festivals

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.
 

Calendari Dels Pagesos

~ Kate Wilson ~ 1 Comment

A friend just asked me how to find out the dates of all the Festes Majors.
Apart from asking someone who knows (and people in towns and villages all know the date of their local one), the best way is to look at the Calendari Dels Pagesos which you can buy for about 2.20E from news-stands or bookshops.

This publication is a wonderful source of information. Contents include

  • Astrological data – eclipses, phases of moon, sunrise times etc. There is also a list of when the planets are visible.
  • Religious celebrations and dates
  • Weekly markets – if it’s a Monday and you want to go to a market you can find out there is one in Arenys de Munt, Cardedeu, Olot and Santa Coloma de Farners amongst other places.
  • Catalan festivals both local and national. This is where the Festes Majors are listed. Now you can see that there are hundreds!  Looking just at July I see there are festes in Vic, Llança, Espinelves, L’Estartit, St Pol de Mar and about 160 other towns.  Imagine having all these possible parties to go to, especially as a young person. I try to count up village/street parties I went to as a teenager and I come up with 0!!!!
  • All Saints days are listed so you can keep up with all your friends and family and remember to phone them and say Per Molts Anys. Today is St Aaron and Santa Elionor.  I have decided to adopt Saint Catherine of Alexandria as my saint and her day is November 25th. Lets see if the  Calendari agrees…..yes and it is shared with Gonçal and Erasme. I don’t meet many people called Gonçal or Erasme so I have the day mostly to myself!
  • Farming information and when to plant and harvest as well as tips on chicken keeping.         July information “Tenen gran importància les feines de recol-leccio´ i d’irrigacio´. Encara es segueixen plantant tomàquets tardans per a esser collits a l’octubre o novembre.”     The  important jobs now are to harvest and to water. Continue planting late tomatoes so you can pick them in October and November

So, all in all a booklet full of useful information and all you have to do is remember to look at it from time to time.  Ours has been in a drawer until now but I will put it beside the telephone from now on.