And here’s a neat trick you may have not heard about: the library card of Barcelona.

Not only does it grant you access to more than 228 libraries, but it also gives you free entry and discounts to a wealth of attractions across the city. This includes some pretty special Gaudi buildings (Casa Batlló, Torre Bellesguard, etc), some rather special museums (the Picasso Museum and the National Art Museum) and even a trip to the iconic Montjuic Castle.

And, providing that you are a registered resident of Barcelona, getting the card is totally free!

In praise of libraries

Libraries in Barcelona are a great place to study. They are usually heated in winter and cooled in summer. They have silent reading rooms and fast internet access.

With a library card, you can borrow books, music and movies for both adults and children. The library card also allows you to take part in reading clubs and specific courses that are offered in multimedia rooms.

You can pick up books in one location and return them in another. You can also reserve books online.

Apply for a card

Library cards are free, personal and non-transferrable. If you need additional copies of the card, these will be charged at one euro each. The library car will expire five years after its last use.

To apply for a library card simply fill in and submit this form. You will need to indicate from which library you wish to pick up the card once it is ready. You will need to be able to produce your Spanish national ID or resident-foreigner ID number in order to pick up the library card.

Children under the age of 14 will also need to show authorisation from their parents or legal guardians that they have permission to use all library services including internet.

The free stuff

In addition to all the regular benefits of libraries, noted above, the library card offers a range of other benefits.

It gives you free or discounted admission to museums, including:

• El Born Cultural and Memorial Centre
• CaixaForum (cultural museum
• Casa Batlló (Gaudi architecture)
• Casa Vicens (Gaudi architecture)
• Montjuïc Castle
• National Museum of Art
• Olympics and Sport Museum
• Picasso Museum
• Palau Güell (Gaudi architecture)
• Sant Pau (art nouveau complex)
• Torre Bellesguard (Gaudi architecture)
• Besòs water tower

The card also offers discounts for these theatres:

• Antic Theatre
• Catalonian Ballet
• El Maldà
• Joan Brossa Foundation
• Golem’S
• La Caldera
• La Perla
• La Puntual (puppet theatre)
• L’Autèntica
• Teatre del Raval
• Teatre Eòlia
• Teatre Gaudí

It offers discounts at cinemas:

• Filmoteca
• Cinemes Verd

And at musical events:

• Liceu
• L’Auditori
• Tradicionàrius
• Franz Schubert’s philharmonic orchestre
• Jamboree Jazz
• Palau de la Música (including the Orfeó choir)
• Los Tarantos (live flamenco)

It even gives discounts for classes at the following venues:

• Ama l’Italiano (Italian language and culture_
• Association for the Study of Furniture
• Cursiva
• El Desbande (tango classes)
• Eòlia (drama school)
• Ateneu (writing school)
• School of Modern Languages
• Gaudir UB
• Els Juliols de la UB
• Laboratori de Lletres

The post How to unlock cheap sightseeing with Barcelona’s library card appeared first on Barcelona.

Here is a break down of the most important things that you need to be aware of.

Compulsory training for dog owners

Anyone that wants to own a dog will have to undergo an online training course to prove that they are able to take care of the animal. This course will be online and once completed the certification will be valid indefinitely.

For the time being little is known about what the course will involve or how dog owners can apply to take it. The regulations governing the course are still being developed.

Once the regulation is finalised, however, anyone who does not successfully pass the course will be unable to take ownership of a dog. Those that already own a dog will have to successfully pass this course within a set period of time or risk incurring a fine

Compulsory steralisation for cats under six months

Sterilization is only mandatory for cats, except for those registered as breeder.

The obligation, as set out by the regulation, is to sterilize the cat before the age of six months. If this is not done, cat-owners could face a fine.

However, this does not mean that cats older than six months should not be steralised. For example, if you find an adult cat abandoned in the street and you want to adopt it, the first thing you must do is to take it to the vet to check its health, vaccinate it, sterilize it and tag it with a microchip.

Liability insurance for dogs

Liability insurance is only mandatory for dogs. A different matter is the law that regulates potentially dangerous animals (including some breeds of dogs and other animals), which also requires insurance and other requirements.

Limited alone time

The new law sets out the maximum period that a pet can be left on its own.

Dogs may not be left alone for more than 24 hours, whereas cats may not be left alone for more than three days. Dogs may not be left alone inside a car.

All animals must be allowed to rest indoors. They cannot be kept in courtyards, gardens, terraces, balconies and the like on a permanent basis.

The law also says that the enclosures in which pets live must “be such as to enable them to develop their basic physiological, ethological and ecological needs adequately”. This would mainly affect animals that are usually kept in closed or semi-closed containers, such as aquariums and terrariums, but also typical pets such as dogs and cats, which must be provided with sufficient and adequate space.

Limited number of pets

Individuals may no longer own more than five pets. Any more than this and a special permit is required.

Registering pets

All pets must now be registered. Anyone that does not registered a pet within 30 days of acquiring it risks a fine. Those that already have a pet should make sure that it is registered within 30 days of the new law coming into force, or risk a fine.

Each Comunidad Autónoma has its own pet registry where the data must be recorded. The new law contemplates a national registry, but this will depend on new legislation being developed.

To register your pets in Barcelona, follow this link. Registration costs €38,

Pet shops

Dogs, cats and ferrets may only be sold from registered breeders – not pet shops.

Pet shops may continue to sell other animals – such as rodents, fish, birds and insects – as well as food and supplies for the animals.

Legal pets

There will be a definitive list of animals that can be kept as pets.

This list has not yet been created. The only animals that will definitely be allowed are dogs, cats and ferrets – although other common household pets are likely to make it on to the list as well. More exotic pets are likely to be disallowed.

In principle the law will not be applied retroactively and those who have animals not included in the list will be able to keep them. They will simply not be able to acquire others from now on.

Deregestration / burial

If your pet dies or you get rid of it, you must notify the city council where the animal is registered within 30 days.

The cancellation of a pet animal due to death must be accompanied by a document certifying that it was cremated or buried by a company officially recognised as being able to carry out such activities. In anticipation of this new law, a number of pet burial services have started springing up in Barcelona.

Huge thanks to DOBLE A Abogacia Animal in preparing this article. They helped drill into the finer details of some of the legislation. DOBLE A is a Malaga-based law firm that was created for the defence of animal rights.

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