As a reader, when I find a writer whom I enjoy, I am a glutton – reading every book with a voracious hunger, single-mindedly devouring every word and savoring every mental image until there is nothing unread remaining.  Then, I become impatient for the next story.  When will he release the next book in this series?  When will I have a new episode of mental-vision to enjoy while I sip my morning coffee or lay in bed at night?  What is taking her so long?!  Doesn’t she understand that I am waiting here?  How hard can it be to just write another freaking book?!  I am selfish, demanding and easily frustrated.  If the wait is too long, I will often wander away and start the search for a new “favorite” author.  A new writer whose works I have yet to sample but appears to have the same potential to entertain me in the engrossing manner I crave.  I am a picky reader and I have high expectations for the quality of the material into which I invest my precious time and energy.  Finding written works that I enjoy can be challenging, which is a major contributing factor to the frustration and impatience I experience when I realize I have completed the last book in a series so the dishes are empty and the kitchen is bare.  

As a blogger, not an actual writer but more of an essayist or, using the same descriptive thread, the garde manager or pastry chef responsible only for the small, simple dishes that are tasty morsels but not quite a meal, I have to be careful not to spend all my time with my devices in hand, taking photos, making notes, writing down snippets of thoughts and ideas to include in the next blog publication.  The blogging process can be addictive and all-consuming much like reading.  The only difference is I am recreating events in order to share them with others – I’m seeing them again in my mind and perfecting the way they are arranged, described and presented in order for the person reading my words to be able to fully appreciate and enjoy that experience as I did.  I am the chef perfecting the dish so that it is plated attractively, smells tempting, tastes exactly as anticipated and is altogether an exquisite experience.  Well, hopefully anyway.  The point is, if I am not mindful as a human who is also invested in relationships with other humans (family and friends), I can easily allow blogging and all that is associated with it, consume me and ultimately detract from the very thing about which I am blogging – my life.  

All that said, to readers who are like me and have pointedly noticed my 6-week hiatus, I apologize for my absence.  I have been enjoying the recent holidays, traveling, cooking, spending time with family and friends and, finally, accumulating material about which I may now blog.  🙂  Thank you for your patience.  

Barcelona typically enjoys a lovely Mediterranean climate, with mild winters and warm summers. Online research indicates the last time the temperature in Barcelona fell below freezing was during an rare cold wave in January 1985. In fact, although Tucson, Arizona, where we usually spend our time, is geographically 600 miles closer to the equator, Barcelona supposedly enjoys nearly identical winter weather! Likely that is because the desert has little ability to store overnight the solar heat it receives during the daytime and therefore, in the shorter days, it is overall cooler. The relative humidity and variation in altitude also make a difference in the climate, I’m sure. All that said, we have prepared ourselves for wintering in Barcelona by stocking our closets with only a few long-sleeved tops, one sweater and some light-weight jackets and warm socks. However, judging by the locals who have recently made a sudden and rather unexpected change in their dress code, I wonder if we will be asking Santa for supplemental apparel.

Barcelonans, it appears, love their heavy cold-weather clothes. At the onset of autumn, when the first chilly breeze blew discarded leaves across the sidewalk and street, a silent notice went out across the city. The natives began pulling out articles of clothing from the back of their wardrobes or their under-bed storage containers. Puffy winter coats, thick neck scarves, ankle boots and knitted caps began appearing everywhere – in store windows and on nearly every passerby. Older men started wearing long wool peacoats or overcoats with scarves tucked in at the collar and flat caps or trilbys donned atop their heads. Younger men now wear leather coats, shearling coats with wool collars and sometimes puffer coats with or without scarves. Children (and sometimes tiny dogs) are dressed in huge, thick puffer coats that appeared to be more suitable for a ski trip than a ride in the stroller or walk to school. The ladies dressed themselves in all manner of winter wear from thick fur-lined ankle boots to knee-high leather heeled boots, long puffer overcoats with belts and hoods to waist-length, water-repellent, quilted versions also suitable for the slopes, but each with a long scarf tied in some intricate, but seemingly simple, casual manner around their necks.

