Eliah from Qatar

Name: Eliah English

Age: 16

City and country of origin:

I live in Doha, Qatar. Im originally a mix, my mother is Australian and my father is American but I have lived in Qatar for more then half of my life.



1.When, where and for how long did you live or have you been living in Barcelona?

I lived in Sentmenat, a small village just outside of Barcelona, as an exchange student for 5 months.



2.What made you move here?

It was like there was something calling me to go there, I wanted to learn the language, experience a different culture and mentality, live in an open society and a european capital. My love affair with Barcelona began before I even arrived.



3.What made you leave / stay?

I would still be there now if I could, I have to finish school, I only came as an exchange student, I left kicking and screaming.



4.What you like the most about Barcelona.

The people and their way of life. People I found were so happy, honest, open, fun and welcoming. I adopted my host family as my own, made friends that I’m still in contact with and just the most amazing group of people who let you be who you are, let you be happy, and are really real people.
I also loved the place for the culture, the food, the history and the old doors, back streets and museums and above all the iglesias.



5.What you dislike the most about Barcelona.

Cabrons.



6.Name one special place in Barcelona.

Santa Maria Del Mar, Sentmenat



7.Name one word you would relate to Barcelona.

Felicidad, Amor

Leonie from the Netherlands

Name: Leonie Scholten

Age: 26

City and country of origin: The Netherlands



1.When, where and for how long did you live or have you been living in Barcelona?

I lived in calle Padua (San Gervasi) for 7 months.



2.What made you move here?

After finishing my Bachelor study in the Netherlands, I wanted to take a break from the life I was living. I really needed some time to relax and enjoy. I also wanted to improve my Spanish. I have always loved this language! My initial plan was to visit several cities in Spain during my stay. I started off in Barcelona, and immediately fell in love with the city. I decided to change my plans, and stayed in Barcelona for the full 7 months.



3.What made you leave / stay?

I could not build a good future in Barcelona. There are not many jobs, and the ones there are not paying very well.



4.What you like the most about Barcelona.

The atmosphere. You never feel alone. There is life everywhere, always.



5.What you dislike the most about Barcelona.

The dirt and mice & cockroaches that also seem to love Barcelona. I also didn't like it that some people would just keep on speaking Catalan, while I already struggled to speak proper Spanish.



6.Name one special place in Barcelona.

Passeig de Gracia con Gran Via. I worked there, and loved to look down at all the business below me.



7.Name one word you would relate to Barcelona.

vividness

Liu from China

Name: Liu He
Age: 25
City and country of origin: Beijing, China



1.When, where and for how long did you live or have you been living in Barcelona?

3 months (sep-Dec 2009)



2.What made you move here?

My school had a exchange program with several european cities, I chose the hottest and the most exciting city, Barcelona, which is by the way my all time favorite get-away vacation city



3.What made you leave / stay?

As I said...it’s a exchange program...so I’m returning to Paris to finish my study.



4.What you like the most about Barcelona.

I like people’s positive attitude about things, it’s like, they have that innate spirit of fighting against things without complainning too much, and live the life they dream of. And at the same time, life here is quite chill, you can discover the simplicity in the system around daily life (France is more bureaucratic I think), and the beauty of fun (nightlife...) here is just the right amount, yet is not to say that Barcelona is too simple, it certainly has a European type of complexity, you can discover that in their food, their arts, and the latino relationships...



5.What you dislike the most about Barcelona.

Maybe the modernity is taking over the ancient beauty.



6.Name a special place in Barcelona.

The Badalona beach (east of Barcelona) and the port! I like to play around there a lot!



7.Name one word you would relate to Barcelona.

Hot stuff.

Razul from Spain

Name: Razul Hernandez
Age: 33
City and country of origin:
Madrid, sunny Spain


1.When, where and for how long did you live or have you been living in Barcelona?

I am currently living in the Eixample (c/Urgell). I moved from New York about a year ago. It might be perceive as a faux pas, but such is life.



2.What made you move here?

I always thought it would be the place to live, if we ever were to return to what my grandfather would consider Spain. My girlfriend followed me to Holland, were we spent 6 enjoyable years. Then it was my turn to go after her to New York. Two years afterwards we skipped turns, and here we are.



3.What made you leave / stay?

Our contractual situation tells us we have at least two more years in BCN.



4.What you like the most about Barcelona.

We have lived in very cold, rainy places. The weather is certainly a plus. I consider BCN to be a fairly european city. It´s easy to walk around and beautiful in most parts. Decent record stores. People dress well. The streets are clean. I enjoy the cultural activity, although it is miles away from New York or even Amsterdam at times.



5.What you dislike the most about Barcelona.

Here is a list. It is bloody humid. Renting a flat is an ordeal of epic proportions (they seem to be unaware of the crap salaries paid everywhere). It is hard to make friends. I was warned about this in advance. At the end of the day I have been lucky, but it is certainly true. I mustn´t forget, if you don´t speak catalan, you might not find a job (not even a shitty one).



6.Name a special place in Barcelona.

We have not been here long enough. It always takes us half a year to start discovering the city where we live. I like this street: Carrer Gran de Gracia.



7.Name one word you would relate to Barcelona.

Visca