Goodbye to cell phones and the most popular names: what caught our attention the most this week

BarcelonaKnowing hundreds of instruments and reading a classic like Around the World in 80 Days are some of the proposals of the Creatures for this week.

We also offer a review of the week's news through Andrea Zayas' comic strip, the section To think about it and the data and statements that caught our attention the most.

Cultural and leisure activities

Music moves us and plays a decisive role in our lives. That's why we recommend a visit to the Barcelona Music Museum, which offers a journey through the worlds of this art—history and culture—through instruments, listening, and interacting with sound. Each instrument in its permanent collection—500 of the more than 2,200 on display—retains the imprint of human action, which has been imprinted on the object. It is the trace of the people who have crafted, manipulated, or used it. You can hear everything from Pau Casals's cello to an Indian sarangue.

Super3 never takes a break, and you can find its content on SX3, on the 3Cat platform, and also on CatRàdio. We recommend the podcast catalog, which can be great for car trips, with offerings like Fuet, the podcast, Elyndor, Stickers and Body and calmOne of the highlights is also the music, with family concerts of Pita, Reggae by Xics, Dàmaris Gelabert and Lali BeGood. As for fiction, new adventures are coming fromShaun the Sheep and Masha and the Bear. Starting July 18th, there will also be new episodes of The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and you will be able to see two animated co-productions by 3Cat, Under the sofa (starting July 22) and Joy Eternal (starting August 1st). And next week the third season of Dragon Ball SuperFor craft lovers, there is the new season of the contestTik Tak Factory.

The Gran Teatre del Liceu is celebrating 25 years of the Petit Liceu, a landmark project for bringing opera to children. To celebrate, four new productions have been scheduled, along with a tour of The young Aïda and three free performances for the Mercè Festival, among others. The special program will run throughout the next academic year. The four new productions are: The young Aïda, In the heart of the Liceo, Family Symphony and Nutcracker-Jazz, which will coexist with the regular programming. As an inaugural event for the 25th anniversary, the Liceu will offer three free performances of Rossini's Kitchen as part of the Mercè Festival. Tickets can be purchased through a lottery until September 11 on the Liceu website. On September 20, an intergenerational performance of The cunning little fox, by Janácek, at a price of 35 euros.

If your children aren't particularly interested in math, they'll surely change their minds if you take them to the museum dedicated to this subject in Cornellà de Llobregat. One of its mottos is a clear statement of intent: "NO touching." Both children and adults can play and experiment with the materials on display, which cover optimal illusions, statistics, geometry, and calculus. They're open every day this July; you can check the schedule on their website. Reservations are recommended on Sundays.

The Barcelona Aquarium is embarking on a new era coinciding with its 30th anniversary. The marine center in the Catalan capital has undergone a renovation to improve its facilities, with the addition of new species and the updating and expansion of the aquariums, which currently house more than 11,000 organisms from 600 different species. Among the new Aquarium's main new features is a unique immersive room in Europe that offers a surprising and interactive expedition. It is also notable for its commitment to improving its educational and interactive spaces with Aqua Protectors, an activity where children can paint their fish, name it, and release it into a digital ocean, and also with an augmented reality game that will allow visitors to play at cleaning the seabed of debris.

Book recommendations from Marta Gil, bookseller at El Gat Pelut.

With the arrival of July and the start of the holidays, we're swept away by the spirit of great travel. And who better than Jules Verne to help us? Around the World in 80 Days It offers us a thrilling adventure, with trains, boats, elephants, and distant cities, following the impossible challenge of Mr. Phileas Fogg. An ideal read for unpacking and dreaming of exotic destinations without leaving home. This classic reminds us that good stories can also be the most exciting trip of the summer.

For ages 14 and up.

June 5th was World Environment Day. We want to commemorate it with a classic that connects directly with nature and our deepest instincts: The Call of the Forest, by Jack London. A powerful and moving story about freedom, survival, and a return to our origins. More than a century later, the book continues to captivate readers of all ages with its wild beauty.

Ages 12+.

Things That Happen (To Me), by Andrea Zayas

To think about it

The other day at a family meal, a situation arose that I'm sure more than one of you will be familiar with: half the table (including children, teenagers, and adults) were absorbed in their phones at coffee time. The older ones didn't have the excuse to consult them about study or work issues because they were all on vacation. We looked at the table next to us and the situation was quite similar to ours. Weeks are coming when everyone will have a few days off: what if we make the effort to put our phones aside and enjoy a good conversation with our children or friends? Happy summer.

More than a reflection, this week we want to share with you a situation that families with children born in July and August have surely experienced: the odyssey of organizing their birthday party. The big mission, which we already told you is almost impossible, is getting their friends to come, since most (if not all) are away on summer camps, vacationing, or at their grandparents' or cousins' houses. The result ends up being a party full of adults and, with luck, one or two children, who often aren't at the top of your son or daughter's best friend list.

Said

The data

More proposals for plans and activities

• What can you do this weekend?
• Cultural and leisure plans for the entire week
• Series premiering this month
• Video games being released this month
• What you can do in the Girona regions
• New restaurants to discover
• The human tower agenda