Granted, the mornings are a bit brisk, but the daytime highs are still in the mid to low 60s (upper teens in Celsius) and the direct sunlight is quite intense so the day warms quickly. The sun’s rays create a noticeable difference for the casual pedestrian ambling through streets dappled with shade. In fact, considering that most of our travels are by foot and we live in an area with sloping streets and gentle hills, it’s not uncommon for us to get somewhat toasty on less windy days. Unlike the locals, we often wear short sleeved tops with a light jacket and 3/4 pants or light-weight hiking slacks. Occasionally, I wear yoga pants and a summer top with a windbreaker. Mom wears sandals but Allita and I usually loaf along in our sneakers. Sometimes, when it is windy, we will don scarves but they are more often a nod toward fashion than a weather-driven necessity. Even at her school, Allita is one of only two kids (the other is an American from Florida) who does NOT wear her thick puffy winter uniform coat in addition to her long-sleeved school shirt and a warm wool-blend sweater! Her teachers frequently ask her if she is sufficiently warm. They seem to have some difficulty understanding her lack of interest in additional layers.

It’s likely that when winter ultimately arrives, we will have to finally done a warmer coat and switch to our closed-toed shoes and thicker socks. Maybe I will just include a sweater in my layers? Probably, we will all add a few scarves to our collection – for fun as well as diversity because they are so plentiful here. Perhaps I might even buy a hat, but that’s highly unlikely. Instead, there is a greater chance I will gift Mom some earmuffs for the upcoming holidays as she wears her hair short leaving her ears unprotected in the chilly wind. I wonder what the locals will do? Will they at last put on some gloves? Gloves are, after all, the only winter accessory currently missing from almost every person I pass. It will be interesting to see if there is even enough of a difference between fall and winter weather to encourage a change in fall and winter fashions. Time will tell.

The IKEA store in Barcelona isn’t just a warehouse of cheap furniture with confusing pictographic assembly instructions and kitschy little knick-knacks. It’s a cross between Home Goods, Wayfair, World Market, H&M, Nordstrom Rack, Uncommon Goods, and Target with a K&W-style cafeteria (not quite Cliftons, but still delicious) located on the top floor. Even if you don’t actually purchase any of their goods, it’s still a fun place to walk around, get ideas and explore options.

Yes, the store offers primarily low-cost home furnishings that are mainly manufactured in China and based on Scandinavian designs. Yes, the store includes a self-serve warehouse where you will find some of the items too bulky to stock in large quantity on the showroom floor. And, yes, it is similar to other IKEAs in basic organizational design – prompting unidirectional traffic flow through seemingly well-ordered areas categorized based on their main product contents (lighting, linens, kitchenware, etc). Interestingly, I find that in order to locate the one or two items on my list that remain unascertainable, I may have to wander the entire store (often more than one time) regardless of the apparent zoning. In all likelihood, there is nothing specific I can put my finger on that makes this particular IKEA different from any other I have visited in Germany, France, United States or the United Kingdom, but, for some reason, I find I like it the best. So, it is hardly a surprise that I would plan a visit to my favorite Swedish establishment on this crisp autumn afternoon.

As usual, we arrived with a list of “necessary” items and our typical curiosity and desire, along with two large rolling bags for homeward transport of our final purchases. Each of us was sure to wear comfortable shoes for the ensuing long walk to and around the store, and we all agreed that we would end our adventure with a visit to the upstairs restaurant. I suspect we were all excited in our own way – me because I enjoy simply puttering about in this store, Mom because she may finally get the few remaining items on her wish list, and Allita because she’s missing the last hours of her school day to go shopping. The little things in life really do bring us the greatest pleasure.

In the end, after three hours of our lives invested in leisurely meandering and perusing plus an additional hour dedicated to the enjoyment of hot, local cuisine customized to our specifications and immediately served, we were satisfied, eager to return home and ready to enjoy our new acquisitions.

It was lovely on Saturday – a perfect fall weather day – so we decided to take a train downtown and visit Palau Güell (Güell Palace) located in the popular El Raval neighborhood off La Rambla. This is the home of the family of Eusebi Güell who partnered with Gaudi on the Güell park project we just visited. The palace is among many examples of Art Nouveau in this neighborhood but is unique because of it’s direct association with Gaudi.

