Barcelona Day in Expo Shangai

A little over a month before the Universal Expo in Shanghai closes its doors, the Mayor of Barcelona, Jordi Hereu, has travelled to the Chinese city to promote Barcelona within the framework of this international event.

The aim of this official visit is to provide a boost to economic initiatives which seek to do business in China and to strengthen ties with the city of Shanghai.

On his first day in the Chinese city, the Mayor made an initial visit to the Universal Expo complex and attended a show by Fura dels Baus. This Monday, accompanied by Spanish PM José Luís Rodríguez Zapatero, the Mayor will visit the Barcelona pavilion.

This Thursday is Barcelona Day, which will include a symbolic act, awarding the Mayor of Shanghai, Han Zheng, a replica of Gaudi’s lizard. There will also be a show which includes the participation of the first group of Castellers in China, the Xiquets de Hangzhou.

To round off this official trip, the Mayor will visit Singapore where he will deliver an honorary citizen of Barcelona medal to Lee Kuan Yew, the country’s prime minister until 1990.

Barcelona will host the 2012 World Junior Athletics Championships

The International Association of Athletics Federations Council has agreed that Barcelona will host the 14th IAAF World Junior Athletics Championships in 2012.

The decision was taken the last Monday 15th March 2010, in the city of Doha (Qatar), where Barcelona was also chosen as the venue for its centenary celebrations.

Barcelona’s Mayor, Jordi Hereu, announced that “thanks to this new nomination, Barcelona is continuing to consolidate its status as an international sports event capital, showing once again its organisational capacities and the popular enthusiasm such events arouse“.

The junior athletics championships feature athletes under the age of 20 (born on or after 1993 in the case of the 2012 championships) and have been held biennially since the first in Athens in 1986.

Over 2.000 athletes will be taking part in the teams making up the delegations from over 180 IAAF members. There are 44 events with medals.

Furthermore, next July will see Barcelona play host to the European Athletics Championship.

Barcelona will host 20 official meetings during Spain’s presidency of the EU

Barcelona’s Mayor, Jordi Hereu, announced that the city would be playing host to 20 official meetings during Spain’s presidency of the EU, two of them ministerial.

Barcelona’s Mayor, Jordi Hereu and Spain’s Minister for Foreign Affairs, Miguel Ángel Moratinos, agreed today in Madrid to give a new boost to regenerating Sant Pau’s historic grounds as the seat for international institutions, territorial networks and bodies that work for the Union for the Mediterranean, peace and development.

The Mayor showed Minister Moratinos the project for regenerating Sant Pau’s historic grounds, containing the most important Modernista set of buildings in Europe, with a surface area of 13.5 hectares including 45,280 m² built up, 45,189 m² of external space, 15,760 m² of landscaped areas and 1 km of underground galleries that connect all the pavilions.

The first international headquarters to be located at Sant Pau will be the United Nations University Institute that will be devoted to the Alliance of Civilisations. In addition, there is an ongoing dialogue with the World Tourism Organisation, among other bodies. The first stage in the redevelopment of the site is expected to be completed in 2014 with the recovery of 13 pavilions and an investment of 150 million euros.

Source: www.bcn.es  |  NN Hotels: www.nnhotels.com

The Liceu Conservatory has officially inaugurated

Queen Sofia, the Liceu Conservatory’s honorary president since 1983, has officially inaugurated the Conservatory’s new facilities, which have already been in service for several months.

Barcelona’s Mayor, Jordi Hereu, also attended the inauguration of the building, located at Carrer Nou de la Rambla 88.

The new facilities of the Higher Conservatory of Music, with 10,000 m2 in surface area and an investment of twenty million euros, are located in the Raval neighbourhood, next to the Sant Pau Gardens and very close to the historic building on the Rambla.

The new building has five floors given over to academic activities, with 90 classrooms for each instrumental speciality, for classical, modern and jazz music alike.

The top floor houses the library, which is equipped with multimedia resources. The underground floors house professional cultural amenities, such as the auditorium.

Conservatori del Liceu -> Nou de la Rambla, 88 - Ciutat Vella

Source: www.bcn.es  |  NN Hotels: www.nnhotels.com