again in Barcelona Cathedral’s cloister, where the first celebration allegedly took place 700 years ago. The cloister was open for visitors for four days from June 4 until June 7, being the only space where people have been able to physically see the traditional egg this Corpus Christi. Colossal All photos courtesy Smithsonian Magazine and the respective photographers Do stories and artists like this matter to you? Become a Colossal Member now Join more than 200,000 subscribers and get the best of art and visual culture from Colossal Copyright © 2025 Colossal. See our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy We want to hear what you think about this article. Submit a letter to the editor or write to letters@theatlantic.com. A collection of winning and honored images from this year’s nature-photo competition A collection of amazing recent images made with the Hubble Space Telescope Mourners of Pope Francis gathered at the Vatican, scenes from the the second weekend of Coachella 2025, a humanoid-robot half-marathon in China, and much more Images of the people, animals, and landscapes of the Earth’s arctic and subarctic regions, photographed by Olivier Morin 'Batec' movement believes Spain is not investing enough in Catalan railway network, as protest has limited impact Dozens of young activists have forced open ticket barriers in several train stations in the Barcelona area to denounce a "disastrous" commuter train service provided by the Spanish government-owned company Renfe duct-taped the barriers open in stations such as Passeig de Gràcia (Barcelona) which focused on Spain's alleged lack of investment in the Catalan Rodalies commuter train network Renfe said the support for the protest was "scarce," while 'Batec' called the move a "success" and said some 20 train stations had their barriers duct-taped open "A lot of people have been able to travel without paying which was our aim," said spokesperson Antònia Maria Dols. Vilassar de Mar and Castellbisbal were some of the stations where the protest took place where there are no ticket barriers.   The company managing the service said that it is the Catalan government the one in charge of fining passengers without ticket and reminded that paying for the commute also covers the user with the compulsory travel insurance.  Renfe reminds that there are "a lot of channels" other than fare-dodging to complain and adds that an "impotant effort" in investing on Rodalies commuter network is in place Batec, which means 'heartbeat' in Catalan, is a newly formed group that is encouraging fare-dodging from Wednesday as Renfe has been plagued with frequent delays and other disruptions for years especially those who have to travel to Barcelona and other major cities on a daily basis have long complained of this situation.   "We won't pay until Madrid does!" their website reads. "The Spanish state has to make good on their promises to Catalonia," a Batec spokesperson insisted on May 4, when they presented their campaign. "They know that if they do not fulfill them, nothing will happen to them." Click here to read the Spanish version.He has just given his best in front of an audience made up mostly of chefs who have accumulated Michelin stars and fill magazines such as TAPAS He has “nibbled at their ankles”; in other words 1982) ‘strafes’ messages on radio and television in Catalonia She is a successful writer with her book Cocina o barbarie (Cooking or Barbarism) No one is spared by this powerful communicator who speaks ‘at a hundred per hour’: neither the chefs with an infinite ego nor the consumers who do not cook at home because they watch Netflix or MasterChef Published by Península -in Catalan and Spanish this essay is synthesized as follows: we are more gourmets than ever cook!” cries the incorrigible Nicolau leyó la cartilla en Diálogos de cocina cita promovida por Mugaritz lo suficientemente suicida como para subirla a su escenario pero me van a colgar en la plaza del pueblo” restaurante en Vilanova de Sau donde ha sido “asalariada” en los últimos años Desde su “palmo y medio” (sic) de estatura habla sentada en un aula de BCC ‘reventando’ el sector gastronómico How do you fire off your messages so quickly?It has taken me 40 years to be here Speed is in spontaneity and I can only be spontaneous when what I express are things I have been thinking about for years a quasi-monologuist whipping up the culinary ‘circus’… It’s not my merit; I was born that way I’ve had a tendency to question things and make up my own lucubrations Why did you decide to become a cook?I was studying Sociology and Politics In a class on the Economic History of Modern Europe in the 19th century I closed my eyes and thought: the subject is exciting I’ll be doing electoral analysis and demographic surveys And I saw myself making cookies and casseroles I’m from the generation that grew up with the worst school lunchroom ranches and ‘combined number 12’ My parents worked a lot and were away from home we would go hand in hand to Frankfurt Romero in La Garriga to order something that they would put on mom and dad’s tab A far cry from the current foodie fever…How many times did we go to restaurants when we were growing up I’m from a demographic where my parents didn’t take me to restaurants I didn’t try langoustine and monkfish until I was 19 When we were confined and the restrictions began we whined on street corners and Instagram because we couldn’t go three times a week to restaurants How was it formed?I dropped out of college and enrolled in a hotel school I worked