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Barcelona - Let's Celebrate!

Media updates
17 September 2008 Author: webmaster
Feel the festive atmosphere of the Catalan capital which hosts the very last Samsung Super League with FEI Final 

 

Barcelona is world-renowned for its carnival atmosphere, and this weekend the Spanish city will host a very special party indeed as the show jumping world arrives to celebrate its long and fruitful partnership with sponsors Samsung, and the final of the 2008 Samsung Super League with FEI series.

Spanish people enthusiastically embrace their festivals and public holidays, many of which are based around religious themes, and Barcelona draws huge numbers of visitors who enjoy the year-round fun and entertainment.

ON THE STREETS

In January the arrival of "The Three Kings of the Orient" gets things underway with a cavalcade and gift-exchange between adults and children, while many of the popular carnivals, banned during the dictatorship, have been restored to their former glory and take to the streets again throughout February.

March and April bring the traditional Holy Week religious celebrations along with the Rose and Book Festivals and then, as nature breaks into full bloom, the month of May is the time for the annual Flower Show and the Sant Ponc Festival which is staged in El Hospital Street where the city's herbalists display their wares.

GIANTS AND BIG-HEADS

The avant-garde Sonar Music Festival in June has been attracting ever-greater numbers in recent years, but for those looking for something a little more sedate there is also the Book Fair held in the Passeig de Gracia and the traditional Corpus Christi celebrations which include processions of "Gigantes y Cabezudos" - towering figures and people wearing enormous headmasks - which converge around the Cathedral area in the centre of the city. The "L'ou com Balla", or "Dancing Egg" festival, is another not to be missed. Dating back to the 16th century this simple bit of fun involves the placing of an empty eggshell on a spout of water shooting up from one of the city's many flower-bedecked fountains. Forced up by the jet-stream, the egg appears to dance in mid-air - quite the spectacle!

The streets are filled with revellers during the Eve of St John later in June when there are bonfires and fireworks, and then the Festival of "El Grec" begins, encompassing theatre, sporting tournaments, trade fairs, concerts and a myriad of other cultural events. Many of the activities take place in the Greek Theatre in Montjuic or at open-air locations around the city.

The Feast of the Assumption in August is followed by Catalonia's national holiday in September and the Festivity of La Merce, the patron saint of Barcelona, brings on more dancing and parades.

THE SARDANA

Barcelona is the capital of Catalonia, and The Sardana is the region's unique national dance. Its origins are believed to trace back to Ancient Greece and it has become a symbol of Catalan national identity. Dancers link hands with raised arms, forming circles which grow bigger and bigger as more people join in. Traditionally, newcomers can join the group at any stage but cannot cut in between a man and his partner, and when the circle gets too large then another is formed. 

Local people from all walks of life take part in the dance which embraces the concept that, despite differences, all are, first and foremost, Catalans. The spirit of unity generated by the Sardana is impressive but beware that, if you feel like getting in on the act, your lack of expertise and timing could throw the whole occasion into total chaos!

THE CASTELLERS

Once a year every town and city in Catalonia celebrates its Grand Festival, and an important feature is often the contest of The Castellers – teams of men standing on each others' shoulders in an effort to build the highest human tower. 

Towers can be as big as seven or eight-men-tall, and at the very top stands a small boy called The Anxaneta. Visitors to Barcelona during the Festivity of La Merce in September often find themselves riveted to the sight of these human castles under construction before their very eyes. The custom has morphed into an endurance event requiring extraordinary balance and the dexterity of a Cirque du Soleil performer, and teams throughout Catalonia train long and hard to hone their skills during the winter months so that spell-bound locals and summer visitors can enjoy their exceptional equilibrium and courage.

PRIDE

Catalonians are a proud people, their identity intact since the region was encouraged to develop as a beach-head of the Carolingian Empire in the 800's and further developed during the reign of King Jaime I who, from 1208 to 1276, extended its reach to Valencia and Majorca. King Jaime is revered as creator of the Catalan State which emerged into a major maritime power but which lost its sovereignty following the War of Spanish Succession during the reign of King Philip V. In 1714 Catalonia was defeated and the king attempted to impose Castilian language and customs on the people, but regional autonomy began to re-emerge after the creation of the Catalan Commonwealth early in the 20th Century and the national Catalan Government was restored in 1931.

Pride is something that the competitors in this weekend's Samsung Super League with FEI final also know a bit about. And the riders who come into the ring at the Real Club de Polo in Barcelona this Sunday to decide the history-making result of the 2008 series will need to maintain their equilibrium and hold their courage just as much as those dangerously-brave Castellers. 

Eight nations - Germany, Great Britain, The Netherlands, the USA, Ireland, Belgium, Switzerland and Sweden - have been locked in combat throughout this Samsung season but in the end only one can come out on top. And, as the national anthem of the winning nation rings out over the arena, it will be time to celebrate the comradeship and competitiveness of the series which over the last six years has raised the sport of team show jumping to a whole new level....

 

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