My gift to you on Saint George's day!

Today, April 23rd, is Saint George's day, the Patron Saint of Catalonia.
I want  to share with you what do we celebrate and how. I hope you enjoy it!

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Letter from food blogger Erika Shimahara

Last week I gave a foody tour to Erika Shimahara, a blogger that writes a gorgeous food blog: The Big "E" (for "eater"). We toured the Boqueria Market as well as my favorite food stores in the Old Town. She wrote a great post on the sweet part of the tour, and I left her a little comment on it. This is the email she sent me in return:

Dear Marta,

Thank you for your comment on my blog!

I am back in California, overcoming jet lag at the moment.

I sincerely appreciated the tour your provided. I learned a lot and you showed me some terrific places.

I saw you a few days later at Sagrada Familia, but you were quite engaged in giving a tour so I kept quiet. I kept thinking about how the group you were guiding was fortunate to have you!

I went back to Quim's and Pinotxo again on my own and tried to talk to the cooks. They were very nice to me. I felt terrible taking photos, unable to speak to them in anything but horrible, broken Spanish. They must have thought I was just another crazy tourist! In any case, I was very appreciative of their kindness, and wished I could have conveyed this to them.

I hope we have an opportunity to cross paths again, Marta. You were a excellent guide.

Bona Pasqua!

Best wishes,

Erika

PS: By the way, I'm sure the chefs at la Boqueria haven't thought at all she was "still another crazy tourist": Erika is so delicately well behaved and charming!
I also wished to share that by the time I'm writing this post, she has already added another great post on her stay in Barcelona. It's about our Chocolate Eggs tradition for Easter Monday - "la Mona". You can't miss it!

I love Saint George's day!

More on this tradition in this older post.

Enviado desde mi dispositivo BlackBerry® de Orange.

Corpus Christi in Girona

Today I went to the Dalí Museum of Figueres and Girona with the Parra family from Texas. After lunch, we starting our discovery of Girona and found the Old Town covered in flower carpets. That's how Corpus Christi is celebrated in some Catalan towns!
While in Barcelona we have the famous Dancing Egg (I've already talked about it other years) in the Old Town, Sitges and Girona still keep the old tradition of arranging beautiful flower designs along the streets. I must recognize it was the first time I was out of town for this festivity, so I was very excited to see it!

In this picture you can see the one we saw at the foot of the Barroque staircase leading to the Cathedral.

Sant Ponç fair, every May 11th!

Every May 11th, in Barcelona is celebrated the Fair of Saint Pontius. Nothing to do with Pilate... it's about the patron saint of herbalists, who according to the legend visited Barcelona and realizing the many diseases the population was suffering, started preparing potions and ointments to cure them. As a sign of appreciation, herbalist fairs have been runned in Barcelona in his honour since the 15hundreds.

I was born and raised in the Sarrià district, which is one of the few local neighbourhoods that still keeps this traditional fair every May 11th. I've got great memories of visiting the fair in Plaça Sant Vicenç, enjoying the smell of the herbs as well as the parfums made by a local producer, the taste of the honey and other artisan food, the fun of seeing real bees in their honey combs... It was a magical day!

But after I moved to leave in Gràcia some years ago, going back to Sarrià in purpose for the fair hasn't always been possible. Instead, it's become more convenient for me visiting the main Sant Ponç fair in the city: the one along Hospital street, in the Raval quarter (Old Town). That's what I did this year, and I took some pictures for you.

Two more Sant Ponç fairs totally tourist free: in the Poblesec district (Blai street) and in Nou Barris (Via Julia).

Plus this year I had an extra: in one end of the Fair, along Rambla del Raval, was taking place a gathering of lace-makers!

Today is St. George's Day!

One of my favorite days in the year!
Here is my rose and book for you!


More on this tradition in this older post.

Tonight, Saint John's Eve!

Remember tonight is the Equinox, the shortest night in the year, a night full of magic and fire.

Last year I already wrote a long article on it, that you can check out here.

Now just a quick note so you can find out what's on!
Most people will meet by the beach in the early hours of the morning (don't forget pick-pockets might be around so... watch for your belongings!)
No bonfires will be lit in the Old Town and Waterfront areas: just a few points got permission this year. For a local experience I reccomend heading to Sarrià (from Plaça Catalunya take the Ferrocarrils Catalans train to Sarrià, L6). Right off the station you'll find the Centre Civic Casa Orlandai.

The City Council website has the more ideas to enjoy the night, including how to prepare the traditional coca bread and where to buy bangers.

And remember that the subway will be running non-stop tonight! Avoid driving if possible!

The egg is dancing again!

Sounds like a weird tittle for a post, doesn't it? But that's precisely what it's about! Every year around Corpus Christi day, the tradition of the Dancing Egg (Ou com Balla) is celebrated in the Old Town of Barcelona and a couple of other places in the Eixample District. The force of the water jets of medieval fountains of different gothic buildings pushes up eggs, that stay dancing on the top.

This year you can see it from today until June 14th, from 10am to 8pm in the following places:

See the complete Ou com Balla 2009 map

To see a video from last year's Dancing Egg go to this old post.

The Feria de Abril has started!

In Andalusia, South of Spain, the Feria de Abril is one of the main events during the year. The many generations of Andalusian immigrants made possible to organize it in Barcelona as well.
This year it is celebrated in the Forum area, and you'll find there lots of tents where to dance sevillanas and eat tapas. It is not a "Catalan" athmosphere, of course, but it is also part of the local society and you might be interested in visiting it.

