Life & Style

Bakers expect a 5% drop in the sale of cakes due to the economic crisis. Families have chosen smaller and cheaper sweets to celebrate the night, while the tradition of setting off firecrackers appears to be as strong as ever

A scientific investigation on the four royal tombs and mummies buried in the Santes Creus Monastery confirms some beliefs, corrects others and unveils some secrets. Peter the Great, who conquered the Kingdom of Sicily in 1282, was dying his hair and Blanche of Anjou died from complications post labour. In the Middle Ages, the Crown of Aragon ruled the Western Mediterranean basin.

Catalonia is also leader in percentage of Internet users with 66% of the population connected, two percentage points above the Spanish figure, according to a report by Telefónica.

The Catalan restaurant has been considered the best restaurant in the world for five consecutive years. Chef Ferran Adrià announced he would close his restaurant definitively this July, and will be transformed into the ‘elBulli Foundation’ in 2014. However, the movie Hollywood is planning on the restaurant has obliged the Catalan chef to change his mind and open again for two months in 2012 or 2013. His idea is to show the movie team how the restaurant works.

Thanks to a five-year contract, the Catalan Government undertakes the enlargement of the airport terminal and Neilson-Thomas Cook agrees to include ski resorts in the Lleida Pyrenees as part of its winter holiday offer.

The prestigious US magazine ‘Newsweek’ features the FC Barcelona football team on the front of next week’s edition, asking the question to its readers –“is this the best team of all time?”

It is the second busiest day of the year for cruise ships after August 20th, when nine ships with 31,000 passengers are expected. Barcelona is the first European and Mediterranean cruise port and fourth in the world, after three Florida ports.

The five top students of Harvard University course ‘Cuisine and Science’ are spending three weeks in the Fundació Alícia, a reference and unique centre exploring the link between food, health and innovation. The course is organised by Ferran Adrià and the Fundació Alícia, which is co-directed by the world-known chef. The prestigious American university will offer this course for at least the next five years.

45 cellars from Priorat, one of Catalonia’s most famous and prestigious geographical indications, participated in a two day workshop for international wine distributors and specialised journalists from 10 different countries, such as China, the United States, Japan, Singapore and Taiwan.

‘Blue flags’ recognise clean beaches, with quality services, and are awarded at international level by the Foundation for Environmental Education and the United Nations agencies for Tourism and the Environment. In Catalonia 83.42 kilometres of its beaches have been awarded a blue flag.

The family company Mallafré has captivated International attention and recognition with its gourmet olive oils, flavoured with thyme, rosemary, garlic, coffee or tangerine, among other ingredients. 70% of the production is exported, mainly to France, Germany and Italy, but also to Japan where Mallafré’s ginger flavoured olive oil is a major success.

Ferran Adrià has been considered for many years as the best chef in the world and his restaurant El Bulli, the world’s best restaurant. Together with Lisa Abend, ‘Time’ magazine’s Spain correspondent explained a movie project based on Abend’s book ‘The Sorcerer’s Apprentices’. The movie will show the experience of young cooks in El Bulli.

According to a study released by the Spanish Observatory of the Wine Market, Catalan wine exports increased by 8.8% in 2010 in terms of revenue, but at a lower rate than other wine producing areas in Spain, with an average increase of 10%. However, foreign customers seem to appreciate the quality of Catalan wine, as its price increased by 3.6%, while the average Spanish wine price dropped by 4.9%.

Catalan tradition dictates godfathers to offer a “Mona de Pasqua” to their godsons or goddaughters for Easter Monday. The cake goes with a chocolate sculpture or figurine, which in some cases are true masterpieces. Chocolate houses, chocolate trains or popular cartoons made out of chocolate are some of the creations that top the cake. Catalan patissiers expect to sell 660,000 “mones” this year, although smaller ones due to the economic slowdown.

The Catalan restaurant came second in the ‘S. Pellegrino World’s 50 Best Restaurants Awards’, organised by British Restaurant Magazine, with Copenhagen's ‘Noma’ topping the list.