Carnival Costumes

Carnival costumes may have the most unusual designs. This isn't by far one of my best captures. The background was horrible and I was using the built-in flash but I noticed that still this ghostly image can have some weird, spooky Indian halo around it.

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Flashy Wall Mural, Barcelona

This is some flashy wall mural I found in the Raval area. I don't know exactly what it means although it talks about the power of images and words. The casc antic area (old town) is full of them.

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Carnival 2009 in Barcelona is Coming!

Next Saturday a big parade will take place in Barcelona to celebrate our Carnival. Not so famous but getting better all the time. As you can imagine I have no recent pictures but I thought this pirate character might do the trick just to start getting in the mood. There are many sites online anticipating carnestoltes but this is the official site: Carnaval. Hmm, I hope they update the site soon.

Arc de Triomf: A Landmark of Barcelona

Barcelona's Arc de Triomf monument was built on the Ciutadella park during one of the most important events in the history of our city: the first Universal Exhibition of 1888. This triumphant arch which the Romans used to build to receive and honor victorious armies after their numerous invasions, was designed by architect Josep Vilaseca to act as the entrance to the Sant Joan Hall on the exhibition area. It is inevitable to think of other famous arches like the one in Paris. This one is not a world reference but it is one of our symbolic buildings and is tightly linked to our history. At the top of the beautiful brick monument we find several friezes, the one on the main façade, overlooking Paseo San Juan, containing the "Barcelona welcomes the nations" sculpture by Joseph Reynés, another on the rear façade with a sculpture called "Reward" by Joseph Lemon representing the delivery of awards to participants in the exhibition and finally the friezes on the sides with allegories of Agriculture, Industry and Trades. Previous posts: Triumph Arch or Arc de Triomphe and Arc de Triomph Detail.

Sant Pau Hospital: Cupolas

Can you imagine a hospital with buildings like this?

Think of a central square with colorful flowers and bloomed orange trees surrounded by brick wall pavilions crowned with beautiful Art Nouveau cupolas and literally covered with sculptures and assorted architectural adornments. That is not a dream, it exists. You only have to visit Sant Pau Hospital (Hospital de la Santa Creu i Sant Pau).

Maybe you would say: "No way, I don't like hospitals". Well, the pavilions are not functional anymore so they will not admit you as a patient. Just enter through the main gate on Cartagena street, one block away from L5 blue subway line. You can sit on a bench there, take a lot of wonderful pictures and most of all, enjoy the peaceful atmosphere of the place. When you leave you won't have the feeling you visited a hospital but the certainty that you have been in contact with a beautiful past.

Hammered Dulcimer Player on Portal del Angel, Barcelona

I am no music expert but after some research I would say this is a modest variant of a hammered dulcimer or psaltery (salterio in Spanish). There is some confusion about the terms dulcimer and psaltery whether the strings are plucked or hammered but experts say both words have been used indistinctly through history. As you can guess this is a very old instrument. It appeared in Persia about 2000 years ago and our modern piano evolved from this peculiar wooden box. This woman was in the middle of Portal del Angel flooding the place with sweet melodies that evoked ancient times. If you want to feel the same take a look at this marvelous video: Mermaid Medieval Hammered Dulcimer.

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Modernist Gate at Els Quatre Gats Tavern, Carrer Montsio 3 bis, Barcelona

You wonder sometimes what Catalan Art Nouveau artists had in mind when they let go their imagination till their artwork almost reached the level of absurdity often sacrificing functionality for the sake of beauty. Take the case of the ironwork on this modernist gate.

Obviously you could easily jump over the gate, I don't think anyone would get hurt with those "sharp" pod-like points but aren't they cute!.

You can find this gate at Montsió street near Portal de l'Angel, specifically at the modernista Casa Marti and tavern Els Quatre Gats which opened in 1897

The wrought ironwork belongs to artist Manuel Ballarín i Lancuentra

Check the history of Els Quatre Gats, to have a better idea of this must-see place located in one of those small streets you would probably not see on a quick visit.

Spanish Traditional Dance: The Jota

One of the best known traditional dances in Spain is what is known as La Jota (the same name as letter J).