The tour started in the stables and carriage house which is located below the street-level entrance. Even here, the intricately designed ceilings with arches, multi-colored bricks and elaborate columns were obvious. Gaudi designed this space to allow for capture of rain water and created smooth drains in the floors for ease of cleaning up after the animals. The below-stairs includes sleeping quarters for the groom and stable master as well as individual stables for the family horses. Although the overall coloring is very earthen, the architectural design and construction of this area surpasses some places I have lived in my life. And this was just for the horses! From the main entrance (two huge arched doors visible in the first photos), a massive staircase with columns, arches and, of course, stained glass window at the top, takes you to the visitor and guest lobbies and the main foyer.

Visitors were taken to the first lobby and Gaudi created an interesting feature that used lattice work on the wall to allow the family to spy unseen into the lobby below and identify who was calling before they were announced. Allita and I decided this was a very useful design feature – sort of a precursor to the modern “peep hole” in the front door. The guest lobby was far nicer but smaller with stained glass windows, an intricate gold-leaf ceiling and a more personal waiting area. From the guest lobby (once it has been decided you are allowed entrance, of course!), you enter the main foyer which is also a chapel and includes the organ pipes visible on the third floor and a massive decorous ceiling designed to allow sufficient light to enter at all times of the day and during all seasons. The ceiling appears celestial when gazing up from below – the holes create a “Starry Night” pattern in the dome.

The remainder of the house is as you might expect it: large rooms packed with awesome architectural designs, stained glass, arches, mazing ceilings, columns, colorful tiles, gold leaf decoration and furnishing that you find difficult to believe someone actually utilized day-to-day. The effect of the softly stained glass in the windows of the hallway is soothing and creates a tranquility that feels surreal among the opulence in the rest of the house.

Every space was designed and decorated perfectly for its purpose and for the period. Gaudi created a small chamber off the lady’s bedroom that would allow her to attend mass without leaving the comfort of her personal space – kind of like a pajama-day Sunday – by giving the room private access to the chapel below. The music room appears to be a miniature concert hall – and likely was during performances by the Güell children – although neither Allita nor I could imagine banging away our practice in such a setting. Even the toilet in the family bathroom was beautiful but practical with colorful, handmade tiles covering every surface making them both attractive and easy to clean!

Allita and I decided to make use of the audio equipment included with our tickets, but Mom did not. We spent much of our time explaining the various rooms to her and she spent much of her time waiting for us to finish listening to the electronic tour guide before advancing along the route. Further, our necks got sore from constantly looking up to view the ceilings and designs above our heads that were so breath-taking we couldn’t afford to miss them.

Finally, we ventured up the servant’s staircase to the rooftop to see Gaudi’s chimneys – a feature common among his residential designs. The sloping rooftop was not a comfortable place for secure balance, but the views of the neighborhood and city were spectacular and we enjoyed the whimsical designs of the little-seen fireplace vents. Allita opined it would have been fantastic to reside in such accommodations, surrounded by beauty and wealth, but then I reminded her about the general lack of indoor plumbing and electricity – not to mention no wifi, no television and no cell phones – plus a single, shared bathroom and toilet. In the end, she decided it was a much better place to visit than to live.

Parc Güell (Park Güell) is what happened when architect and artist, Antoni Gaudi, teamed up with entrepreneur, Count Eusebi Güell, in an effort to create a new and lovely, luxury subdivision in the Gràcia district of Barcelona. It is set among the sloped streets of Muntanya Pelada and is packed with luscious greenery like an English city garden. The views of the city from the park property are nearly as breath-taking and awe-inspiring as the art and architecture of within the park itself. The luxury estate neighborhood venture was a flop and now the park is a municipal garden maintained by the city of Barcelona.

