Ashtray Wednesdays: Barcelona

I've been reading books and studying maps and planning routes.
In two days I will be in the amazing city that is Barcelona and I don't want to miss a thing! My suitcase is not yet packed - and it wont be until about 10 minutes before I leave home - but my brain is overflowing with street names and buildings and churches and gardens. I cannot help myself from dreaming about all the wonderful wine and scrumptious food that I'm going to have over the next few days..

But what do all these have to do with today's ashtray? Well a lot, actually.

I have talked about synchronicity before. My life seems to be ruled by it! There I am all swept up in my daydreaming about Tapas, Jamon and Tempranillo, paying no attention to the ashtray that my hands are picking up from the basketfull of bubble wrapped treasures. It is an ashtray from Barcelona!!!

And it is one made out of a soda can! I know it does not look like much and it's definitely not the most elegant nor dazzling of my collection, but it's positively one of the most unique I own! Its originality and artistic care-freeness, (but not carelessness), illustrate in an unparalleled way the characteristic idiosyncrasy of city. I can picture the artist working on it, sitting by the steps of Park Guell, cutting and bending the soft aluminium with quick, experienced moves of his fingers and knife!

When I ask my friends for their contribution to my collection I give them only one simple instruction "buy something that expresses you". Aura, the friend who bought this for me (almost 4 years ago) seems to have done just that! She is a very creative and cultured individual, who wrote poetry and speaks half a dozen languages! I have not seen her for quite a long time but seeing her ashtray will always remind me of her aesthetically unique personality.