weekends and evenings to pay for my studies and help out at home I worked my way up through the ranks and found myself as a chef de partie or head chef I have never stopped; I started when I was 14 years old and I am now 40 From the village restaurant or the small hotel of some renown in the region to the capital I have been in places of every caliber and condition from the most putrid and putrid ‘Frankfurt’ or the most mediocre 3-star hotels to Michelin stars Was there a mental click?As a result of the stupefaction of hearing certain gastronomic messages in the media contrasting them with the reality of the restaurants where I worked and from the back room And the day comes when someone offers me a bit of visibility How was that?Everything was very progressive and porous In 2017 or 2018 I had been publishing an article weekly for ten years I was invited to a regional congress of traditional cuisine; the conductor of the presentation was a ‘handsome’ of two meters who had worked with Ana Obregón and had a program on Catalunya Ràdio I was going to make my pelotillas with squid I started to speak and the crowd started to accumulate applauding; we were ‘very loud’ the presenter grabbed me by the lapels of my jacket and started shaking me: “You don’t realize what you’ve done A cook with the gift of knowing how to communicate…You are born with talent My merit is to overcome laziness and put my talents to work I have been working from 9 am to 11 pm for three years a weekly TV section and I publish articles here and there about 7,000-10,000 words per week for 12 years What is he going to do?I would have to charge for the exclusive I’m not thinking of opening my own restaurant I’m 40 years old and I’ve had varicose veins since I was 20; my back is starting to hurt seriously I’ve been working too hard for what’s happening I’ve been poor for 40 “tacos” If I have the opportunity to have a loudspeaker and release what I have inside I have more things to say and I am honored by this privilege if the day after tomorrow the world gets tired of Maria Nicolau the soufflé goes down and I disappear from TV He says: “We are celebrating our gastronomy it is leaving us”.We use the words cooking and gastronomy to distract us instead of grounding us; as an entertainment discipline so we don’t have to think about anything else We have been consuming culinary content for 25 years because it is the king of clickbaits and generates traffic on the Internet and television audience; MasterChef ‘hits’ and at home we cook less than ever It can’t be that we buy those motorcycles and say we don’t have time “Functional illiterates” bragging about restaurants on Instagram?And they give them so many goals that they don’t even know it they give them a quantity of well-decorated and assembled feed that looks nice in the photo and is worth three cents at the price of gold that you think ‘the mother who bore me’ We have denied so much of who we are that we don’t want to look our history in the face He said: “25 years of gastronomic saturation in the communication spectrum with chefs at the center of it all”.The media have part of the responsibility but I understand it; newspapers must be sold and clicks must be guaranteed modern restaurants appeared only 250 years ago Then you complain that your businesses are not viable and you don’t know how to count money Mothers and grandmothers have been the CEOs of the family economy That’s why I don’t feel sorry for you He reminded his audience at Diálogos that none of them will starve to death.How strong that is have visibility and complain about a sacrificial trade Either they become cabinetmakers and stop complaining since they weren’t born in Somalia and have a choice; or they use their influence to change it In the historical moment of zero kilometer and sustainability Where are we headed?We want cooking to die when the link in the transmission of knowledge has been broken and nobody remembers how to fry an egg we will all be at the mercy of the four corporations that will sell us an individual blister pack with simple reheating instructions and at the price that suits them the solution to the inconvenience of having to eat dinner Why did Dabiz Muñoz write the prologue to your book?And why not I see him on Instagram enjoying eating so much that I think he really knows what cooking is and what eating is Ferran Adrià I’ve never seen him sucking on a mussel As ‘Pitu’ Roca does the epilogue they are two very different and very interesting perspectives on food Confrontation is perhaps best how to describe the strategy of Junts per Catalunya towards relations with Spain and the Spanish government and this will be the basis of their approach going into this new election and new cycle in politics The party of Carles Puigdemont, the exiled former Catalan president who led the territory into the 2017 independence referendum stick by the principles of that vote six years ago and want to fight to carry out the mandate of the result of that vote.  they differ greatly to their fellow pro-independence rival Esquerra Republicana who believe that dialogue and negotiation can yield results for their ultimate goal.  