Today is Toto Santos (All Saints Day) so Allita has the day off school. Since we had the entire day to do whatever we wanted, we decided to ride the bus to Gràcia and check out Gaudi’s park. It’s a spirited climb from bus stop on Traveserra de Dalt up Carrer de Larrard to the main entrance of the park. If you intend to visit the “Monumental Zone”, which is the area where all of Gaudi’s famous mosaics, the terrace and the long sea serpent bench is located, you must first acquire a ticket. We discovered today that the tickets are sold out generally two days in advance. We were invited to purchase tickets for Sunday, but we decided instead to walk around the rest of the park – the greatest bulk of the actual gardens and municipal park – for free. By the way, we were able to see almost everything in the monumental zone from the free areas but it was at a distance. Still, much of the monumental zone is currently being renovated so we didn’t feel like today was a good time to get the best view in any regard.

We walked through a park entrance at the end of Carrer d’Olot, wandered past the playground (Allita did stop and play for a lengthy period), up the slopes past Casa Museu Gaudi (the house where Gaudi lived within the park but was not designed by him), climbing the steep staircases to the Austria gardens and over L’escalinata del drac (the Dragon Stairway), further uphill to La Casa Trias, and eventually back down to the main entrance, exiting the same way we had entered. Everywhere we turned, we saw examples of Gaudi’s famous twists, turns, arches and curves. There was evidence of dragons and other reptiles, tree trunks, bird nests, Roman columns, and even viaducts and bridges in Gaudi’s construction of the park pathways. Seeing his designs in plain brick and rock, as opposed to colorful mosaic tiles, was quite a treat. For the first time, I was truly able to appreciate the appeal of the shape and creativity of his designs. Their neutrality created a subtle presentation often hidden among the garden greenery versus the almost Dr. Seus-like appearance of the gay patterns and whimsical arrangements obviously displayed in the monumental zone.

We left Parc Güell exhausted but satisfied, as did nearly every other visitor, I am certain. Today, we shopped a little, we ate a little and we climbed, hiked (a.k.a. huffed and puffed) and played a lot. Our time spent in Gaudi’s park was blissful and idyllic, even though it was slightly overcast with a brisk fall breeze in the air. The next time we return, hopefully the renovations will be complete and we will wander the mosaics and the museum to see the colorful side of Parc Güell up close and, perhaps, in the bright, warm sunshine of spring.

Much to our surprise, Halloween is also celebrated here in Barcelona. YAY! So, as with every year since she was born, Allita will have a homemade costume to wear to school and, eventually, trick-or-treating. We started early with our efforts for this year’s costume creation. Allita designed a dragon costume for herself – researching the best ideas, recommendations and pinterest posts for creating it. We assembled the majority of the necessary raw materials and supplies by purchasing most items from the bazar (Dollar Tree) or the hardware store. One or two things were donated by local vendors who were friendly enough to share when the craft was fully explained (for example, the dry cleaner who provided two wire coat hangers with the stipulation that she be allowed to see the end result). Such is the generosity of the people of Sarria.

We began with the mask, which I feared was going to be the most time-consuming and difficult of the accessories to be manufactured. Since we only had two weekends to get this work done, I thought we should start with the hard part first. The biggest hurdle with masks is that Allita wears glasses. She must wear them in order to be able to see how to walk properly so going without is not an option.

This year, we decided to use safety goggles that fit over her prescription glasses and a half-mask form. We hot glued the form to the goggles with them on her face so that the eye holes would be perfectly positioned. I will freely admit right now that she did burn her hand on the hot glue but that was only because she couldn’t be still long enough for it to cool completely. Then, for the horns, we disassembled two paper towel roll cores and twisted them into a tight point with more hot glue to hold them together. Eventually, we affixed the horns to the mask with glue, pins and duct tape.

Next, we used hot glue and craft foam paper to cover the mask and create scales. I will also admit here that we both got a number of first degree burns during this assembly process and we used almost all of our glue! To finish the horns, we used black duct tape in small pieces to layer around and add dimension. I’m always impressed with Allita’s ideas and suggestions when we are doing these type of arts and crafts.

Finally, we used metallic paint (silver and green) to add some dimension to the craft foam and make the mask look a little more “life-like”. We used a foam brush as well as some standard art paint brushes for the fine work. This whole process took one entire day to complete – not because I couldn’t do it faster but because we worked together and at Allita’s pace.