It probably originated in the region of Aragon although there are different forms in other regions like Valencia, Castile, Navarra, etc. Dancers move in this peculiar way elevating their legs as if they were doing some kind of fouetté combined with waltz like movements. In the meantime, they play the castanets with arched elevated arms.

Other members in the company sing popular songs and play typical string instruments like the bandurria. This is a very simple explanation but I guess you get the idea. I published some posts not long ago about jotas:

Baturricos Playing Bandurrias
Three Jota Singers from Aragon
Jota Dancer

Modernist Lamp Ironwork: Imaginative Design

Near Sagrada Familia and all along Avinguda Gaudi you come across beautiful modernist lamps like the one in this picture. Well this is only a detail of the wonderful design of the ironwork. Check the modernist lamp at Gaudi Avenue on my Google Maps. Finding here in full view in this other post:

Lamp post by Falques, Avinguda Gaudi, Barcelona

Look at this other beautiful street lamp near Arc de Triomf by Pere Falques.

Catalan Traditional Dress and Pubillas

A Catalan woman wearing the traditional dress. You should know that there are some differences between the traditional garment and a pubilla's dress. But what is a pubilla? 

Long ago, Catalan families with no male descendants considered the first daughter as the heiress in the family. In case there were more sisters, she kept three fourths of the family's patrimony. So an heiress is called pubilla and the male counterpart is called hereu. Pubillas helped preserved the family's last name in case of not having a male descendant. 

At present the pubilla tradition is kept in Catalan towns just for cultural purposes. Some towns elect their pubilla among young ladies (pubilla derives from puberty) who are to act as representatives of Catalonia's culture. Pubillas can only be elected once and during one single year to yield the position to other ladies. Both pubillas and hereus are accompanied by maids of honor and fadrins (brothers that are not heirs) respectively. 

I am not an expert on this matter but I would say this is just a traditional dress, age factors aside. A pubillas's dress is made of a more expensive fabric and shawls are made of a more elaborate lace. They wear shoes and not espadrilles although both the traditional and the pubilla's way of dressing include the elbow length fishnet gloves and the hair net.

I find it fascinating to learn about these old traditions from Catalonia that if it weren't for the perseverance of its people would be lost long time ago.

Green Sugary Candy

Sweets not only taste great but also produce beauty with their colors and evoke dreams in our deep rooted childhood memories. What if their colors were dull, would they sell just the same? Or is it a matter of stimuli? Are bright colors nice in our minds because they usually taste good? Are they associated with happiness, anniversaries, the colors of our room when we were kids, clowns? I don't know but I do prefer them that way! Don't you?

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Keep on Turning Oh My Rusty, Rusty Wheel!

Don't worry, it ain't no song or poem. Did I tell you I love rust and decay...in photography!!! Not that I have many pictures like this. Well I remember an old propeller. When you search for stuff carrying a good coat of rust you may come across the wildest remnants of old machinery, tools or scrap metal. Sometimes you may need to visit some abandoned warehouse or a junkyard in the outskirts but this curious wheel part of what I suppose was some kind of winch to load carts I found in a town near Barcelona.

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Musing in Las Ramblas de Barcelona

Before I begin I would like to thank a couple of friends for making me muse on my blog and the daily posting affair. They both did in two very different ways which I won't explain here but made me think that daily doesn't mean having to post each and every day of the year but to do it several times a week perhaps. These are their sites: San Francisco Daily Photo by Manuel Guerzoni and Hyde Daily Photo by Gerald England. I am glad they made me came out of my stubborn obsession and in way released me from this sacrifice. I think this will mean better posts as I will have more energy and less ambiguity as to the date on my posts considering I am one month behind schedule and the blog is talking about January 2009 as of now. So I stood like this man leaning on the railing of some parking lot in Las Ramblas and began musing for a while about the future. In fact it only took me an hour to change my mind. Thanks again my friends.

Toy Souvenirs, Las Ramblas, Barcelona

Well, the new domain and the updating of backlinks via emails to webmasters is keeping me busy lately. All the old internal links have been automatically reconfigured and the ones on the search engines are leading to www.barcelonaphotoblog.com. It has been hard but I feel much better now. Any help passing on the change of address message is deeply appreciated. Oh yeah, today's image, I almost forgot:

It is a small toy, a souvenir you can buy at stalls in Las Ramblas. I published a very similar image in the past. Here is the old post: Wooden Toys at Las Ramblas Stall

Old Man With Walking Stick

I always remember these lines: "life is very short and there's no time for fussing and fighting my friend".

