Culture and Customs

Gegants in Borrassà

~ Kate Wilson ~ 3 Comments

When I am in Sant Nicolau I usually go shopping in the Spar in Borrassà as they are so well stocked but especially as they are always friendly.  Last week I went there with one of my sisters who was visiting from the UK and was surprised to find the central square blocked off to traffic. What could be going on in this normally quiet and deserted village?
There was a meeting of giants from around the region!
These are called Gegants in Catalan and are a familiar feature of local festivals. The smaller figures with large heads are called Cap Grosses

 They are usually accompanied by little bands of musicians and large crowds come out to look at them

 I think some of the faces are based on real people from the villages but I don’t know if they ever make caricatures of famous people or politicians. Most of the ones I have seen are wearing medieval dress and there is always a king and queen

I have to admit that although it is interesting to see them there is something very alien about them to me. It always reminds me strongly that I am a stranger here.  I feel I must be missing something as I don’t understand what they mean to the people who are clearly passionate about them.  There are three very Catalan traditions which are very important to the local communities – Gegants, Human towers and dancing the Sardana.  Although I am watching from the outside I do get a thrill watching the towers, and although the sardana is a subtle and minimalist dance it also is quite moving to watch and to hear the music. But the gegants – I just don’t get it.
Would be good to have someone explain them to me.

September 11th Catalunya

~ Kate Wilson ~ 2 Comments

September 11th has many associations for people all around the world but here in Catalunya it is the National Day also known as The Diada. It commemorates a defeat in battle but has been given a new positive slant by the annual celebrations all around the region.

Like many people outside the country I had never heard about any of this before coming here but perhaps after last years huge demonstration in Barcelona where over one and a half million people marched in support of Independence, there may be a wider interest in what happens tomorrow.

My first year here was in 2009 and I spent September 11th up in the Pyranees. I had no idea then why there was a group of people carrying a flag up to the top of Costabonne, showing my ignorance at the time but isn’t it wonderful how much you can learn and change in 4 years?

Looking at these photos reminds me of those lovely days walking in the mountains when my main concerns were about relaxing into my newly budding relationship, trying to understand the Catalan conversations of my three friends, and wondering if my legs and lungs would make it across the mountains to the refuge where we slept for three nights.

It’s very beautiful up there and I want to go back.

Scottish – Catalan Independence

~ Kate Wilson ~ 1 Comment

Todays conversation was with the owner of a campsite on the Black Isle near Inverness. He was the first person to say without doubt that he would be voting NO in the referendum next year. He doesn’t want to be seen as a foreigner in England and he believed that the leading politicians in the Scottish Nationalist Party are more left wing than Fidel Castro. He was also worried about the selling off of Scottish utilities to countries like Spain and France and China.
Interesting that on the one hand he was for keeping control of Scottish resources in local hands but against ensuring that those hands were Scottish ones.
He had heard of Catalunya but knew nothing nor seemed very interested in the situation there

Revetlla de Sant Joan

~ Kate Wilson ~ Leave a comment

Yesterday we celebrated the Night of Sant Joan which is the night before the feast of St John the Baptist
Note here that the Catalan name for John is Joan which has two syllables( Jo-ann) and is not the same as the English womans name Joan.

Other names for this festival is The Night of Fire or the Night of the Witches.

Essential elements – friends, food, drink, a bonfire and for some, fire crackers called petardos.

We went to visit friends at Premia del Mar. All the necessary elements were there (minus the petardos which could be heard outside on the streets).  With a lot of people from Argentina, it was a good chance to practice my Spanish.

It was one of those parties that warm your heart. Lots of laughter and warmth and interesting conversations. There were also about 6 or 7 dogs there, all jostling for space under the tables or racing around the bonfire. Bonnie managed very well and organised herself a little hole under a bush to hide in when things got too wild.
This celebration marks the beginning of summer and has many pagan associations in spite of its links with St John.
Sant Joan traditions: Herbs
“Les herbes de Sant Joan tenen virtut tot l’any” means “the herbs of Sant Joan retain their virtues all year round.” Herbs are a big element of Sant Joan. Herbs are said to have curative powers that become one hundred times stronger on the night of Sant Joan.  Thyme, Rosemary and Verbena (the herb that gave name to the fiestas!) are collected and eaten on Sant Joan. The herb verbena was offered to the Gods in ancient times. It has a very powerful smell and some say it has aphrodisiac properties. 
We tried to spend the night on the beach of St Pol but it was full of young people with petardos and a sound system. so we took to the hills and found a quiet parking place to watch the fireworks and the full moon over the sea until dawn.
 

Windy and Wonderful Ametlla del Mar

~ Kate Wilson ~ 2 Comments

Before those days gently slide away into the past I want to write a little about the rest of our trip to Els Ports and the Delta.
The campsite began to fill up on Easter Friday and as it wasn’t very special staying there we decided to move on. There was nothing wrong with it but I’ve become fussy about campsites after visiting so many in the past three years and this was one of the ones, for example, with no toilet seats!
We thought we’d set off early and have breakfast before going to hear some drumming.
The van had other ideas

Luckily a campsite is a great place to find experts in almost anything and we had two car mechanics arguing over what exactly was causing it to refuse to start.
Then there were at least 12 people who helped push-start us and we were off to visit Vallderoures a beautiful walled town over the border in Aragon, with a castle and church and a bridge leading into the old central square

There was a special Easter celebration of drumming at 11am and even with the van problem we got there in time to find a shady parking place very close to the town but far enough away so that Bonnie wouldn’t be frightened by the sound of 100 drums.
Everything was easy and we went first to look for a cafe with wifi and found one overlooking the river and the town

Thank goodness we had ordered our breakfast before finding out their password was ‘vivaespaña’!  While this sounds innocent enough to any British person who remembers the song, to a Catalan it is a code for something not so light-hearted!

With Bonnie safely sleeping in the van, outside the city walls, we squeezed into the square to listen to and feel the drums. I got interested in all the faces – this guy for example.

By the castle there is a garden with a Via Dolorosa – a walk taking you past each station of the Cross. Here is the fourth one – Jesus meets Mary on the road.

Later we drove to the coast meaning to find a campsite by the Delta. But Ampolla was full and too much of a culture shock after our quiet walks so we continued east to Ametlla del Mar. There we found one of the best campsites in the world. It was dark when we got there but the following morning we woke to find the sea only minutes away down a quiet cliff path and the sound of the waves all around us

I liked Ametlla del Mar very much – even though the Tramontana was blowing and the internet wasn’t working in the campsite and the harbour cafes were a bit expensive.  It was one of those places where you arrive and immediately start planning when you can come again!
Oh and the campsite is called Camping Nautic!

On Sunday we set off for home but it was so hard to leave that we took a little diversion to a Naturist beach. And had our first swims of the year!  No pictures – sorry!