Vintage Tube Radio

There are plenty of things that not necessarily match the scope of this blog but that attract me and can be found in Barcelona anyway as well as in any other place in the world. Vintage products have that charm that makes them so irresistible and well deserve a post or two, such is the case of this tube radio with its wooden case that I suppose was made in the 30s of last century. I wish I knew the date and the brand but I am no expert. The brand is Rigom and happens to be from Spain (check this book fragment with images in google book results about Spanish radios). If you want to see my vintage camera check this old post: Voigtlander Brillant which was made by that time too. Do you like vintage or retro objects? Have you published any articles or posts on such topic? It would be nice you shared your links here in the comments.

Apple Retail Store Plaza Catalunya, Barcelona: View from the Upper Floor

A brand new Apple retail store opened to the public last Saturday, July 28th right in front of Plaça Catalunya, the most central spot in downtown Barcelona next to Passeig de Gracia. With the intention of getting my wife's Ipod shuffle battery problems fixed we visited the venue two days ago. The first thing you notice is the big wide open space feeling and the materials prevailing in the design, basically glass and wood. Worth mentioning is the translucent glass staircase to the upper floor. If anybody at Apple is interested in my wife's opinion as a consumer, a middle age consumer with no special inclination for the Mac world, the shop is weird. But anyway, it is clear that it is conceived with a certain purpose, facilitate easy access, visibility, movement and a certain state of mind I think. Everything is already planned here. All in all I liked the store but I was overwhelmed by the amount of people and the fact that many were not buying anything. It was hot in there. It is quite hard to give good reviews in such scenario, chaotic as it was due to high temperatures, hordes of locals and tourists alike storming the place and a little bit of the normal craziness during the first week after the opening. Maybe you get a better picture of Apple's new flagship store in this gallery at Cult of Mac or in a previous announcement at Mac Rumors

Note: The picture was taken with a Samsung Galaxy S2

Papier Mache Art: Famous Artists Display, Barcelona

The art of creating papier mache figures or sculptures can be simple if we consider the materials used but the final work can be as difficult as your imagination and skills permit.

Many of us at a given moment of our childhood have had the opportunity to shape small figures by pasting glued strips of paper on a balloon, a cardboard model or an armature of some sort. The final result was not always artistically worthy but it surely proved to be fun.

For those of you who always wished to make a wonderful artwork in paper mache and never could, here is another good sample of exquisite papier-mâché reproductions of famous artists like John Lennon, Mick Jagger, Freddy Mercury...(the other guy looks like the Edge from U2 but I am not sure).

There is this store near Plaza Sant Jaume in Barcelona where it is possible to buy such art among other articles. It is not cheap but you would impress your friends at home for sure and of course it is the heck of a present if you can afford it.

Check many other examples of such figures in my previous posts: Papier Mache Barcelona. I've been asked so many times for the address of this shop that I will reluctantly post it here and make them free publicity in spite of the fact they always come out and stop me from taking pictures:

Shop name: 2 Bis
Adress: Carrer Bisbe, 2 - 08002 Barcelona