CATALAN TRADITIONS Clàudia – Martí – Jordi – Laura – Joel – Èric – Joaquim – Núria – Oriol – Fran

ELS CASTELLS "Els Castells“, or The Human Touers are a traditional celebration from Catalonia. "Un Castell” is a human construction made up of different floors and with a minimum structure designed and orderly". To build a human tower it are needed some typical characteristic of the Catalan people: teamwork, effort, capacity of effort, desire to improve … "Els Castellers" are the people who do possible to raise the castle. Every person has a specifically function in the construction of the castle. The Pineapple is the bottom part of the tower; Torre, is the part of the middle; Enxaneta, is the part of the top of the tower where little boy or girl marks the end of the human tower. Clàudia i Lauras

SANT JORDI’s DAY Sant Jordi's day it's a lovers' day in Catalonia. It's tradition that men give his girlfriend, his wife, at his mother or his sister, a rose; and women give his boyfriend, husband, father or brother, a book. It isn't a holiday day, but all the people go to the street to see the books and roses

EL PA AMB TOMÀQUET Bread with tomatoes is the national dish in Catalonia. It's an informal food that a lot of families eat for dinner, especially at weekend, and most children eat him for tea. Bread with tomatoes is easy to prepare. Only you rub tomatoes on the bread, usually a slice of bread, then put some salt in and finally, a bit of olive oil. The bread eaten with cheese and Spanish sausage, ham, sausage, omelette … Oriol i Fran

EL TIÓ DE NADAL The Tió de Nadal is a big piece of cut wood. Is a character of Christmas tradition widespread in Catalonia. The form of the Tió de Nadal is a hollow log of about thirty centimeters length, in some homes the Tió has two or four little legs with a broad smiling face painted, enhanced by a little red hat, the traditional Catalan barretina; and often it has nose. One gives the tió a little bit to "eat" every night, before the Chistmas, and usually covers him with a little blanket so that he will not be cold at night. On Christmas day, children beats him with sticks, while singing various songs of Tió de Nadal, to make him "poop". The Tió doesn't drop larger objects, as those are brought by the Three Wise Men. It does leave candies, nuts and Spanish nougat. What comes out of the Tió is gift for the presents

LA CASTANYADA "La Castanyada" is a traditional Catalan party which is celebrating on 31 October's night In this party, the people eat roast chestnut and “Panellets", a typical Catalan sweet done with pastry of almonds and eggs and that can be covered with pine nuts, quince jelly and other host components like coconut or chocolate.... According to tradition, the festival of Halloween has its origins in the meetings that the families made to keep vigil their dead the night before of the day of All Saints. At the meeting, they ate fruits of time, especially chestnuts, brownies and sweet potatoes that accompanied with a good sweet wine. At school, usually we celebrate La Castanyada doing “Panellets" and with the visit of the “Castanyera", an old woman who comes to the school to give roast chestnuts and to explain histories at pupils.

LA SARDANA “La Sardana” is the Catalan national dance. This dance is danced into group. The dancers to form a circle, hand in hand and they dance raising your hands and following the music played by a group of musicians called "cobla".

HAVANERES The Havaneres is a typical song that is sang normally at night in the summer, in front the coast, near the seashore. But a lot of villages include it in their activities during the Main Holiday. While the Havaneres Group is singing, the people go by boat into the sea to heard the songs from the sea. Other people are producing the typical “Ron cremat”, a typical drink makes with ron, lemon, coffee beans and sugar.

EL DIA DE LA MONA The Mona's Day is a holiday that is celebrated in Catalonia on Easter Monday. The day before, all children go at their godfather's house to search a typical cake called "La Mona" (Easter cake). The Easter Sunday, all the family, with friends, goes to the country. There, they eat meat roast lamb, or "paella"... For desserts, all people eat the "mona“. Usually, the Easter cake is decorated with some figure and some eggs of chocolate. The chocolate figures are often famous people or the main character in the cartoons or films.

11 DE SETEMBRE On 11 of September, National Day Catalonia, remember the resistance offered for the people of Catalonia in defense of their country in the War of Spanish Succession, in 1714 This war faced the defenders of the Catalan army and troops from other territories of the Crown of Aragon which supported Charles III with the Spanish army which supported the king Philip V of Spain. The resistance provoked that Philip V of Spain destroyed the walls of the cities that had resisted Philip and to establish a harsh repression culminated with the burning of cities, the repeal of laws and charters, and the imprisonment and death of many citizens, establishing definitively Catalonia under the laws of the Kingdom of Castella.

GEGANTS During the Late Middle Ages in festivals of different countries began to adopt the habit of incorporating dummies made of wood and cardboard of large proportions designed to hide a man inside it, holding them by armor or wooden easel, who made them dance to the sound of a melody. In Catalonia in the fourteenth century the giants are documented in relation to the Corpus Christi procession. The giants represent kings, nobles or people with traditional costumes. The giants are very popular and festive items that can be found in the celebrations of many cities. The feature that characterizes them is their height and the feeling that them provoke in the people: respect, fear, joy, curiosity... Each village or each neighborhood has its own giants. And there aren't two equal giants. The giants are a sign of identity and traditional heritage of our country.

El ball de diables The Ball de diables, "Devils dance", is one of the Catalonia's traditions. Nowadays, its participation in the form of passacaglia, procession with fire is an essential part of the holidays in many towns and cities. The Ball de diables is a theatrical representation of the struggle between the good and the evil that was represented between plates during meals of the nobility in the middle ages. It has been also used, for the Corpus Christi festivities. The first written news about the Ball de diables, dates from the year 1150, in the banquet of the wedding of the Barcelona count with the princess daughter of the king of Aragón and Catalonia. The chronicle tells us that it represented the struggle of some demons, against a squad of angels.