Esquerra have led the Catalan government since 2021 and have been engaging in dialogue with the Spanish executive over these years has been a useless endeavor and waste of time Junts say they want to carry out all democratic and peaceful political actions possible Part of that is ceding no votes to any party that "exploits" Catalonia and "rejects self-determination," suggesting that they would not facilitate either of the potential coalitions looking to govern in Madrid the last four years has seen Catalonia lose powers and economic resources and receive attacks on the language and culture the party's top candidate for congress in the Barcelona jurisdiction recently outlined Junts' view of the left-leaning Socialists at a campaign rally: "When the [conservative] People's Party raises the flag of unity of Spain We are the only ones capable of standing up to the Spanish right-wing." With the various legal cases of the past few years involving Junts party members, they say they are being persecuted for their beliefs and ideology. Former parliament speaker Laura Borràs has been convicted of corruption for rewarding irregular contracts while the head of the Catalan Institute of Letters Clara Ponsatí was recently arrested in March when making her return to Catalonia following years living in exile while of course former president Puigdemont is still wanted by authorities over his role in the 2017 independence push.  they outline that they aim to show the differences between the Spanish judicial system and the European rule of law to accumulate evidence that they constitute an objectively identifiable group important as such persecuted groups can have a lot more legal basis internationally to seek independence The Junts electoral program calls for increased investment in Catalonia as long as there is no independence they charge against the investment deficit – they want to see funds invested proportionally to Catalonia's weight of the GDP As they only stand in Catalonia, Junts will be a minority party in the Spanish congress. Currently they have 8 seats in the Spanish congress, and they're expected to win a similar number this year, give or take one. Polls suggest that this will see them finish third among Catalan voters, far behind the Socialists but quite close to Esquerra. “Eman ta zabal zazu munduan fruitua.”  More than a century after Iparraguirre wrote these lines its legacy is more alive than ever.  Saplings from the oak continue to increase their presence all over the world.  Last week Lehendakari Iñigo Urkullu himself planted the latest sapling at Auschwitz and today the president of the Bizkaian Parliament will do the same with another in Bakio.  Over the last 22 years 66 saplings have been planted.  Sydney or Sao Paulo are some of the cities where this symbol of peace and Basque freedom has taken root.  Article by Aitziber Atxutegi in Deia Aitziber Atxutegi.   Just in the month of March Ana Otadui has presided at the planting of four saplings of this historic tree: on the 14th at the main headquarters of Ertzaintza in Erandio; on the 17th in Naron to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Udabarri Dantza Taldea and the Andramari Ikastola 66 saplings of the Tree of Gernika have been sent to places as far away as Celaya in Catalonia.  They know that before there have been many more – experts say several hundred – but it is difficult to count since they began being sent in the 19th century.  The president affirms that it is a research that they would like to conduct in the future.  “We would like to know what our mapamundi is of saplings where the trees lineage is found,” she said The saplings are not delivered indiscriminately.  “It has to be an institution worthy and that ensures the public interest that brings something to our society,” she explained.  They are not sent to individuals and those making the request need to assure that the tree will be cared for and maintained in a public space.  “We can’t forget that it is the most universal symbol of the Basque people as a result of the Bombing, Gernika has become also a universal symbol of peace,” Otadui stressed She never forgets the “respect” that it is given across by everybody in the political spectrum.  “It is beloved by all ideologies.  All Basque political parties from the PP to the PSE to the Abertzale left hold their most important and symbolic events around the Tree of Gernika.” Many Basque clubs on five continents have a sapling of the tree Argentina.  But also in places who were especially punished by the war like the Gurs concentration camp in France as a tribute to Basques imprisoned during the Second World War; in La Garriga in Catalunya bombed by Italian Aviators during the civil War; or Sartaguda known as the town of widows by the huge number of those shot during the war.  The anniversaries of educational centers have also included the planting of a sapling.  And not only plantings; on February 3rd Ana Otadui participated in Oñati in the centennial of the arrival of their sapling.  (if the plantation is in the Basque Country) the Bizkaian Parliament contacts the recipient to determine the date of the planting as well as a follow-up with Basalan the public company that is in charge of maintaining and taking care of the saplings in the province who will let them know when it will be delivered Basalan usually plants it ahead of time and on the day of the ceremony some symbolic shovel-fulls of dirt are placed on top.  Each sapling is accompanied by a certificate of authenticity singed by the President of the Bizkaian Parliament All of the saplings that are spread around the world are also guaranteed to have the same origin as the original Tree of Gernika at the Bizkaian Parliament.  Its acorns are gathered as well as those of its ancestors.  Basalan gathers the fruits and those are sown in a nursery in Txorierri where some 3,000 saplings are kept on reserve.  