The time will come when we will grow old enough to look back and think of the things we did right or wrong or simply didn't do. Then we will regret many things, that's for sure and we will feel nostalgic about our past and the people we left behind and weren't lucky enough.

Do you know how long will it take to get there?, just a snap of your fingers. Or some milliseconds compared to the history of mankind.

Do you know how many people have faced the same experience, when you get to the end of the line? Many of them are there in our books of history, in our collective mind, just an image in our database, many more not even were worthy of being stored.

They were here and were like you and me and they felt the same and looked into their past just as we do now and their visit to this land was brief too.

How much time did they or will we spend fussing and fighting before it's too late?

Antiques Market, Barcelona: Virgin

This is a small antiques market that is temporarily set along Portal del Angel street, near El Corte Inglés building. Although there are bigger and more interesting markets selling these articles in Barcelona, some of the objects caught my attention during a recent walk. Remember I showed you a vintage phone, well now you can admire this beautiful image of the virgin whose facial traits and garments evidence the skill and creative talent of the original artist.

The Lady in the Hat: Barcelona Photoblog and Some Important News!

Please, change your link to my page (if any) to www.barcelonaphotoblog.com

I know many of you have gone through this before if you are in the blogspot domain. Some others don't. I finally decided to register my new domain and am redirecting everyone that lands on this page towards the new address. If you are here you don't notice any difference of course cause you have been redirected already but for me and the good indexing of this site it is important that you "waste" just a minute of your time and change the old barcelonaphotoblog.blogspot.com to www.barcelonaphotoblog.com

Thanks! I chose the Lady in the Hat here on the metallic window of a cosmetics shop for two reasons: to use a flashy image to call your attention on the change of links and to emphasize that this blog is NOT closed as this shop. It is as happy, as healthy and seductive as the lady in that painting or graffiti.

I want to thank all those who keep coming and I apologize for my not coming here that often lately. I was busy and musing about this domain thing. It is not easy, you see.

If anyone wants to know how to do it I might be of help. What is going to happen with rank, that, I will soon find out but I will do my best so Barcelona Photoblog keeps looking good and has better exposure on the web. Once again, thank you.

Sant Pau Hospital's Gates: Modernist Ironwork

This is a detail of one of the angels and the holy cross on top of Hospital de Sant Pau main gates. I enhanced the rusty surface of the ironwork which was already bathed in the last rays of the afternoon sun. Check this old post where there is another snap of the holy cross.

Now we are going to open the gates of your visit to one of the most renowned works of Domenech i Montaner and a magnificent representative of Catalan Modernisme.

Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the modernista complex of Sant Pau.

Here is the:

Top List of Things to Learn about Modernism and Hospital de la Santa Creu i Sant Pau

• Tiled Cupola at Modernista complex in Hospital de Sant Pau
• Modernist Wall adornment
• Sant Jordi Killing the Dragon - mosaic
• Gargoyles
• Modernisme in Hospital de Sant Pau, Barcelona
• Clock Tower
• Cross and Pavilion
• Modernist Ceiling
• Modernista Turret
• Ceiling at Hospital de Sant Pau
• Archangel Sculpture by Eusebi Arnau
• A touch of Fresh Air in Architecture
• Musings on Religion with Mosaic in Hospital de Sant Pau
• Dome Casa de Convalescencia
• Stained Glass Window at Casa de Convalescencia
• Modernist Stained Glass in Casa de Convalescencia Dome

Modernist Wall Adornment, Sant Pau Hospital, Barcelona

This elaborate modernist wall adornment can be found on one of the pavilions of old Sant Pau hospital.

If you've never been there check Sant Pau's exact location on Google Map and go visit the place. It is just one subway stop away from Sagrada Familia taking the blue line. You can even get to this modernist complex on foot if you walk all the way up along Avinguda Gaudi from Sagrada Familia.

I wonder what that symbol in the center of the image means. I have read that the monumental lettering as well as part of the mosaic and sculptures make reference to the story of the holy cross and the name of the Hospital's benefactor, banker Pau Gil Serra, who donated the land. So I think this could be a G in the picture but I am not quite sure.

