Barcelona, A Port is Calling

OUT OF SITE

Hotel Olivia Balmes

Hotel Murmuri

Barcelona , a port is calling

By Lynn Malone

prepared by an accomplished mixologist – aka bartender.

Concierge dining tips THE WINDSOR Looking for something upmarket, try The Windsor. It is a beautiful little restaurant serving contemporary Catalan cuisine and known for its impeccable service.

LA BODEGUETA

Makeover Rolling back the clock by 20 plus years, Barcelona was considered an industrial backwash working port Spanish city – no swimming beach, high unemployment and certainly not on the radar as a holiday destination. Fast-forward to 2014, Barcelona is the 12th most popular holiday destination in the world hosting over 7.5 million visitors annually. What was the impetus for this day to night change?

The answer: a sporting event, the 1992 Barcelona Olympic Games.

Leading up to the Games, the government and local businesses spent over US$12 billion dollars on an urban transformation; and the return on investment has been tenfold. By demolishing the rows of redundant waterfront warehouses, the land was repurposed as white sand swimming beaches and a marina – now a top draw card for tourists and locals alike.

In the October 2013 Condé Nast Traveller Travel Awards readers’ choice survey, Barcelona was selected as one of the Top 25 Cities in the World. “Barcelona is a beautiful and accessible modern city with great food, museums and Gaudi architecture. It’s also the perfect beach city and where the party never

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ends. It is both easy to travel by public transportation and glorious to walkabout.“

Pack your bags If sun, sand and sangria spark your interests, come along and let’s explore Barcelona – its accommodation and dining; and artsy must-sees and must dos;

In town HOTEL OLIVIA BALMES For more: hoteloliviabalmes.es Smack in the middle of Eixample, the art nouveau district is the Hotel Olivia Balmes. Completed in 2013, the modern mid-rise hotel has 128 guest rooms and suites; a restaurant and bar; and swimming pool. Picture perfect for travellers who enjoy exploring a city by foot, Hotel Olivia Balmes is located only a hop, skip and jump from Las Ramblas, the central boulevard chocked with shops and countless pavement cafes.

Considered a 4-star hotel and priced accordingly, Hotel Olivia Balmes is up there with the super stars.

Don’t leave without Taking a dip in the roof top swimming pool while sipping a delectable cocktail

A family-run bistro bar frequented by the locals is La Bodegueta. Specialties include authentic Catalan tapas, paella and its homemade vermouth.

Mid town HOTEL MURMURI For more: murmuri.com Hotel Murmuri, a four-star boutique hotel surrounded by Gaudi-designed masterpieces and art galleries, is prime position for art connoisseurs and those who consider shopping as an art. Guest room décor mixes classical English elegance with chic Baroque classical that makes a wow statement. Surrounded by high-end shopping and restaurants, there are 53 guest rooms and suites; five apartments for long-term stays; and a selection of in-house restaurants.

Don’t leave without Window shopping – it does not cost a cent. From local designers to international couture, it’s all here. And a second mustdo: try the paella, the national dish of Spain.

Concierge dining tips SO MANY TO LIST A smorgasbord of tapa bars, cafes and restaurants lined up and down

Hotel Miramar Barcelona

the avenues, boulevards and side streets await you. Experience a walking feast - stop off at three or four tapa bars create a travelling, literally, degustation.

Up town HOTEL MIRAMAR BARCELONA For more: hotelmiramarbarcelona.com Perched upon one of the highest points and within minutes of the Barcelona city centre sits the stately Hotel Miramar.

Speakeasy

Formerly a palace built in the early 1900s, Hotel Miramar is nestled into the Laribal Gardens, which were designed for the 1929 World Fair showcasing coastal Mediterranean plant life. 75 stylishly modern guest rooms and suites – many with vistas to the sea; a restaurant and bar; and alfresco dining poolside; makes for an ideal holiday base when visiting Barcelona.

in the spa with sauna, steam room and hydro massage shower. Bliss.

Concierge dining tips FORESTIERS AT HOTEL MIRAMAR Named for Jean Claude Forestier, the landscape designer of the formal gardens, Forestiers is a fine dining restaurant renowned for farm to table produce and daily catch seafood.

