PrideWatch: Barcelona

It may come as a surprise to some that Barcelona, capital of Catalonia and a world-recognized gay destination, has never had an official Gay Pride celebration!

Pride Barcelona will be an eight-day event starting June 20 full of cultural activities, sports, politics, a gorgeous parade and - you guessed it - one hell of an afterparty.

In the week leading up to the parade on June 28, a slew of gay art events, film viewings and political discussions are scheduled; From June 22 through 26 is MosTrans, the International Trans-Intersex Film Festival of Barcelona, featuring a full program kicking off with talks by filmmaker and activists Elliat Graney-Saucke and Col Cruise, director of the 2008 London Transgender Film Festival; Grup d'Amics Gais (GAG) will host several events, including photo exhibition starting Monday (held at Punto BCN through July 15), a panel on Gay history in Spain, and a presentation of Iguales - a documentary by Maria Popova in conjunction with Independent Cat Films.

Sunday is the big day - the first ever Pride parade in Barcelona! Starting at Plaça Universitat at 5 p.m., the parade will travel along carrer Sepúlveda towards Plaça d'Espanya and finish up on Avinguda Maria Cristina for the post-parade festivities. Organizers promise further partying on the floats, with live music "a large bar area," and places to get food, drink, and general enjoyment. If we here are any gauge of Barcelonian hospitality, this parade after-party will be a fête to remember, with plenty of tasty sangria, delicious Catalan food, and, of course, sexy Catalan boys and girls to flirt with! At 10 p.m. the main nighttime party begins, with live performances and DJs such as Monstruos de Ibiza, Victor Naranjo, Sergi Cuho, DJ Steven Redant, the Chancletes Disco Móvil, and many more.

Bars and clubs all over town are hosting LGBT pride specials and happy hours all week, and especially Sunday night - a full listing is available on the website but check out Metro, Organic, New Chaps, Arena Madre, Boyberry, among many others in this notorious party town.

As a side note, for those looking to start off the Sunday with some exercise, Pateres Grogues is hosting a bike tour of Avinguda Maria Cristina (preparing you for the actual event) and an exhibition of "natació sincronizada masculina," or "male synchronized swimming." This fun event is also a pool party, the "Bath of Pride" ("Bany per l'Orgull" in Catalan, and "Baño por el Orgullo" in Spanish. All of this activity (including a family picnic with the Associació de Families Lesbianes i Gais) promises a uniquely Catalán experience - a great way to know the gay culture in this region of Spain, and experience the sights, sounds, and people at their proudest!

Vive l'Orgull Gai!