The Sardana

The first time I visited Catalonia I was fascinated by the village festivals taking place around me. Giants, castellers and a huge foam fight all left me buzzing with excitement. I particularly remember watching the whole of the village in which I was staying join in with a mass dance that lasted about 20 minutes: the sardana, a dance typical to the region of Catalonia. It originates from the Empordà region, but spread throughout the rest of Catalonia in the 20th century. The dance consists of a circle of sardanistes (dancers) who hold hands and dance very small, precise steps to music. Often when the sardana is danced in town centres and squares, the circle grows; passers by often join in, leaving their bags in the centre of the circle. The dancers are alternate men and women, and sometimes the circle is only made up of couples. Music for the sardana is played by a cobla (a band made up of several wind instruments, a tambourine and a small drum) and is sometimes composed especially for the occasion. The sardana unites the Catalan people and is a symbol of their national pride and identity, as the dance was banned under the dictatorship of Franco, along with many other Catalan traditions. It is a very popular tradition which brings together people of all ages and walks of life.



Sarah

Fogueres de Sant Joan

Hey all,

Okay, so I wasn't entirely sure what to put up here... but whilst looking stuff up I sorta found the Catalan equivalent of our bonfire night, and given that it's coming up I thought that would be rather appropriate. Anyway, it's called Fogueres de Sant Joan, or Bonfires of St. John, and is held at some time around the 24th of June in several towns around Spain, however it is particularly popular in the Catalan speaking areas.

Generally, people bring all sorts to burn, and there are many traditions, one of the more dangerous being that children and teenagers jump over fires...

They often celebrate with fireworks displays like us,
 and there are three different types of costume worn. The first costume is for the Queen of the festival, called the Beauty and she dresses like this :

Then there is a set costume for women called Labradora, and for men called Zaragüelles which unfortunately I cannot find pictures for. 

There are also big noisy parties that take place all night, and other events that take place over 3 or 4 days such as bull fights and street band parades.

Overall, it looks much more interesting than our bonfire night, which is generally rather cold, and more often than not raining. Good stuff.

Rachel.

La Rambla!

La Rambla is possibly the most cosmopolitan of Barcelona, with the greatest diversity of people; passers-by, shoppers, tourists, civil servants, comedians, pick-pockets, street musicians and living

statues. However, La Rambla was originally just a small stream flowing outside the city walls. In the 16^th century a university and convents were built along the river, and in the 19^th century the city wall was demolished and buildings were erected along the now dried up river. The name rambla refers to an intermittent water flow in both Catalan and Spanish, and is derived from the Arabic 'ramla' which means 'sandy riverbed'. 

La Rambla actually consists of 5 different streets, which is why it is also called Las Ramblas (Les Rambles in catalan). I like the story behind La Rambla de Canaletes. The name originates from the 19^th century Canaleta fountain, and according to legends, if you drink from this fountain you will keep returning to Barcelona. There is also an expression tied to the fountain ‘He drinks water from Canaletes’ (or in catalan “qui beu de canaletes, torna a la ciutat”) means that person comes from Barcelona.

The Spanish poet Federico García Lorca once said that La Rambla was ‘the only street in the world that I wish would never end’, and I think many people today can understand why!

For more information: http://www.aviewoncities.com/barcelona/rambla.htm

Heather 

Vicky Cristina Barcelona

Vicky Cristina Barcelona és una pel lícula de comèdia romàntica escrita i dirigida per Woody Allen. La pel lícula està protagonitzada per Javier Bardem, Penélope Cruz, Scarlett Johansson i Rebecca Hall. Dues dones nord-americanes, Vicky i Cristina va passar l'estiu a Barcelona i es va trobar amb un artista que se sent atret per tots dos. l'artista, Juan Antonio, se les arregla per seduir a les dones, tot i que Vicky està compromesa amb un altre home. Cristina i Juan viure junts i planegen casar-se a Espanya, però, es veuen afectats per l'ex dona d'Antonio, que està mental i emocionalment inestable. 


La pel lícula es va fer a Avilés, Barcelona.

ell és el remolc: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=39PuFOTjtk8&feature=related 






Skye

Roadside Prostitutes in Catalonia

I found an article this week about roadside prostitutes working in rural areas of Catalonia. They have been asked to wear fluorescent yellow jackets, or face a €40 fine. Police are saying that the prostitutes are creating danger on the public highway and that this is the reason for the fine, rather than that they are being targetted because of what they do. Some people think this is all a way of trying to get rid of them as there has been a recent legislation to ban prostitutes from selling sex in public urban areas.

Corrie

Rafael Nadal

Rafael Nadal

 Rafael Nadal és un jugador de tennis de Palma de Mallorca. Va néixer a Manacor, una petita cuitat en Mallorca té 24 anys.El seu oncle va jugar futbol professional al FC Barcelona. Però el seu altre oncle és el seu entrenador. M'agrada molt Rafa perquè és una persona molt genuïna i lleial al seu país. 

Imogen 

*Castells*

Els castells son les torres humanes que es construeixen tradicionalment en
festivals arreu de Catalunya.

La tradició s'originà a Valls, prop de Tarragona, al sud de Catalunya, cap a finals del segle divuitè. Més tard es desenvolupà en altres regions de Catalunya i Mallorca i després de la prohibició de Franco s'han fet molt populars en altres regions d’Espanya. No obstant això, els castellers més traçuts són de Tarragona.

El lema de els castellers és: 
*Força, equilibri, valor i seny*

Per veure la construcció d'un castell...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4JiYXg55WXg

To read something that makes sense in Catalan...
http://castellersdebarcelona.cat/ 


Amelia