Modernist Sculpture inside Sant Pau Hospital, Barcelona

This is another image taken inside Hospital de la Santa Creu i Sant Pau built by Domenech i Montaner.

You can see here a detail of one of the sculptures by Eusebi Arnau and Pau Gargallo.

Notice the sober angular cuts which evoke those in the sculptural groups by Josep Maria Subirachs in the Passion façade (Sagrada Familia)

Mosaic at Hospital de la Santa Creu i Sant Pau, Barcelona

The Saint Paul hospital (Hospital de la Santa Creu i Sant Pau) was projected by Domenech i Montaner in 1901 and the mosaics in particular were designed by Francesc Labarta.

I have written several posts talking about Sant Pau Hospital's history so I think you'd better check the labels below.

The following post was one of the most popular: Modernisme in Hospital de Sant Pau

Barcelona Vintage Rotary Dial Telephone

Do you remember this? Just like an iphone isn't it? Well, they were here not too long ago and yet our kids start wondering what that piece of junk was meant for. I still remember when I had to stick my finger on the rotary dial of one of these vintage telephones and wait till it turned back. Now they are retro collectibles to amuse your visitors. Antique phones still look beautiful though, especially those Western Electrical 51AL Candlestick telephones. But why don't you check the Antique Telephone History Website for more information and some images.

Feeding a Snake: Mesmerizing the Prey

Look at me in the eye or watch the spiral swirl, whatever you choose, but keep looking, do not blink, don't twitch a muscle. Stay calm, stay focus, take a deep breath and keep watching. I am moving to you slowly, very slowly... gulp. Poor snake, in fact it was the mouse performing the hypnotizer. Again one of the many animals kept in captivity in Barcelona, the snake I mean. The mouse was just the food, and alive. Sometimes they are preserved frozen and served dead of course. Yes, people keep them in the fridge. I wonder what she prefers.

10 Reasons to Take Guided Bike Tours in Barcelona

I spotted this group of people on a guided bike tour around the city of Barcelona. In Sant Jaume square the tour guide was explaining something to them before getting lost in the labyrinthic structure of Barri Gotic streets like carrer del Bisbe which can be seen in the background. Normally there are set meeting points to go and join. 

10 Reasons to Take a Guided Bike Tour in Barcelona

Barcelona is a city that's best explored on two wheels. The city's narrow streets and winding alleyways are perfect for biking, and there's no better way to see all the city's top sights than on a guided bike tour.

Here are 10 reasons why you should take a guided bike tour in Barcelona:

1. See more of the city. On a guided bike tour, you'll get to see all the major sights, as well as some hidden gems that you might not find on your own.
2. Learn about the city's history and culture. Your guide will be able to tell you all about the city's history and culture, from its Roman roots to its modern day status as a cultural capital.
3. Get some exercise. Biking is a great way to get some exercise and see the city at the same time.
4. Meet new people. On a guided bike tour, you'll meet other people from all over the world who are also interested in exploring Barcelona.
5. Have fun! Biking is a fun way to get around, and on a guided bike tour, you'll have a great time exploring the city with your guide and fellow travelers.
6. See the city from a different perspective. When you're on a bike, you get to see the city from a different perspective. You'll be able to see things that you might not see if you were walking or taking a bus.
7. Get up close to the city's landmarks. On a bike, you can get up close to the city's landmarks. You'll be able to see the Sagrada Familia, the Picasso Museum, and the Gothic Quarter in a way that you wouldn't be able to if you were walking or taking a bus.
8. Explore the city's hidden gems. Your guide will be able to take you to some of the city's hidden gems. You'll get to see places that most tourists don't know about.
9. Learn about the city's sustainability efforts. Barcelona is a very sustainable city, and your guide will be able to tell you about the city's efforts to reduce its carbon footprint.
10. Make memories that will last a lifetime. A guided bike tour in Barcelona is a great way to make memories that will last a lifetime. You'll have a great time exploring the city with your guide and fellow travelers, and you'll learn a lot about the city's history, culture, and sustainability efforts.

I hope this blog post has convinced you to take a guided bike tour in Barcelona. It's a great way to see the city, learn about its history and culture, and have some fun.

