It has arrived. Summer. And dios mío does this seem like a different city all of a sudden. Las Ramblas suck even more than before. Trying to walk down them at a consistent pace is near impossible and if you, unluckily, have anything important to do, you’re likely to go completely insane dodging hordes of starting-and-stopping turistas gawking at tortoises, buskers and cute, little, old, and slightly rounded abuelos. “Isn’t Spain just precious, Lindsey!” Indeed.
Let’s take a moment to congratulate the Ajuntament on a job well done. They have sold Barcelona . . . again. But it’s not limited to summer, is it? They sell Barcelona all year long. To us. To them. To those guys over there. It’s easy to criticize, and we will. But the question is, where do we, as Barcelonins/inas draw the line? We all sell something. Well, almost all of us. Even the most purely creative and anti-commercial social commentators, the artists, have to sell themselves and pitch their art at some point. Here at BCN Week we could write all day, but unless we sell ad space, we’ll be doing so with stomachs empty.
So, again, where do we draw the line? When is selling necessary, inevitable, and, therefore, respectable and when is it slimy and underhanded? Does a pretty facade on an old Barcelona building reveal, in any way, what’s really underneath? Who does Posa’t Guapa help when there are more urgent and important problems being “solved” unsatisfactorily? We address some of these questions in this week’s feature. We would call it a feature “article” but there isn’t much article about it. Bear with us, if you will, and keep in mind that it’s what’s underneath that really matters.
Oh yeah, and we’ve got some big news. BCN Week is growing (a lot) and changing (a little). After this lovely issue, we’re taking the summer off in order to prepare more pages of quality Barcelona content. Yes, the BCN Week of the future will be 24 pages. We’re adding and we’re improving. So feel free to email us whenever you want (we’ll still be in the office) and look out for the new BCN Week in September. Oh and, by the way, we still want your contributions and submissions. So if you write, photograph, draw, or just notice odd things, send us an email too!
edit@bcnweek.com

The Editors