Just a few hours after getting here after a long flight. Maybe jet-lagged observations.

1. The apt. I was staying at requested to log my passport number. Was too tired to say no. But has anyone else seen this? I can't recall but I think some hotels have done this.

I know some EU countries are making people register using photo IDs to use cyber cafes or get one of those prepaid SIMs for cell phones because of terrorist concerns.

Well I pay most of the rent by cash so who knows, they want to log the identity of the guests?

2. Seems like there are some number of what looks to be Central Americans here. Distinct (New World) Indian features rather than the kind of dark features you might expect in the Mediterranean. Am I imagining it or not? I heard awhile back that some South Americans, particularly Argentines, had come here when they had the currency crisis a few years ago. But these looked more like Central Americans.


3. Had brought a tripod to take pictures of the Cathedral at night. It's covered in scaffolding so they don't even bother to turn on the flood lights, even though they lit up everything else very brightly (like the nearby Placa Sant Jaume).

So I was taking some pics of Casa Batllo and a local tells me to be careful because "out consulate" likes to charge fines for all kinds of odd things, including using a tripod.

Never heard of that. But when they light up a lot of these attractions, the way to photograph them is with a tripod and using Night Scenery mode (low ISO, long shutter speeds, raw or TIFF setting).

1) this is normal and required at most lodging situations in Spain.
2) Immigration to Barcelona is huge right now, particularly from South American and North Africa.
3) it is not against the law to use a tripod and if someone tries to charge you, they are trying to scam you.

I am so jealous of you there in BCN I want to scream!

You don't indcate what country you're talking about.

Most countries (inclulding Canada!) require hotels to submit a guest list every night to the local police.

There is an Italian requirement for any tourist to register with the nearest police station within 8 days of you arrival. (Hotels and B&Bs generally take care of this for you) THe requirement also applies to you if you are just staying with friends!

Don't believe me??
Check out this from the State Dept web site http://travel.state.gov/travel/cis_p.../cis_1146.html
"Under Italian law, tourists are required to register with a local police station and obtain a “permesso di soggiorno” (permit of stay) within eight working days of their arrival, regardless of the intended length of stay. Visitors may be required to show police that they have sufficient means of financial support. Credit cards, ATM cards, travelers' checks, prepaid hotel/vacation vouchers, etc. may be evidence of sufficient means. Additional information may be obtained from the Italian Government Tourist Board via Internet at http://www.italiantourism.com or telephone at: 212-245-5618. "

BCN is the airport code for Barcelona, Spain.

Anyways, why the passport, why not a drivers license? A US Passport has to be a pretty prized thing for terrorists. Wonder if it's a good idea to give out passport numbers. You're certainly not suppose to give out Social Security numbers for instance.


BTW, is there any concern about the tap water for like brushing teeth or maybe cooking?

BTW, I don't think the guy was trying to scam me. Just warn me maybe, express some frustration about the local govt.

He was taking pictures of it too but he's probably not going to get good results unless he could hold his camera absolutely steady for a couple of secs. So he saw me with a tripod and made the comment.

I wish I were there already, I have to wait until May... Did you find good food on a Sunday night and was the neighborhood lively when you got in?

wco- I don't think he was trying to scam you, but if someone comes up and says you have to pay to use a tri-pod and demands money, that is a scam.

If a drivers license were good enough for identification then you could have gotten over there in the first place with it...a passport carries more clout since it was issued by the State Department and is an internationally-recognized document.

Sorry about the gothic cathedral..it has been under scaffolding for some time now and nobody seems to know for certain how long the work will last.

Please be careful of pickpockets on the Barcelona Metro.

Don't know the situation for Spain, but my Swiss ID is used for any identification purposes anywhere in Europe (and within Switzerland.) Not everyone drives here so driver's licenses aren't used much for ID purposes.

I think the OP has to realaize that the U.S. is a country which does not have any sort of "official identity card" at least not yet. Many people in the U.S. don't have a current drivers license and these documents are easily counterfeited and faked. The only thing that appraoches that and which is designed for use out-of-country is the officially-issued and easily tracked passport

Fishee, I went to Tapa Tapa, which is right below the apt. I was staying. Walked around for a bit but was getting tired so when I got back, I decided to eat there. Had some tapas and beer, was good.

Very crowded on the Passeig de Gracia and Ramblas. Walked down to the harbor, went by the Cathedral, which as noted wasn't lit. Got in too late to miss the sardana there (supposedly 6:30 PM on Sunday). But later, there were people watching some kind of a fire-eating demonstration, even though it was pretty dark in the square.

It is not unusual to require a permit for anyone using a tripod for photography - they assume that you are a professional. This is certainly the case in Paris, witness this account:

http://tinyurl.com/qy2ep

or this discussion about New York:

http://tinyurl.com/s8xlb

I don't know what the law is in Barcelona but it is entirely possible that legitimate police will object to you using a tripod; additionally, museums and cathedrals would seem to have the right to restrict photography while you are on their property in whatever way they see fit - none at all, no flash, no tripod, whatever.

wc,
Hows the weather?
Also, any idea when the scaffolding is coming down? Enjoy your time there...
pb

Yeah museums I can understand. Flash is probably not good for older pieces and the tripod probably congests traffic.

The Fundacio Miro has signs with a strike through the flash in the camera and also a sign indicating no tripod use either. It's well lit these days so not an issue.

The weather reached over 70 in parts. I believe I saw an outdoor weather gauge showing 23 degrees Celsius. Ironically, it was in Barceloneta after I got off the Montjuic cable car and found a cooler breeze and the small of salt air.

It was very gusty today and yet, over 70 degrees Farenheit. Tomorrow is expected to be a few degrees cooler with gusts. Suppose to warm up even more over the weekend.

You still have to take a jacket when you go out, especially early in the morning or in the eve.

wco-the Cathedral was covered in scaffolding 2 years ago when I was there however the lights were on at night, not that it was all that attractive with scaffolding being highlighted! Fortunately my first trip to Barcelona in 2000 the Cathedral was "scaffold free". As for the passport, most places you stay in Europe DO require your passport number when registering and some even take your passport and return it to you later. Nothing to worry about. A drivers license is worthless in Europe for identification.

I've never had to produce a passport for renting an apartment in Europe before.

And I've been leaving the passport at the apartment.

The other day however, when using my credit cards, I've been asked for identification and my CA driver's license was good.

The entrance to Cathderal of Bercelona was free until about 1 year ago. Last December I was surprised to find a people queueing to pay about €2 - 4 (don't remember the exact amount) at the two entrances, the front one and the side one direct to its court yard.