The next step was the tail. We had some ideas from online research and other costumes we’d seen in stores. Allita knew she wanted scales and she knew that it needed to somehow attach to her body. Ultimately, we used craft foam – one light green piece for the underside and one black piece for the topside – to make the basic tail shape. Then we covered the edges with black duct tape to hold the two pieces together. We also used black duct tape to fashion scales. That was tricky and frequently part frustrating / part hilarious as we dealt with the super-sticky tape. Each finished scale was applied with hot glue, making it very easy to place them wherever they fit the best and not worry about any particular order. Mom and I had debated the use of elastic and rope to make a “belt” that would be suitable. So, I decided to use duct tape to create two loops at the top of the tail to connect to the “belt” in the future.

The last step for the tail was the paint. Allita used a sponge brush to apply a coat of green metallic paint down the scales. Then she used a small permanent marker to add a tiny bit of silver to the bottom edge of each scale providing a bit of detail and contrast. I love that she loves to paint and I thank her art instructor from Tucson, Arizona, Kristina Valencia, for all her artistic skills and my mother for her basic artistic talent.

The last remaining accessory was the wings. We had great discourse about the design and construction of wings. Dialog continued over meals, on the walk to and from school nearly every day, while grocery shopping, while attending the Festa Major de Sarria and, most frequently, in the evenings just prior to bedtime. At one point, I groused good-naturedly, “Some dragons don’t even have wings!”. In the end, we decided on a set of permanently open wings mounted on her back using a modified coat hanger some green ribbon that attaches like a backpack. Having a creative child is sometimes a curse as well as a blessing.

Sadly, we didn’t take any photos of the wings in-progress so all I can show you is the finished set. But to make the wings, we took a coat hanger and cut the bottom wire in half so that each side had one small “v”. Then we covered the “v” with a square of black craft foam and colored duct tape. We cut the bottom of the craft foam in the shape of wings and painted them green as needed to add dimension and color to the wings. As a final touch, Allita used a small piece of screen that she placed over the black side of the wings and then she dabbed on silver paint. I’m not sure if you can see it, but the detail is astounding – the mesh made the silver paint look like scales! Very cool idea.

In addition to all of these amazing home-made accessories, Allita also made sock feet from toilet paper rolls and a pair of black socks. She used hot glue to stick the sliced rolls onto the ends of the socks. Then, she painted the pieces of cardboard with a black sharpie marker and green paint using a foam brush. She got the idea of the feet from the pair of store-bought gloves she had originally purchased when the costume idea was brand new.

The final costume included green shiny “hot pants” I found at a local bazaar in the adult costume section and some of Allita’s own black clothing. We prepared to head to Turo Park for the evening’s trick-or-treating and I realized she was going to have to ride the city bus dressed as a green and black dragon! Oh my. Look out Barcelona – here we come!

In honor of Mom’s pending semisesquicentennial birthday, we decided to spend this past weekend in Madrid, the capital of Spain and third largest city in the European Union. We started our trip at the Barcelona Sants train station aboard the Alta Velocidad Española or AVE bound for Zaragoza then Madrid. As the name describes, the AVE is the Spanish high-speed train. The roughly 650 km (403 miles) trip only required a little less than 3 hours one-way (even with one stop!). We were indeed traveling at some very high speeds.

We arrived at the Madrid Atocha station and leisurely made our way to the older section of the station, opened since 1851 but remodeled in 1992 into a 4,000 sq m (43,000 sq ft) tropical garden. Given Mom’s love of all things botanical, this seemed like an appropriate first stop for our weekend sojourn. We toured the garden and Allita even found some bananas growing quietly among the other 260 different plant species from Asia, America and Australia.

Our next stop was Parque del Buen Retiro (Buen Retiro Park), which was only a short walk north from the train station. Our plan for this lovely Saturday morning was to stroll through the park, visit the Palacio de Cristal (Crystal Palace), enjoy the lovely fountains and statues placed here and there among the gardens, and eventually enjoy a picnic by the pond, Estanque del Retiro. I’m delighted to announce that we were entirely successful and the tuna bocadillo that Allita and I shared was delicious.

