Fiesta de la Mercé

I'm still recovering from Barcelona's patron saint festival. More than a week of activities, parades, and spectacles in the streets. With a charming program, the fiestas de la Mercè have transformed into an explosion of life in an already party-hardy city.

It's also a great way to get access to the places and monuments which are normally closed to the public or require entry fees. It's a way to smell the smoke of the traditional muskets and fireworks, of sampling the great Catalan wines, and of seeing concerts of all varieties. It's a typical Mediterranean environment in a top-notch city.

One of the best time of the year to visit Barcelona is during September, not just for the agreeable climate but also to celebrate the city's largest party, the "festival of festivals," the fiesta de la Mercé. It's an authentic artistic carnival featuring numerous activities like free concerts in all the squares, street art, children’s activities, contents, fireworks, and the popular Festa del Foc, where the streets fill with dragons moving the rhythms of drums and pyrotechnics illuminate the city in its path.

The party runs for various days and it's best to find out what's happening (since so much is happening) and what works best for your age and tastes.

The finale of the fiesta de la Mercè is always a classic. The Pyro-Musical spectacle always awakes the passions of the crowd and is followed by thousands of spectators down María Cristina avenue. It's a fitting goodbye, in the form of fire, lights, water, music, and over 2,500 kilos of explosives.