All younger than six years are moved to provincial forests to continue growing “FULLY PRESENT” Ana Otadui recognizes that she is still moved at every request.  “It gives me much joy because I see something that has such deep roots in our country  To see that many institutions and associations want to celebrate their most important events by planting a sapling is very gratifying for me,” she admits.  “We are fulfilling what Iparragirre said ‘eman ta zabal zazu.’  We are part of this slogan and we have to continue with this phrase: having the roots of our country but giving fruit over five continents.” She personally tries to attend every planting that she can accompanied by a representative of the House.  “We try to coordinate agendas and secure a date.  This is a very solemn event that I participate in with great satisfaction,” she explains.  Besides speeches those attending throw a few shovels of dirt on the new sapling the certificate of authenticity is delivered and an Aurresku is performed (published on 4-23-2017 in Deia) In 2004 a group of friends released their first album to dance and have a good time They were doing Catalan rumba almost without knowing it but little by little these young people from La Garriga have become an institution of the fusion of this musical style Work after work we have seen that they don’t say no to experimentation and they fuse the most classic rumba sounds with other styles such as pop or folk The most palpable example is their latest work which they will present at the Cruïlla 2021 Gertrudis have reinvented their sound from creation to production of the songs with more urban airs and even with some electronic beats A fresh sound for a group that has been making music for two decades I want to receive information Plasteurope.com is a business information platform for the European plastics industry It is part of KI Kunststoff Information and PIE Plastics Information Europe one of the leading content providers for the European plastics industry We offer daily updated business news and reports polymer prices and other services for the international plastics industry News | Polymer Prices | Suppliers Guide | Jobs | Register | Advertising To celebrate the opening of 'Up Close: Somos' the artistic director of Sydney Dance Company shares his favourite local haunt the wine he keeps for special occasions and where he’s planning his next holiday InStyle Australia acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of country throughout Australia and their connections to land We pay our respect to their Elders past and present and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples today Caterer Middle East Home » People » BASKO appoints former Zuma manager Roger Marti as new GM With over 15 years of industry experience, Roger Marti has been appointed the new general manager of BASKO and Suave The multilingual F&B professional will focus on maximising his team’s performance Marti was passionate about food and loved cooking at home with his family This inspired him to obtain a degree in gastronomy and hospitality management from the Escuela Superior De Hosteleria De Barcelona in 2006 he decided to embark on a journey and start his own business becoming the co-founder and managing partner of Dobaju Group in La Garriga This role taught him the tricks of the trade it involved building the restaurant’s concept from scratch and choosing a strong team to position the restaurant as one of the strongest in the region. By doing so Marti learned the best practices of running a successful restaurant and learned how not to do things he worked as a bartender and was then promoted to a more client-facing and sales position where he refined his English language skills and learned about the consumers in Dubai which then landed him a position as assistant manager and guest relations manager at Zuma Dubai This was a pivotal point in his career as he was exposed to the experts in the hospitality industry further developing and polishing his skills He also closely analysed customer feedback and provided strategic direction to his team he took the opportunity to work directly under the CEO of Ozco Group in Jeddah experiencing the corporate and operations side of the industry This change in career allowed Marti to mature and change his perspective on hospitality he returned to Zuma as guest relations manager which according to him was like “going back home” and found innovative solutions in order to improve the department’s overall performance he was promoted to assistant general manager for the pre-opening of  Zuma in Madrid Exporting his talents and qualities to the brand globally and training of new staff with an extensive program carried out over a three-month period Once again building a restaurant from scratch Roger was able to seed the talent of his experience in the UAE by upholding the same standards and training as Zuma Dubai Marti hopes to develop and create a concept that features excellent food and an entertaining atmosphere He aims to build the brand and team by hiring the right professionals and growing the team for the community of BASKO Marti also hopes to bring a true European speakeasy experience into Suave by hiring top talent in the UAE to achieve it For subscription enquiries call 1800 077 514 or email [email protected] If someone were to make an elevator pitch for the movie of Rafael Bonachela’s life it would be Billy Elliot meets Fame directed by Pedro Almodóvar there would be dance sequences –  first in Barcelona But at its narrative core would be the journey of a young leaving