After lunch, we wandered down Paseo del Prado, past Puerta de Alcalá (photo album), Fuente de Cibeles (photo album), Fuente de Neptuno (photo album), El Casón del Buen Retiro (photo album), San Jerónimo el Real (photo album) and finally arrived at the Museo Nacional del Prado (Prado Museum). Mom chose to visit the Prado because it is the main national art museum in Spain. We saw works by Goya, El Greco, Rubens and Velázquez among many, many others. In total, we spent over 2 hours visiting the museum and, although we had barely scraped the surface of the works on display, we were exhausted. Really, we can only spend some much time repeatedly studying nudity and Christianity in one day. It was hotel time.

After a short nap in our lovely hotel, Hotel Mayor, located just off the Plaza Mayor and very near the Palacio Real de Madrid (Royal Palace), Allita and I decided to go for an evening stroll or paseo. Below are some of the sights we saw as we wandered in the dusk.

Sunday morning, we enjoyed a slow start and made use of the 24/7 coffee and fruit bar along with our complimentary continental breakfast at the Hotel Mayor. Did I mention how great this place is?! Eventually, we wandered to the Metro Line 2 Sol stop at Puerto del Sol (photo album) and rode the train back to Banco de España, which is a short walk down Paseo del Prado to the Museo Nacional Thyssen-Bornemisza (Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum). This was the second museum on Mom’s list of “places to visit” in Madrid.

The Thyssen is currently showing a temporary exhibit titled “Los Impresionistas y la Fotografía” (Impressionists and Photography). In the nearly 5 hours that we visited this museum, we toured all three floors of the permanent collection, the Impressionists temporary exhibit and enjoyed a lovely lunch in the museum cafe. It was a fantastic day. We saw Picasso, Rembrandt, Rubens, Monet, Manet, Cézanne, Caravaggio, Corot, Renoir, Degas, van Gogh, Kirchner, Gris, and Dali to name a few. A very small sample of the many amazing works that we saw is in the Madrid photo album.

We returned to Barcelona in a little over 2 hours on a direct AVE from Madrid, even though there were 14 cars including cafeteria. Some of the countryside visible from my window is in the Madrid photo album. Mom and Allita both declared the weekend a resounding success. ¡Adios Madrid!

Early on 11 October 2019, we left Barcelona for a weekend trip to Switzerland to visit old friends and see new places. The trip started with an adventure at the airport unlike any I’ve had since I last traveled to Israel in the 1980s. We arrived at our gate approximately 45 minutes before departure to discover the crew was already boarding! We quickly queued up and made our way downstairs to a bus, jammed with other travelers who, like us, had tried to keep their luggage to only the hand baggage allowed in cabin versus checking a suitcase for a costly sum. So, we were all smushed in a hot bus with backpacks, rolling bags, purses, pouches, duffles and various other personal items, idling curbside until the last passenger finally squeezed on board. Then, we were delivered to our plane, which was waiting for us in-between the two airport terminals in an unidentified location but among a row of other similar planes with two portable staircases available for boarding (front or rear). I felt very much like I was being secreted away, although I got the impression from my fellow travelers that this was not such an unusual occurrence. Eventually, we boarded and departed for Zurich. At some point afterwards, I believe Allita finally woke up. It was an early departure after all.

We traveled from the Zurich airport to Rorschacherberg by car. It’s a lovely drive, but I enjoyed the return trip we made by train on Sunday much more. We were able to see, from our higher seats, a great deal more of the countryside and, of course, worry less about the traffic proceedings and general navigation. That’s one of the great advantages of public transportation – you just ride. As I’ve mentioned in a previous post, it’s very liberating to be a passenger. Until we moved to Spain, I had forgotten what it was like as a child to put all my trust into the driver and simply stare out the window at the world passing by.

Rorschacherberg is a little farming community in the canton of St. Gallen on the edge of Lake Constance (Bodensee) in Switzerland. Family friends from our time in Germany in the 1980s live in a modest house that overlooks the village and the lake. It is with this lovely family that we have spent our entire weekend. We had so much fun!