Other immigrant cultures have lately joined the party, specially Latin-American and Morroquian, but even their tents will have to offer some sevillanas and flamenco in order to aligne with the spirit of the Festival.

In the weekends it is open from 10am to the early morning. More information here.

Saint George's day in Barcelona - April 23rd

Well, a bit late, but I finally managed to find some time to write my article on this very special day.

In April 23rd Catalonia celebrates the day of our patron saint, Saint George. According to the story, he was a knight that killed a dragon to save a princess. From the blood of the dead dragon, a rose was born and Saint George offered it to the princess as a symbol of love. This is way on his day, Catalan men give a rose (preferably red) to their spouse or girlfriend. It is common that fathers will also buy one for their daughters, and some stores, theaters etc., might be offering roses as well.

Also, Cervantes and Shakespeare, two great writters who made history with their works, were born in April 23rd, that is why women buy their man a book (again, parents will often buy books to their kids, and it isn't strange that friends, colleagues or relatives offer books aswell).


The best area to check out the great athmosphere of Saint George day in Barcelona are Rambla Catalunya and La Rambla. It's packed with stalls of people selling roses and books. Bookstores and flower shops will of course set up tables in the street to make their largest sales in the year. But it's also a great occasion for teens to rise up money for their school trip or camp, associations to get funds for their projects... I also love to see the creativity of the floral compositions, that are more delightful every year.

As for the books, it is great to have a day when everyone is offering and buying books! Bookstores will make on April 23rd upto a 10% of their yearly sales. It's a great day for publishers and authors, who will often be signing their books.

Everyone takes the chance to go out for a walk to enjoy the ambiance: even many schools take the little ones out. And many buildings sport the Senyera, the Catalan Flag, hanging in their balconies.

The day is even remarked in pastryshops and bakeries, who create special cakes and bread for the occasion. And even other stores will join the party with their own customized suggestions.

Easter traditions

Easter isn't as big in Barcelona as it is in other places of Spain such as Andalusia, however you can get the feel of it if you are willing to.
Here are a few ideas:

- Palm Sunday. First of all, you need to get yourself a palm (well, to be strict your godmother should buy it for you). The best palm markets are in front of the Sagrada Familia church and in the Rambla Catalunya. Boys get long palms called "palmó", and girls get palms with tricky lacery work ("palma"), and they decorate them with laces and candy that they won't be allowed to eat until the mass is over. Adults usually carry laurel branches, although women (specially the elderly) might prefer a miniature palma. Palm blessing is performed at 11am at the Cathedral in the Gothic Quarter and at 11:45am in front of the Passion Façade of the Sagrada Familia church. Or if you prefer a very local experience, head for the Caputxins de Sarrià (2 Cardenal Vives i Tutó st., 5 minutes walk from Maria Cristina (L3 Metro) and Reina Elisenda (L6 Ferrocarrils de la Generalitat).

- Via Crucis. The procession of the Holy Cross on Easter Friday. At the Sagrada Familia in front of the Passion Façade at 9am and 10pm, and at the Cathedral at 6.30pm.


- Mona for your godchildren. On Easter Monday godchildren are given a mona by their godfather. They used to be a cake decorated with one hard-boiled egg per each children the kid is old. However, nowadays the tradition has evolved and most monas are now amazing chocolate figures that can be bought in most pastry shops. So organize a family lunch, and eat your mona for desert!

Girona's Flower Time approaches

Every year, the city of Girona celebrates spring with the Temps de Flors Festival. Gothic courtyards and other emblematic medieval spots of its Old Town are decorated with creative compositions made of flowers, leaves and fruits.

This year the Festival will take place in Mai 9th to 17th, and the starway of the Cathedral will present an outstanding creation inspired in the X century Creation Tapestry, the jewel of the Cathedral Museum.

More information (in English!) in the Girona Temps de Flors website.

And remember that I can organize a day trip for you and your people from Barcelona:

Half day (5h) for 525 euro or full day (8h) for 740 euro. And also full days including Girona + other nearby destinations in my website!

Girona, a great day trip just 1h from Barcelona!

June 23rd - Saint John's Eve

Saint John's Eve is a big event everywhere in Catalonia. The night of the summer solstice is a night of magic and fire.

In many villages and some Barcelona traditional neighborhoods people will lit big fires (jump accross for good luck). It's the night of fireworks and powder. People will organize dinners that will end with cava (local sparkling wine) toasts and the traditional Saint John's desert: coca of all kinds (pine nuts, glazed fruits, cream, lardons...) yummy!


There will be lots of macro-parties and late-night dancing in clubs (we could compare it to New Year's Eve). If you stay up until the sunrise, then you must bath in the sea for more good luck. And after that, finish the night eating churros and hot chocolate (you'll find bars in la Rambla and the Old Town will be open around 6-7am).

To find ideas on what to do for that night, check out the day newspapers: usually La Vanguardi and El Periodico publish nice listings (and ask the receptionist of your hotel to translate it for you!). And if you are planning to go out for dinner... remember to get your reservation ASAP!!!!

Enjoy the beggining of the summer!

The Dancing Egg - L'ou com balla

In Spring Catholic celebrate Corpus Cristi. And during this day (and the days after it) in the Gothic Quarter of Barcelona you can see a curious tradition related to this festivity: L'ou com balla, that is, the dancing egg.
Corpus Christi is on a different day every year. In 2008 eggs haved danced from May 22nd to 25th.