provincial working- class roots to become one of the most in-demand choreographers in either hemisphere One defining sequence would involve the time Bonachela – still a teenager – was training to be a dancer in London It was 1990 and Bonachela found himself freezing at night and rationing barely-there money for food he would write out his daily food budget on paper to keep track A typical day’s entry would read: one coffee it doesn’t matter that he is practically starving that he has no guarantee of a future or income “Maybe – maybe – I could dance one day and get paid for it.” He wins fame as a dancer and choreographer he becomes artistic director of Sydney Dance Company the best dance movies tend to be like that The first thing Rafael Bonachela does when he meets me in Sydney’s harbourside Elizabeth Bay is give me a massive hug outrageously handsome and so tightly muscled that embracing him is like getting squeezed by several firmly packed hessian sacks His shirt shows off his impressive tattoos: an older one on his left upper arm and a more recent one that runs down the entire length of his right arm a line of Spanish poetry written in calligraphic script “y del Propio Amor.” Rough translation: “In love with life and love itself.” It is a rare late afternoon off for Bonachela who is about to launch Sydney Dance Company’s national tour of its latest production CounterMove – a two-part production by Alexander Ekman and Bonachela the company will have completed seasons in Sydney and Canberra before touring CounterMove again for the rest of Australia Bonachela is also supposed to be devising new work Bonachela and I stroll past myriad inner-city workers endless joggers and their personal trainers before stopping to watch a dog that has dived into the harbour for a swim he compares this water view before him to La Garriga a landscape just as beautiful but utterly distinct “You’d look out of my mum’s window,” he says you get the sense his body’s probably always been well conditioned very hard – what I now call ‘child labour’,” he jokes He never knew how to balance teaching us the value of growing vegetables and working hard but also to be fun Both parents grew up under Franco’s fascist dictatorship; neither attended theatres nor museums had him in their early 20s and brought up a family Compared with his three younger brothers – “normal football-playing kids” – Bonachela was always the odd one out constantly dancing and being asked to perform flute or guitar at the family Christmas table play cassettes of Michael Jackson’s Thriller and choreograph routines Bonachela started taking the 40-minute train ride from La Garriga to Barcelona on Fridays Fuelled by his obsession with Fame – the 1980s TV series spun off from the movie of the same name – he enrolled himself in jazz dance lessons at the city’s Cadaqués Centre dance school until a teacher implored him to stay and do more One class led to another and Bonachela started missing the train home Classmates would take him out to dinner or the cinema his parents issued an ultimatum: they would support his endless dancing and pay for lessons a typical day was gruelling: waking at 6am taking another train to a town near La Garriga to study then finally catching another train at 10.30pm to eat “That’s when I started losing my hair.” (It’s worth noting none of Bonachela’s younger brothers have gone bald.) Bonachela auditioned for the Catalan dance company Lanònima Imperial just 17 and only two years into proper dance classes he auditioned and got into the London Studio Centre dance college the costs associated with moving to – and living in – London were impossible to meet and enthusiastically made his case for a scholarship while his mother went to La Garriga’s town hall to do the same the local mayor agreed to fund his flights from Barcelona to London even though Bonachela didn’t – at that stage – speak any English Bonachela’s father – a traditional man – found all this confounding they no longer spoke and his parents were on the brink of separation Bonachela’s first day in London was a disaster and the Catalan dancers with whom he travelled also spoke negligible English When they finally arrived at the home of Bonachela’s aunt they had to haul suitcases up a steep flight of stairs off which one of them fell in a shocking tumble All sorrow evaporated when he started dancing Bonachela found himself in the real-life version of Fame “There was people from everywhere in the world,” he says I was in heaven.” He concedes he was eating terribly but he successfully auditioned for Britain’s oldest dance company he became Rambert’s associate choreographer and quit dancing altogether Bonachela’s eyes light up when he talks about choreography “The first step is always different,” he says “Sometimes I find a piece of music and I’m blown away by it.” Other times It’s no accident he has poetry tattooed on his arms dance is the physical extension of words – stanzas made physical – which is why he has always sought out “intelligent dancers” dancers need to be physically fit and technically able “But you can have a perfect body and be very empty,” he says “I’ve worked with many dancers that were born with ridiculous bodies but they were lazy We’re not saving lives – we’re just making a dance here – but don’t waste my time.” most know the bittersweet story of Bonachela’s appointment to Sydney Dance Company After the SDC’s long-time director Graeme Murphy retired in 2006 the board named Murphy’s successor as Tanja Liedtke Bonachela and Liedtke had been friends