On Saturday, we traveled by boat across the lake to the small island town of Lindau. It was a lovely, cool morning, perfect for a nautical journey, and it evolved into a fantastic, warm fall day with sunshine and a gentle breeze. We spent the entire day walking around the little island community, exploring the markets and various shops and stalls, eating and drinking all the yummy German (Bavarian!!) delicacies, laughing at the street entertainers, enjoying an unexpected food truck fest, and even helping some locals remove a boat from the harbor! What an adventure!!

We were sad to leave on Sunday, but we had enjoyed exactly what we set out to accomplish: a fantastic and fun weekend visiting old friends and new places. It was perfect! Just what we needed!

P.S. The return flight from Switzerland was much less dramatic and cloak-and-dagger. We boarded our plane using a jet bridge directly from the airport gate. Maybe the bus is just a Barcelona thing?

Franco had no great love for Catalonians. I imagine they were difficult to subdue since Catalonians are independent and proud people with a rich, strong cultural heritage. In an effort to force them to unite with the rest of Spain, he banned spoken and written Catalan (the language of Catalonia) and many Catalonian traditions, such as the Sardana dance. (Although, some villages still held festivals and hosted dances in peaceful protest under Franco’s rule.) Their culture is a key part of the identify of the people here in Catalonia. Catalonians today teach their language to their children at home and in school (by law) and they share their beloved cultural traditions within their communities frequently and routinely – keeping their heritage as strong and rich as ever!

Those who have followed this blog know that Allita and I have already enjoyed several of these Catalonian traditions while staying in Casteldefels and now, in Sarria: festa major, cobla music, correfoc, Castellers, cercavila, gegants and capgrossos. In a few short weeks, we even plan to celebrate Castanyada (All Saints Day or Catalan Halloween) with our neighbors (more on that in an upcoming post)! Tonight, however, when we rejoined our Catalan community in celebrating their main annual festival, we were personally invited to participate in the Sardana!

One of the most significant cultural traditions in Catalonia is the Sardana dance. This dance is performed by members of the community who come together, hold hands and form a circle facing center. The cobla begins the music and a leader, an experienced dancer, calls out the steps. There are two basic patterns of dance steps: curts (short) and llargs (long). Dancers take small steps and the circle rotates slowly as the dance ensues.

Many of you already know a circle is a symbol of unity. For this reason, a dance that includes everyone and anyone – without any required costume – men, women, and children of all ages and backgrounds – connected together hand-in-hand, facing each other and moving in unison to music created by their own coblas, has powerful meaning for these people. They are joined in this circle; standing proud, raising their arms, smiling and laughing, perhaps even singing to the music, and moving together as one big connected group. Nothing could be a stronger statement of cultural pride and allegiance than the Sardana.

Tonight, Mom and Allita walked home from school and I met them, as we had planned, in the Plaça de Pere Figuera i Serra in the heart of Sarria. According to the schedule for the Festa Major 2019, this was the location for the Ballada de Sardanes [Sardana Dance]. I was very excited because this was a rare opportunity for us to be able to observe this historical dance up close – easily and without a huge crowd to block our view. I hoped to be able to watch the dancers long enough to figure out the steps. Little did I know that the group was also watching both Allita and I as we practiced and pranced nearby.

In no time at all, a friendly, middle-aged lady came over and grabbed my hand. She asked me (in Spanish) if I spoke Spanish or French, because her English was “no good”, so I told her I spoke French because my Spanish is “no good”. She pulled me toward the group of dancers and demonstrated the steps, counting for each one: un, deux, trois [one, two, three]. I motioned for Allita to join me and another dancer came over to teach Allita, also in French! The only problem with that was – Allita’s French is “no good”. HA! We practiced together – counting in French and sometimes in Spanish – while the remaining dancers observed, gave occasional pointers and prepared for the next round of Sardana.