If you're interested in taking a guided bike tour in Barcelona, be sure to check out these tours. You won't be disappointed!

• Barcelona City Bike Tour: Highlights and Hidden Gems
• Take a Gràcia Bike Tour
• Barcelona: Bike Tour, Photoshoot, and Tapas

And a Happy New Year

Happy New Year everyone.

Bethlehem Scenes Stall

Just another holy scene I found in my archives about Santa Llucia market. My posting has been delayed for many circumstances. I will update after I take more pictures. I needed some rest. Thanks for your understanding. Anyway I am happy, the blog is getting some more buzz lately so it was rewarding at the end of the year. Thanks to people like you of course.

Street Lamp, Portal del Angel, Barcelona

And now for something completely different, a modernist lamp at Portal del Angel, a very important street in Barcelona, near Plaza de Catalunya. Perfectly preserved, the lamp can be admired from a close distance since it is almost at street level. Other elaborate art nouveau lamps were shown here in the past: Art Nouveau Lamps.

Santa Llucia Market Holy Scenes, Barcelona

I am not used to making my own Belén, that is, to buy holy figures to recreate Bethlehem Nativity Scene. But I do enjoy watching those religious items displayed inside Christmas stalls set during Fira de Santa Llucia each year in Barcelona. Check similar posts: Holy Scenes.

Caganers inside Christmas Stall at Santa Llucia Market, Barcelona

Some important personalities detached from their normal spheres, shown in private, in the middle of such an embarrassing act: pooping. For more information check previous post: Barcelona caganers.

Cagatios at Santa Llucia Market, Barcelona

On top of the roof of one of those Christmas stalls at Santa Llucia market, I spotted some Cagatiós. For more information about what they are check previous post: Cagatio or Pooping Log.

Moon Lady, The Winged Goddess of Barri Gotic

There she was, sitting on a waning moon, the pale winged goddess, staring at me trapped behind the window of that Barri Gotic religious items store. For a moment her eyes seemed to glitter with life, begging me to please take her somewhere else. I don't know if she was the Greek, Selene or Chang'e, the mythical Chinese goddess. I don't know. She looked pretty real though, balancing in there, among a strange mixture of esoteric articles and images of saints. Should anyone see her again, do me a favor, set her free! Religious Items: Estampería San José - Carrer Boters, 7-9

Ladybird with Mistletoe, Christmas Present at Santa Llucia Market

This would be my humble postcard to wish a Merry Christmas to all my faithful visitors. I wish you all have a very nice month of December and a happy new year. I hope these ladybirds with mistletoe found at famous Santa Llucia market bring you all the luck this coming 2009.

Water Spouts, Portal del Angel, Barcelona

Water spouts near Pignatelli Palace at Portal del Angel, Barcelona. On the tap, you can see the city coat of arms. There many in the city but these in particular I find extremely attractive. Check the place on my Google map. Here are two other previous posts showing spouts: Old Lady and Fountain and Boy Holding Frog.

A Baby's Frown

I still don't know why babies make faces so often, wearing a frown like elderly people. At least that's how we interpret such gesture in Spain. We call it La Viejita (old lady). How do you call it when kids frown and they have all these wrinkles on their faces? Here is a very funny video of what they can do, although in this case the frown is somehow different to the one I meant.

Palamos Anchovies, A Catalan Delicacy

Palamós is a town on Costa Brava. It belongs to Girona, another Catalan province. Palamos is well known for its prawns but another delicacy that they are very proud of is their anchovies. Although presented in different ways, it is better to buy them bottled in brine. For me these are second best to L'Escala's famous anchovies also on the same coast. I found this wonderful article that explains every detail about this wonderful Catalan product: Anchovies from Spain. I hope this food article helps to grow an appetite. I have to say that the picture was taken in a local market in Barcelona.

Anonymous Tree

A tree is just a tree so there is not much I can say this time. I could talk all about the things that happened under this tree but never mind. Under its shade we just had lunch last fall so, big deal. There's nothing like the slumbering feeling that a good shade provokes specially when the sun is coming through the leaves. Hmm I need a hammock.