from when he was at Rambert and she was based in London “She spoke fluent Spanish,” Bonachela says fondly although she’s German.” Shortly after Liedtke was appointed where she asked him to be the company’s first choreographer under her directorship Would Bonachela make his first full-length dance work in Sydney Bonachela was in Cuba in August 2007 when he got the news that Liedtke had been killed in an accident She’d spent the evening watching Bangarra Dance Theatre’s performance at the Sydney Opera House “She never made it to the first day of her job,” Bonachela says quietly “She was killed the day before.” For a year Sydney Dance Company – out of grief and respect – made do without an artistic director Bonachela got an email from the company asking him whether he’d proceed with the work Liedtke originally commissioned Bonachela contacted Liedtke’s family and partner The resulting performance – 360° – debuted in Sydney to acclaim and the SDC approached him for the top job Despite running his own business in London and for two years split his time between Sydney and London “It wasn’t sustainable though.” Eventually Bonachela is a permanent resident en route to becoming an Australian citizen Only two things frustrate him: its ugly politics and the self-directed hate Australians often express towards their own arts scene “People in the arts here bring themselves down London has so much; New York has so much.’ But it’s got so much that you don’t have time to do everything And there are a lot of people [seeing] Cats.” Sydney Dance Company will celebrate its 50th anniversary Bonachela will have been artistic director for more than a decade By the time he leaves – whenever that is – he wants several things to happen he wants Australian audiences to be familiar with contemporary dance from all over the world he wants to start a company – an offshoot of SDC – exclusively of young dancers as a kid who came from a small town himself he wants the company to continue its outreach work “Everyone gets a Shakespeare play in Australia everyone goes to see a concert.” Why not dance but he gets most excited when he’s talking about education you get the sense balance is somehow being restored Bonachela now sees his family in Barcelona once a year when the company tours Europe after Bonachela’s mother recovered from a year-long illness she visited him in Australia for the first time “With me here she wasn’t a mother or a grandmother,” he says “She was just a woman in the world with a lot of people [being] really nice to her even if they don’t speak the same language.” Bridging that gulf is another reason why Bonachela loves dance “It’s everything that cannot be said with words.” Share this subscriber exclusive article with a friend or family member using share credits use share credits to share this article with friend or family Share credits renew each month and allow a non-subscriber to read a full article View all in Dance Subscribe to The Saturday Paper for less than $2.30 a week Phone   1800 077 514 Email    [email protected] Email    [email protected] Hotelier Middle East Home » Business » Jumeirah Zabeel Saray makes culinary appointments Mahmoud Efranjyeh is now chef de cuisine at Lebanese restaurant Al Nafoorah. He has more than 13 years of experience within hotels and resorts, and was previously sous chef at Jumeirah Etihad Towers in Abu Dhabi. Mustafa Sahin has been appointed speciality chef de cuisine at Lalezar, the resort’s Turkish restaurant. He began his career in 2005 and worked at restaurants in Istanbul, Bodrum, Mugla, Etiler, and Antalya in Turkey. Ignacio Moreno is now speciality chef de cuisine at MusicHall, where he will oversee the kitchen function for the venue. Moreno began his career in 2006 and worked with several hotels across Barcelona, La Garriga, and Mallorca. Prior to joining MusicHall, he was chef de cuisine at Jumeirah Port Soller in Mallorca, Spain. Commenting on the appointments, Jumeirah Zabeel Saray executive chef Neil Foster said: “We are proud to welcome the new chefs to the culinary team and look forward to seeing their fantastic creations within our signature restaurants, renowned for their high quality food offering.” now Artistic Director of the Sydney Dance Company shares his memories of his first day in Australia and takes Janice Petersen through his treasured family album.Sydney Dance Company's Rafael Bonachela seems relaxed and grounded as he invites me into his breezy light-filled apartment in Sydney’s eastern suburbs.It’s not just that the Artistic Director happens to be barefoot he’s relishing a rare afternoon off work in a home that’s a world away from the Spanish town of his childhood.The sinewy Spaniard was born with an insatiable desire to move his body - and bring others along for the ride.He'd put on performances in his small town in Barcelona Source: SBSBonachela was born at the end of Francoist Spain a time when dictator Francisco Franco rose to power during the Spanish Civil War.The dancer was three years old when Franco died and the country moved back to democratic rule.“When I was born in La Garriga it was a society which was going through 36 years of dictatorship and it had gone through a lot of war before that and a lot of pain and a lot of horrible things that happened," he says."I was born at a time of hope and of change and that change happened very very quickly.”Rafael Bonachela says he was "born at a time of hope and of change" in Spain Source: SBSHe reflects on his childhood as he thumbs through faded photographs of himself as a boy dressed in various home-spun costumes treading the boards around his tight-knit neighbourhood.