"Barça, Barça, Baaaaarça!"
I was on holiday, in the middle of my time on the BBC's Journalism Trainee Scheme.
People were dangling from the tops of light stands, others climbing up palm trees, and more jumping up and down in a haze of deep red and blue on the Arc de Triomf - all angling their heads for a view of the big screen showing the Manchester United versus FC Barcelona UEFA Champion's League final, 700 miles away.
There was a whisper: "¡Mira el BBC!"
Sure enough, on the corner of a raised flowerbed was a man wearing a bright-red BBC World Service shirt. He was holding up a square satellite transmitter and patrolling a triangle of grass to secure a signal for one of the BBC's Spanish correspondents.
A week earlier I'd organised a day's work experience at the World Service and had met Red Shirt.
I went over.
He shouted at me: "No! Go around!"
And then, "Oh, hello!"
He'd been in Madrid the day before and had come to Barcelona on his way back to London to help out the Spanish correspondent with a series of live broadcasts to different BBC radio stations. Then he had to set up some people ready to talk on air for the World Service.
I knew how important good contributors were to Red Shirt from the day I'd done work experience on the programme, and it seemed like his hands were full. So when I went back to watching the game I kept my ears open for English.
An explosion - I squeezed through a batch of sweaty Barcelona fans and Pedro Rodriguez scored the first goal of the game.
A couple of men in front of me jumped in unison then fell about laughing. A phrase slipped out, "Who are you supporting?"
It's times like these when you can be thankful that English is a universal language. Waiting until they finished their conversation, I spoke to them.
One, Paulo, was Portuguese and didn't think his English was strong enough to speak on air. The other, Naeem, was perfect. He'd only just arrived in Barcelona after travelling from Pakistan to study.
In his home town he owned a factory that made footballs and he had always been a Barcelona fan. I texted Red Shirt.
My phone bleeped back almost immediately: "Let's have him."
Another text: "You are a megastar!"
A collective sigh as Rooney scored for United.
After Naeem, I found Jordi, who was a Catalan and had supported Barcelona since childhood. He was there with his wife and two young sons.
Another roar and more fireworks as Messi scored in the second half; after his near-miss at the end of the first.
Then I spoke to Juan, a car engineer from just outside the city.
A goal again. Light stands shook as David Villa secured Barcelona's champions status. Crowds were jumping and singing.
It was the end of the match and the air felt tacky with the remnants of a tense game and the anticipation of all-night parties. I took my troupe of contributors back to Red Shirt and briefed them on what to expect and what not to do on air.
It's strange to know that the radio output you're helping to create, in whatever small way, will be beamed back to a studio you've stood in, then transmitted to the country you've grown up in.
More than that - it will be broadcast to places you may never see.
It keeps you thinking about how important it is to do your work well. I've worked in bars, bakeries, hotels and bookshops before now and it takes a special job for you to want to do it while you're on holiday.
Something that the Journalism Trainee Scheme had really driven into me was to take every chance you can get. Speak to everyone, because good radio is a good conversation. Read everything, because it gives you an example of different writing styles; and if you read unusual things you'll find unusual stories (on this trip I'd found a story in Barcelona's chocolate museum).
If you really want to be a journalist, I don't think it should feel like a job - it should feel like settling into the person you want to be. And that's what the trainee scheme can help you to do.
Originally from Barrow-in-Furness, Hannah Livingston studied English literature at the University of East Anglia before editing the student newspaper. After working for the university's press office, she moved to Edinburgh before joining BBC Scotland in Glasgow.
This is the second in a short series of reflections by members of the BBC Journalism Trainee Scheme. The first was by Andy Burke.
The 15 members of the Scheme started their year of broadcast training in March. They are offered work in different departments along with career advice, CV clinics and interview practice, to help them to find future jobs in the BBC, although there are no guarantees. The scheme has been running since 2007 and the recruitment process for the next intake will start at the end of September. To apply and for more details.