Jack Skellington's Visit to Las Ramblas, The Full Report

Jack Skellington from Tim Burton's The Nightmare before Christmas was seen on Las Ramblas the other day trying to go incognito without success. Hordes of fans immediately spotted him, then came the press and photographers to cover the story. I was lucky to be there. After rejecting some important media by pulling his head off and throwing it at them he insisted on meeting locals. That was when I entered the scene. He confessed that he was bored of Halloween Town and had decided to share the Christmas spirit with us here in Barcelona. After that, I tried to contact Santa on many occasions to give him the big news but every attempt was in vain. I just picked up this message from the answering machine: "I am out for my December holidays please leave your message...". It's funny, I swear I could hear a stifled voice, something, like: shh,erg,grrm...tk...rrr...d...ol...ph...ins...td. I hope I transcribed it correctly. But then again, it was problably a bad connection.

Kid Feeding Pigeons at Placa Catalunya, Barcelona

While there's a happy kid on Earth, there will be hope. Nothing is more pure and sacred than a child's innocence. Nothing is more beautiful than a child's detached view of the world around him, free of all evil, ambition, prejudice and hate, wrong teachings and bad influence. The face of this kid reveals many things, things we once lived unknowingly, things we can have no more. We won't bring them back but we can work to guarantee that this happiness, the flame that moves this world, the joy of life forever lasts.

Waiting

A girl waiting at Maremagnum shopping center in Barcelona. I just liked the expression on her face.

The Secret Power of Fire

For centuries, man has contemplated this scene. Infinite winters have passed since the very first ancestor took a branch on fire after the storm and tried to grab the magic light with obvious result. They, we, learned to handle it, to fear it, to worship it. We handed it down from one generation to another as one of the most vital assets in the archives of our common knowledge. Now, we know or think we know everything about fire. And still, after a whole eternity, we look into the fire, take a deep breath and let our souls wander into an unknown universe of thoughts, hypnotized by the flames that cannot be touched but keep us warm, just like the very first day.

Pa amb Tomaquet - Bread with Tomato

Nothing like a good toast spread with tomato and some olive oil to accompany any kind of food. We call it pa amb tomaquet. Instead of using a slice of tomato to make a sandwich or pouring and spreading some tomato sauce on the bread we cut tomatoes into halves and gently spread them against the toast. You can first rub the bread with garlic, then you apply the tomato and finally you add some olive oil. That will serve as the basis for many ingredients like anchovies, ham, sausage or grilled aubergines, red peppers and onions sliced in strips aka escalivada among other things.

Man and Dog on Alley, Barri Gotic, Barcelona

What's in an alley? They are just spaces surrounded by walls. I mean, if the buildings were not that close they would be plain ordinary streets. There's something in the atmosphere of an alley that is determined by its narrowness, an almost tangible sensation triggered by all kinds of stimuli. There's the bad smell of sewers, of damp walls, of mossy surfaces, the good smell of food or clean laundry coming from very close balconies. Your eyes are bombarded with rounds of large wooden doors and whimsical knockers, exuberant plants entangled in forest-like canopies, old lamps with elaborate ironwork, dark impossible staircases, eclectic windows with cat add-on included. And there's the sound, the sound of too friendly neighbors, their laughter, their cries, their TVs and door bells. The sound of the guys delivering butane gas shouting and clacking on the orange flask, the scissor and knife sharpener blowing his peculiar flute to make people come down. The noise of kids playing in the street like in the good old days. Such is the atmosphere of an alley, any Barcelona alley, like the one where this man is walking his dog.

USSR and US Medals at an Antique Shop in Barcelona

These medals represent or evoke important events in the history of USSR or the US. This image is the continuation to previous post: Antique Shops: German War Medals, Collecting a Horrible Past. Wars cannot be justified in any way, the mere fact that they exist means something is and was always wrong with humankind. Violence generates violence and sometimes you are drawn to it to defend your family, your land. These collectibles carry the memory of those that sacrificed their lives on some occasions for a better world, for survival, for next generations. In some other instances, they died in vain and were manipulated by their governments.