“It was a very small town a country town like you would say in Australia and I loved dancing But it was something that my parents didn't know what to do with it but that didn't stop them from supporting me as a young kid," he says."I'm a pre-Billy Elliot boy I always say there's a pre and a post it's much easier for boys to dance and to not feel like there's something wrong about it.”That love of dance proved irrepressible and led him to London where the then teenager revelled in the boundless energy and creativity of his cohort.After two decades though he set his sights on Australia where he would take the reins of one of the country's leading dance companies I was single and I was ready for another challenge so I just took it on and I packed my bags and literally within two weeks and one suitcase I moved to Australia,” he says.Rafael Bonachela thumbs through his family album Source: SBSHis memories of his first day in the country are seared into his mind with all the force of a harsh Australian sun.“I was looking forward to this new chapter I had never been to Brisbane and it was December and it was so hot It was so sunny," he says."The space around the sky and everything about it and I actually in fact I connected so much with my childhood because I spent my childhood in Spain where there was the sun there was the good weather where there was the Mediterranean life and in a way I felt immediately at home in that sense.”And while he’s a fan of the laidback attitude of many Australians much more dynamic traits resonate more deeply.“I have known many Australians throughout my career in dancing and other projects and for me my impressions were that in dance there was a real curiosity and also a wish to go into a next chapter and to find out more things," he says."I have found a lot of passion I am very fortunate to work in the arts and when you work in the arts you have to be passionate there's no two ways about it You do it because there's a need to do it because you want to communicate with people people to be inspired."People need to feel something and if we don’t have that in the arts then I don’t know where we're going to have it.”Rafael Bonachela in one of his early performances Source: SBSOn a rare work trip to Barcelona in 2011 with the SDC he was able to show his childhood friends what became of the boy who loved to dance.“My mum organised the bus from my home town," he says "It felt like a wonderful circle that all these people that saw me dance when I was a child and I was literally dancing in the streets just because I loved doing it because I loved sharing it and I loved putting up a show."To come back later many years later with Sydney Dance Company and to be performing in a theatre in Barcelona was a very very special moment for me and for my family.”And while he has mastered the universal language of dance the nuances of the local lingo back in Sydney still keeps this seasoned performer on his toes.“I would hear like 'arvo' and a lot of words that make so much sense to everyone but I was like 'Oh I thought I knew English and now I have to learn all these other ways of speaking,'" he says."But I find that funny and now use them of course and I go back to London and everyone thinks I have an Australian accent."And it's an accent he continues to work on along with building a lasting legacy of moving dancers' bodies and audiences the world over.“I hope that I've given to Australia a new way of seeing dance," he says "I've created my own work but at the same time invited many choreographers that had never presented their work here in Australia and that's something that I was very aware from the beginning Remembering love and finding home: Saroo Brierley’s ‘Lion’ story 6 min readPublished 21 January 2017 12:40pm ShareGet SBS News daily and direct to your InboxSign up now for the latest news from Australia and around the world direct to your inbox.Your email address *Morning (Mon–Fri) It is always a good time to take a break and relax so let's take it seriously with these sanctuaries of thermal waters today we want to trace a tour of our favorite spas in Barcelona (and Catalonia) We have selected several of different types: ancient hidden in the city… And we have done so by traveling the length and breadth of Catalonia because a spa in the city (with all the good things that entails) is not the same as one in the middle of nature Another attraction is its spa, the Dolce Vital. An oasis of Mediterranean luxury where the heated pool with jacuzzi, dry sauna, steam bath and solarium predominate. They also offer various personalized treatments, including those suitable for vegans, pregnant women and children. They are provided by Natura Bissé, one of the most powerful (Barcelona-based) brands in the cosmetics and wellness market. There is also the option of hiring a pack that includes lunch. View this post on Instagram A post shared by FLOTARIUM BARCELONA (@flotariumbarcelona) to feel like you’re on a cloud where relaxation will be your greatest ally Flotarium encompasses an experience of physical and mental relaxation through the use of flotation cabins that simulate weightlessness It was the first center in the country dedicated to sensory isolation and anti-stress therapy based on flotation through individual tanks filled with a solution of water and 300 kg of Epsom salts which allows the body to float effortlessly and a dark or illuminated environment according to the user’s preferences