Pla de l'Estany is one of the regions with the richest archaeological heritage in Catalonia. The Neolithic site of village of La DragaDating back some 7,000 years, this site is one of the most important on the Iberian Peninsula and is very close to the Serinyà burial caves and the Roman settlement of Vilauba, both of great interest. In recent times, exceptional remains, often remarkably well-preserved, have been discovered at all these locations, having remained hidden beneath the pond's waters for centuries. Now, all these finds will be exhibited in the renovated Banyoles Regional Archaeological Museum (MACB), which, after nearly 16 years of museographic redesign and renovations, is reopening its doors to help visitors understand 45 million years of history. The new space, spread across the upper floors of several heritage buildings in the town center, features more than 1,600 original pieces, many of which are being shown to the public for the first time. The previous museum displayed numerous replicas for security and conservation reasons. Bones of fauna dating back 40 million years, such as crocodiles and marine sirenians, or exceptional Neolithic objects containing organic material like wood or cord, fill the display cases of the renovated Banyoles museum.

The historic delicatessen and butcher shop Can Pericus in Banyoles is in luck. This legendary family business, founded in 1899, has been honored with the National Award for Centenary Establishments, a recognition given by the Generalitat de Catalunya (Catalan Government) to businesses that have been in business for more than a century. The award honors the more than 125 years of experience of this late 19th-century butcher shop, which is now located in a space in the old town and another under the arches of Plaça Catalunya, just a stone's throw from the lake. Over the years, Can Pericus has become a benchmark throughout the Girona region, adapting the classic offering of cured meats and fresh meat of certified origin with a vast assortment of high-quality prepared and cooked dishes. Dozens of customers from the town pass through every day, but also many residents of Girona and Olot who make a special stop each time they visit the lake and take the opportunity to fill their fridges.

A new Catalan restaurant that promises top-quality food has just opened its doors in Pla de l'Estany. It's Can Gelada, in Riudellots de la Creu, a historic establishment with a rustic aesthetic, located on a hill five minutes from the main road, away from the urban centers. After two years of closure, it has reopened under the new management of the Renowned chef from Banyolí, Pere ArpaThe chef is the founder of the legendary Ca l'Arpa in Banyoles—awarded one Michelin star and two Repsol stars—which had to close in 2021 due to the pandemic. Four years later, he's decided to put aside haute cuisine to return to the traditional base of simmering dishes, wood-grilled dishes, and grilled meats.

There's a restaurant in Banyoles where every dish is signed by a woman. Where work isn't just a job, but a springboard for people in vulnerable situations. A restaurant woven from sisterhood and promoted by a women's association in the midst of the pandemic, which over time has become the civic center of the old town of the capital of the Pla de l'Estany region. A space for cultural encounters and social integration, but also for breaking stereotypes. Located in the former Fonda Comas, just a three-minute walk from the Plaza Mayor and the Darder Museum, La Porta del Món was born in the fall of 2020 as a non-profit community project that responded to a need that the Món Banyoles women's association had identified three years earlier. The goal was to create a space where migrant women could gain confidence and autonomy to make the leap into the workforce without the risk of being exploited, based on what they felt most confident in: cooking.

It's been just over a year since singer-songwriter Mar Pujol (Prats de Lluçanès, 1999) burst onto the Catalan music scene. With a warm and sweet voice, her work harmoniously blends poetry and music, interweaving the roots of classic folk with more contemporary sounds. Her debut album, Pantry Songs (2024), portrays firsthand the everyday experience of living in rural areas, without frivolity or prejudice. A trained early childhood and primary school teacher, Pujol is already working on her second album and has just received the Alícia Award from the Catalan Academy of Music for emerging talent. This Saturday, June 28, she performs at the (A)phònica in Banyoles, in one of the first concerts of a summer full of engagements across Catalonia.

On Tuesday the Non-fiction issued Black has a name, the documentary that explores the controversy that erupted in Catalonia over the stuffed man exhibited at the Museu Darder in Banyoles. Alphonse Arceline was the doctor who denounced the racism and dehumanization that came with presenting him as a mere ethnographic and anthropological specimen. His struggle now serves as a social portrait of an era: the Catalonia of the Barcelona Olympic Games. If you haven't seen it, catch up on the 3Cat platform. The original three-part format allows for deeper details. Black has a name It will surprise you, because it goes beyond the story of that man born in 1803 and who was exhumed from his grave by two French explorers. Fèlix Colomer, the director of the miniseries, does an extraordinary job of putting the spotlight on this case. He revisits the controversy of the 1990s over whether or not to return this supposed Bushman warrior to his country of origin. The documentary filmmaker contacts the protagonists who led the different factions of the debate and, armed with television footage from the time, confronts them with the arguments of the past. And the result is as revealing as it is entertaining. Three decades later, the hermeneutics of current events and social sensibilities have changed. And those who doubt it need only watch the documentary. Racism was so inherent in society that many didn't even realize it. With hindsight, it's embarrassing. And Fèlix Colomer plays with that element when reconstructing the events. The protagonists must come to terms with their past statements, and it's not easy: some pretend they don't remember, others deny the evidence, and some try to justify themselves. The subtleties of changing the narrative or distancing themselves from past positions end up being comical. The way the media—TV3's entertainment network in particular—treated the case is now shocking. The start of the third episode makes you smile, because everything we now consider offensive and degrading was handled with a humorous disinhibition that is very uncomfortable today.

If it had lasted another two hours in 2024, Catalonia would have ended the year with a bad crime rate. It is a simple coincidence that only 120 more crimes were recorded in 2023 than in 2024. This is because almost 1,400 criminal acts are committed in the country every day, half a million crimes at the end of the year. This gives an average of 60 crimes every hour, with these two hours being the ones that separated Catalonia from ending the year in positive or negative.

Crime is a cause for concern. In fact, it is the first concern of the people of Barcelona and the third of the people of Catalonia. This does not mean that this is an unsafe country or that the situation is getting worse: last year ended with almost the same number of crimes as the previous year. It is not getting worse, but it is not getting better either. And scenes such as the hundreds of shots fired with war weapons in La Mina and some recent executions remind us that drug mafias continue to spread their tentacles that are lacking in different areas of our society. Tentacles that when we least expect it can trigger violence. Organised crime linked to drug trafficking is one of the most obvious problems facing police forces, which at the same time must also combat robberies, fraud – especially through new technologies – and theft. The police have work to do and are aware of it.