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Fiestas and Catalan holidays

Spain has a tradition of celebrating Saints days with special fiestas and Catalunya has several of it's own special holidays.

January 1 Any Nou (New Years Day)

January 6 Reis Mags (Epiphany)

March 19 Sant Josep (Local Holiday)

April 6 Divendres Sant (Good Friday)

April 8 (Easter Sunday)

April 9 Dilluns de Pasqua (Easter Monday)

April 23 Sant Jordi (Feast of St George, Patron Saint)

May 1 Festa del Treball (Labour Day)

June 24 Sant Joan (St John's 'Midsummer's ' Eve)

August 15 Assumpció (Assumption Day)

September 11 Diada de Catalunya (National Day)

September 24 Fiesta de La Mercè (Our Lady of Mercy)

October 12 Dia de la Hispanitat (Day of the Spanish Speaking Nations)

November 1 Tot Sants (All Saints Day)

December 6 Dia de la Constitució (Constitution Day)

December 8 Immaculada Concepció (Immaculate Conception)

December 25 Nadal (Christmas Day)

December 26 Sant Esteve (Boxing Day)

Special Events

Barcelona, Girona Provinces – Festivals and Attractions

Each Barri (district) in Barcelona, Girona and every village and town has a Saint’s Day to be celebrated and this is usually in held in conjunction with an annual Festa Major which can last for two days over a week-end, to a whole week to 10 days.

Most towns and villages have a parade of giants (gegants), bigheads (capgrosses) and dwarfs (nans). They are all huge papier-mâché caricatures of people once linked with local trade guilds. Dragons and demons also feature in the parades, along with music. Families follow along behind the procession. As with most festas, any excuse for fireworks – Catalans love pyrotechnics, no more so than celebrating Revetlla de Sant Joan at Midsummer which for many, along with the local Correfoc (Run of Fire) are the incendiary events of the year .

March:

Sant Jose It’s a popular name in Catalunya and is often shorted to Pepe. It’s a local holiday. It’s customary to celebrate your ‘name day’ – the name of the Saint you are named after, more so than your actual birthday.

April:

Setmana Santa (Holy Week)

Diumenege de Rams (Palm Sunday). Processions of Roman Soldiers turn-out in Girona. The climb up to the Cathedral of the religious procession is quite spectacular. Via Crucis (Passion Plays) are staged. The most popular being in the spa town of Sant Hilari Sacalm, Girona.

Dijous Sant (Maunday Thursday) a popular event of Setmana Santa is the procession and Dansa de la Mort (Dance of Death) performed by men dressed as skeletons. This event is thought to date back to the times of the plague in the 1300s. It’s held in Verges and hundreds attend.

Pasqua (Easter) on Good Friday (Divendres Sant) crucifixes are carried through the streets of major towns, following the Stations of the Cross.

Sant Jordi (23^rd April) Feast of St. George, patron saint of Catalunya and the day is devoted to Cervantes who died this day in 1616. It’s also known as Book Day as Men and boys give their mothers, wives and girlfriends red roses, and in return they receive a book.Temps de

May:

Flors - Girona Flower Festival (First Fortnight of May). Streets are festooned with floral displays. This event is extremely popular and the streets are crowded with people. The route enables courtyards and areas not usually accessible, to be seen.

June:

The school holidays are long (starting early June and ending September) and Catalans love to head out of town to the coast for the week-ends in summer months, and particularly for the month of August. Some businesses in Barcelona and Girona close.

Revetlla de Sant Joan (24^th June). Misummer’s Eve is celebrated with fireworks, Cava, a special cake (coca) made with pine nuts and crystallized fruits. Bonfires are lit throughout the Provinces. It’s the shortest night of the year – it’s also the noisiest. The next day is very quiet and late in getting started.

July:

Cantada d’havaneres (first Sunday in July). Musicians and singers, whilst drinking Cremat (coffee with rum), sing old sea shanties throughout the towns along the coast – the most famous is performed in Calella de Palafrugell, it’s in its 40^th year and a hugely popular attraction.

Cap Roig Botanical Gardens – Open Air Concerts Mid-July thru Mid-August. The concerts are famous and tickets sell out quick. Previous artists in 2006 include Bob Dylan, Dionne Warwick, George Benson and local celebrity Jose Carreras. Events also include Ballets, Operas and Flamenco.

August:

La Bisbal d’Emporda Festa (First/Second Week in August). The town gives way to arrangements and preparations for a whole week of activities and events. There is a visiting fun fair, with all the usual attractions. It’s a time for eating, enjoying local wines and socializing. The end of the Festa is marked with the Carrefoc (a parade of fire). The Placa outside the Castel and its rooftop become the centre piece for a firework display that is quite literally un-describable, not for the faint hearted or slow movers. To be fully involved, come dressed in hat and bandana for head and face; clothes should be doused in water. It is customary to follow the fire breathing dragon procession, amid bangers, firecrackers and flares, whilst showers of sparks/fire reign down from above and from the noses of the twirling dragons that are held at shoulder height – to leave without being slightly singed somewhere is hard.

September:

Diada de Catalunya (11^th September). This is Catalunya’s National Day and marks Barcelona’s fall to Felipe V in 1714, when the region lost its autonomy. Catalan flags are everywhere.

La Merce (24^th September). An annual event in Barcelona and it honours Nostra Senyora de La Merce (Our Lady of Mercy) in a week of concerts, masses and dances. The Carrefoc is a high point to this festival.

October:

Festa de Corca (First/Second Week October). A week of events for adults and children mostly held in the Sala Municpical. The programme changes yearly, but there is always Sardana dancing at 18.30 on the last Sunday of Festa week. People from nearby villages attend. The Placa is used for a small Artesan craft fair and children’s entertainment, which has previously included a petting zoo and children’s fun fair ride, bouncy castle and trampoline – not all at the same time, however.

Fira de Sant Narcis – Girona (the last weekend of October and the first week of November). This is Girona’s annual festival. Attractions are held in the Devesa and there is a huge commercial fair. Streets are lined with Artesan craft sellers. The impressive lights and garlands remain in place throughout the Christmas season. As always, the Carrefoc is a spectacular event culminating in a huge firework display lighting up the city – a ‘must see’.

November:

Art Fair – Placa del Vi, Girona (1^st November). Artists and painters take over the Placa and surrounding areas to display and sell their works directly to the public.

December:

Pessebres Vivent, Pals. Residents of Pals, re-enact biblical scenes on several nights over the Christmas period. Not only to be found in Pals, other villages perform similar events.

Christmas Eve (24^th December) Nochebuena. After a late family dinner presents are exchanged. La Misa de Gallo (Rooster’s Mass) is held at midnight.

New Years Eve (31^st January) Nochevieja. Celebrations revolve around good food, good wines and Cava. It’s traditional to eat a grape with every chime of the bell at midnight.

January:

Reis Mags – Kings Day (6^th January). On the Eve of Kings (5^th), boats arrive in ports and harbours, carrying the 3 Kings who when set ashore, pass out gifts to the children. People carry lanterns to light the 3 Kings journey path and guide them. In Corca, the Kings pass through the streets on horseback. At the Town Hall, after they have delivered their speech, and reminded the children that they must be good throughout the coming year, they pass out sweets and gifts.