Since we discovered them, we fell in love with them. The first one arose in Barcelona, in the Born neighborhood Under one of the portals of Passeig Picasso in an old warehouse of the late eighteenth century hide these baths that perfectly combine modern character and traditional essence A place that oozes beauty and where you will find massages aromatherapy and all kinds of body and facial care to pamper you Inspired by the tradition of the baths of the ancient Roman AIRE is always located in restored historic buildings located in the center of the cities AIRE always recreates an atmosphere of magic and sophistication The space in which MasSpa is located has more than 600m2 dedicated to sport, relaxation, wellness and calm. In short, a place designed for holistic care that houses a heated pool, treatment rooms, dry sauna and hammam, water circuit and activities such as yoga, meditation, pilates… In addition, the menu of treatments and massages go hand in hand with Natura Bissé and Comfort Zone, pioneers in cosmetics and wellness products. 📍 Afores de Torrent s/n, Torrent (Girona) In a similar way to the previous spa, this one is also located in a charming environment. Specifically, inside an EcoHotel located in Castelladral, a small town near Cardona. A place to connect with nature in which forest baths are made and where you can bathe in a spa where wine was formerly produced. A large space with warm tones and stone walls that has a pool-jacuzzi, sauna, steam bath and water cascades in an old wine vat. They also have a wide selection of massages and rituals. 📍 Ctra de Suria a Castelladral, Km 5,2, Castelladral This Boutique Hotel located in the Alt Empordà and recently refurbished has become a haven of peace. The uniqueness of the building and its materials offer a modern and comfortable atmosphere. It has a large swimming pool with hydro jets, a Finnish sauna, a space to stretch out and magnificent views of the landscape from the upper floor of the spa. It also offers two treatment cabins. 📍 Avinyonet de Puigventós, Alt Empordà (Girona) View this post on Instagram It’s not a spa The Marítim is a beachfront gym with a subway secret a great water area with hot and cold pools a small luxury at a popular price for a relaxing circuit on the beach This is a spa hammam in the middle of the city center A reencounter with the millenary oriental traditions through the benefits of the humid heat of the hammam and the variety of treatments and proposals of the spa All of them reminiscent of the hammams of Morocco and Turkey This space offers progressive temperature zones and humidity rates the hammam is a ceremony of purification of the body one of the most luxurious hotels in the city is this spa brimming with natural light and overlooking the sea It offers a wide selection of treatments by Natura Bissé and several outdoor terraces on the 43rd floor of the hotel Breathtaking views and exclusive facilities make this spa a unique place in the city This spa of more than 600 square meters is located in Platja d’Aro It includes a heated pool with lumbar benches a complete circuit of waters and sensations in all its forms The Torremirona is one of the most beautiful hotels on the Costa Brava. It is located in Navata, in the Alt Empordà region and its silent surroundings are ideal for that disconnection exercise that one seeks so much when one chooses to rest in a spa bi-thermal showers and a relaxation area with views of the Empordà plains A modern and cozy space that forms the perfect complement for a couple’s getaway or for a moment of disconnection A classic for relaxing in the thermal waters it is no coincidence that this region has been nicknamed Water Region for its landscape and purity It is also possible to drop by the hotel’s spectacular restaurant which offers the perfect combination of traditional Catalan cuisine and innovation the Mayan Secret Spa has received the World Luxury Spa Awards for Best Spa in a Historic Luxury Hotel in the World from 2018 to 2021 and in 2022 received the award for Best Thematic Design in the World always with Mayan ambiance and first class products and professionals one of the most beautiful towns near Barcelona It is a town whose history is linked to thermal waters: since ancient times and especially during the Romanization its urban nucleus was formed around the thermal water it started to become popular during the summer and this natural patrimony was especially promoted by the Catalan bourgeoisie who chose this town as a holiday destination The Balneario Blancafort is one of several centers with a spectacular spa inside It has 3,000 square meters and is internationally recognized In 2005 it was completely renovated and has a unique collection of private art This wellness center is a large space with a holistic approach and surrounded by Mediterranean forest it offers treatments with cutting-edge technology massages based on traditional techniques and a state-of-the-art gym It offers two surrounding accommodations (Hotel Camiral and LAVIDA Hotel) It also has five restaurants and a golf club this is one of the best known and most emblematic spas in Catalonia since this is where the famous Vichy Catalan comes from which began to be bottled at the same time that the center was inaugurated and already in Roman times the waters of the area were used as thermal baths paddle tennis court and a heated outdoor swimming pool the building is part of the Architectural Heritage of Catalonia for its neo-Mudejar style which imitates and commemorates the ancient Arab baths