Then, the music started and the leader called “tirada de curts [short steps]” and we began. I held my hands down, matching the other dancers, and took small, precise steps counting under my breath and trying to advance slowly in a counter-clockwise procession. Then, the leader called “tirada de llargs [long steps]” and we raised our arms and switched to the second pattern of the dance that I had only just learned. Allita and I fumbled a little, now and then, but we recovered quickly and fell into step with the others at each transition. In the end, the dancers smiled and clapped and thanked us for joining them and we thanked them profusely and enthusiastically for including us. What a fantastic moment! I was so energized, I wanted to dance all night long. Unfortunately, just then, it started to rain and we all decided to head back home for an early dinner in our warm, dry abode instead.

We will miss the Correfoc on Friday because we are headed to Zurich for a weekend with friends on the Bodensee (more on that in a future post!). In fact, this was our last evening at the Festa Major de Sarria 2019. All-in-all, it was time well spent; meeting our neighbors, joining their celebration of all things Sarria and Catalonian, and making memories that will last a lifetime (or two, perhaps).

*the photos are courtesy of my mother who did not join us but was an active audience member.

On October 12, 1492, Cristòfor Colom (Italian explorer and discoverer of the New World, a.k.a. Christopher Columbus) landed three Spanish sailing vessels, the Nina, the Pinta and the Santa Maria, in the Bahamas, which he believed at that time to be Asia.  Most of us are very familiar with this story.  What I find interesting is that the Bahamas celebrate October 12 as “Discovery Day” and Spain celebrates it as their National Holiday, Día de la Hispanidad [Hispanic Day], or National Day, Fiesta Nacional de España [National Day of Spain].  Even in the U.S.A., we recognize Columbus Day.  Actually, we celebrate old Chris more now that he’s dead than we ever did when he was alive.  How ironic.

In Catalonia, where many of the residents continue to push for independence from Spain, this holiday isn’t always fully embraced.  Sometimes, Catalonians protest in the streets, refuse to close their businesses on this day, and hang banners rallying for the freedom of Catalonia from their balconies (Llibertat presos politics! [Freedom for political prisoners!]).  In recent years, Catalonia has celebrated October 1 rather than October 12 as their National Day.  Rather than stay in Barcelona and get stuck in the middle of these ongoing politics over the holiday weekend, we’ve decided to go to Zurich instead.  Allita has Friday off school, in accordance with the Ministry of Education, so we have a 3-day weekend!  Yay! More details to come on that trip in a future post.

Now, however, the week prior to this controversial holiday, the little community of Sarria (our very own neighborhood) is celebrating their special festival, the Festa Major de Sarria 2019.  Once again we find ourselves surrounded by colorful community activity, carnivals, singing, food, crafts, games and general festivities.  How delightful!  As I have recently had the opportunity to spend several hours in the veterinary clinic speaking with the veterinarian and his staff, I have gotten quite a lot of info, the local “scoop” as it were, on this lovely little week-long celebration.  

The village of Sarria, now a community within Barcelona, takes this same week every year to have a community celebration where businesses customize their hours and offerings, some even set up a long row of tables outside in the street for their menu del dia, to encourage networking and relationship building among the area residents.  There are decorations strewn from balconies that zig-zag across the streets and brightly colored fall plants in large pots set out in the city squares.  In the main square at the top of Major de Sarria [Main Street] and Bonanova Street, a small traveling carnival with games, rides and various foods is set up and doing a lively business.  Families and various other groups of all ages wander up and down the streets, talking and laughing, playing games (such as a water race with scuba flippers!), shopping, socializing and generally having fun all day long and well into the night.  

On Friday, I fell asleep just prior to midnight while listening to the sounds of an energetic band playing a very popular and familiar song that many of the locals apparently felt the need to accompany.  Enthusistically.  It was fantastic.  So much so that Allita and I were inspired to spend the entire next day exploring the festival and celebrating with our neighbors.  We played games and cheered on our teams.  She colored pages of important historical figures of Sarria and even the Sarria dragon! At the carnival, she rode rides and played more games.  We ate traditional foods, which as expected, were amazing!  The music and festivities were thrilling.  We attended the Cercavila and saw the Gegants, the batons, and a group of timpanists (Tabalers) who really got the crowd moving!  Everyone smiled and laughed and welcomed us in every single event.  We truly felt part of the neighborhood.  We laughed and played until we were barely able to walk the single mile back to our cosy apartment.