SPEAKEASY

Don’t leave without Spending a self-indulgent hour or two

A hipster restaurant and bar fashioned to pay homage to the clandestine

»

LOOKING FOR TRANQUILITY in the far north Queensland?

Nestled in the beautiful rainforest in the exclusive suburb of Miallo (20 minutes

has two bedrooms, bathroom and open plan living with a self-contained extensive timber decking and terraced gardens on a 5700 square metre property

Barbara Wolveridge has 28 years’ experience in the property industry.

Barbara is the ‘go to’ Port Douglas Real Estate Professional.

Location: Miallo, Queensland Land size: 5700m2 Price: $675,000

Agent in Conjunction BMW Real Estate/Raine@Horne Port Douglas

0418 760 004

(07) 4087 1800

barbara.portdouglas@rh.com.au

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SEPTEMBER 2014 63

decadence of the 1920s US Prohibition; Speakeasy is gastronomically cool, as in cool. For the daring, try the pairing menu with house specialities – matched food and drink.

For the artist in you ANYTHING GAUDI. A favourite is Parc Güell, considered one of the most impressive man-made landscapes and planned communities with over 100 years of history – but is definitely not your cookie cutter suburb.

To avoid disappointment, best to buy admission tickets in advance. It is a shutterbug delight with photo-ops to enliven the holiday photo album.

DALI MUSEUM It is a day trip and train excursion through the countryside to Figures but well worth the effort. Everything about the Dalí Museum was conceived and designed by its namesake, the surreal artist Salvador Dalí - including the building itself. Located in the hometown of Dalí and contains legacy works – the Jewel exhibition room is not to be missed.

PICASSO MUSEUM Picasso Museum located in the historic Barro Chino district (Chinatown) displays collective works of the 20th century Spanish artist extraordinaire, Pablo Picasso and a retrospective of his illustrious career; and includes works by artists such as Rembrandt who Picasso drew inspiration.

Surrounding the museum are galleries and shops selling everything Picasso from trinkets to investment art.

WELL-BEING OF EMPLOYEES A PRIORITY A

s the Western Australian resources sector’s peak body, the Chamber of Minerals and Energy of Western Australia (CME) strongly believe the industry’s workforce is an invaluable contributor to the growth and development of the sector.

In recent years the sector faced a shortage of skilled labour which was a potential barrier to the future growth of the sector. Industry’s commitment to training and workforce diversification, with more women and Aboriginal employees, along with a flexible skilled migration system enabled the sector to secure its workforce.

Throughout this period of rapid growth, the resources sector continued to place the highest priority on the health, safety and wellbeing of its workforce. In fact 2012 was Western Australia’s first ever fatality-free year – at a time when the industry’s workforce was at its largest.

With the enormous contribution made by the resources sector in Western Australia, CME understands the strong interest people have in the progress and status of the sector.

However sometimes it feels like we get a new report into a particular element of the sector’s workforce almost on a weekly basis. While much of this research is conducted with the support of companies and provides valuable insights, others seek to perpetuate myths and negative perceptions of the resources sector.

The resources sector’s workforce would have to be one of the most researched, surveyed and analysed workforces in the country.

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One of the many clear benefits associated with the sector’s workforce, at the most basic level, is the provision of choice to employees. These choices extend to who they work for, where they work and importantly, where they choose to live.

This flexibility has underpinned employment trends for more than 20 years.

In support of the choices made by employees, the vast majority of resource sector companies provide employee assistance programs, health services, support groups and inductions to help improve employee wellbeing. By proactively addressing wellbeing issues, a broad range of improvements can be achieved in not only safety and health outcomes but also productivity.

The wellbeing challenges faced by the resources sector’s workforce are much the same as other regional and male dominated industries such as defence and agriculture.

Unfortunately despite the good work of Beyond Blue and others, males with mental health issues are still battling to overcome the stigma associated with mental health problems.

Mental health and wellbeing issues are not restricted to one type of employee or one type of industry. It is vital that our entire community focus on removing the stigma attached to mental health and work hard to offer up solutions to those affected.

Reg Howard-Smith

Chief Executive The Chamber of Minerals and Energy of Western Australia

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