Antique Shops: German War Medals, Collecting a Horrible Past

I wasn't sure whether to publish this picture or not. Some things must be forgotten forever and this is a delicate topic that shouldn't be publicized in any way, purposely or by chance. Fortunately I have another image that clearly acts as a counterpart to this one. Well, both of the images contain medals, medals of war that were some day on some soldier's chest who was very proud to represent his country and was sent to war on many occasions without really comprehend the meaning or the goal of such war. But when we talk about the holocaust (some medals here are older) there is no possible forgiveness regarding those who were represented by some medals here cause no national policy or belief can justify genocide. Once said that I just wanted to contrast these antique articles in a small shop in Barcelona with some other medals displayed representing USSR or the US.

Cagatio or Pooping Log, A Christmas Catalan Tradition

Another ancestral tradition of the Catalan people consists in bringing children in front of this magic log called Cagatio (pooping log) so it "excretes" Christmas gifts. Yes, the wooden buddy is supposed to poop those hidden treasures that kids pick up from under a red blanket conveniently covering the figure.

Before introducing their hands they are encouraged to repeatedly hit the log using a rod just in case, to warn the tió he'd better do as he's told. In the meantime, relatives or school friends, depending on the situation, sing this familiar song of which I will translate an excerpt. It is a folk song and popular lyrics tend to be rather "vulgar" so please overlook the many poops. First phrase is in Catalan and second in Spanish.

Caga tió -caga tió- poop tió,
ametlles i torró -almendras y turrón- almonds and nougat,
no caguis arangades -no cagues arenques- do not poop brined herring,
que són massa salades -que son demasiado salados- cause it's too salty,
caga torrons -caga turrones- do poop nougat,
que són més bons -que son más buenos- that is more tasty,
Caga tió -caga tió- poop tió,
ametlles i torró -almendras y turrón- almonds and nougat,
si no vols *** -si no quieres ***- if you refuse,
et donaré un cop de bastó -te daré un golpe de bastón- I'll hit you with this rod,
Caga tió! -caga tió- poop tió!

Barcelona Caganers: Rafa Nadal

Among the many traditions of Catalonia, there is one which is rather peculiar: the Caganers. These small figures that originally represented a payés (peasant) making "number two", are part of Catalan nativity scenes. There was a moment in history in which not only the peasant was characterized in this prosaic posture (feces included) but also celebrities, local authorities, religious men, international renown personalities, presidents. This year's sensation was Obama. I showed Fidel Castro and Bush together in a previous post. I visited Santa Llucia Christmas market and chose this one for you, number one tennis player Rafa Nadal. I suppose it is always pleasing to show people as they really are, deprived of all the aura and power. I hope you don't feel offended and get to understand this deep rooted tradition of ours.

Bad Weather, Bad Times

On the most expensive street in Barcelona, Portal de l'Angel, comfort and poverty coexist. In the middle of this crisis beggars take the worse part, economy is going down the drain, consumers are not spending much and there's no money for charity. The weather seems to be rougher, the faces seem to be sadder. People wear last year's clothes, prefer to stay at home, talk less, worries about keeping the job and pray not to fall into disgrace. Yep, a very pessimistic panorama. Reality is tough and fairy tales sometimes don't have a happy ending. They say is going to last about two years. So we'll stick our heads beneath the sand and wait for the storm to pass. The barometer indicates low pressure apparently till further notice.

Eucalyptus Wreath, Christmas' Coming

This is just a detail of an Eucalyptus wreath I caught during a recent visit to Santa Llucia Christmas market. Yes, I know, my posting is way behind schedule. I guess I will never be up-to-date. Taking pictures is so time consuming that I can't shoot and post daily and manage to keep some minimum quality. Well, I digress. As I said the market or Fira de Santa Llucia is already set and it is of course a must see in Barcelona. It is located in front of Barcelona Cathedral and I strongly recommend you visit it at night.

Door Knocker Detail

Here is one of the many silent witnesses of Barcelona's history, resisting the passing of time, worn out by the action of so many hands that are here no more, bitten by its feline companion for ages, casting its monotonous call: knock...knock...knock. There are many of these in the city. Here are some others I published in the past: Lion Head Door Knocker, Rusty Door Knocker, Vandalized Door Knocker and Knocker on Chocolate Color Door.

Man on The Grass - Catalonia Square, Barcelona

The man was sitting on the grass drinking some beer before taking a nap. I would say he was homeless but I can't say that for sure, so my post is just about a man in Plaça Catalunya, in the very center of Barcelona, an anonymous character, one of the many solitary souls that wander in this square.