April 23 is a special day in Catalunya - it is the day of Sant Jordi, a holiday based on an ages-old legend about a dragon-about-to-slay-a-princess-who-is-saved-by-a-handsome-warrior. Sound familiar?
I have to admit, my initial impressions of the holiday weren’t great. Traditionally, people celebrate Sant Jordi through the exchange of small gifts: a red rose for women, and a book (a book!) for men. Needless to say, I found these symbols a bit insulting. Luckily, nowadays it is much more common for women to receive both a rose and a book, which I’ll consider a win for feminism.
The warrior, Sant Jordi, about to save the princess (insert eye-roll emoji here!).
Pop-up bookstore. These were EVERYWHERE.
But despite my initial reactions, the actual day was something special. Vendors lined the main ramblas (pedestrian malls) selling every color and variety of rose imaginable (although the red rose is by far the most common). Pop-up bookstores inhabited every street corner, with children, teenagers, families, grandparents, dogs, literally everyone leisurely strolling past the mountains of books, occasionally stopping flip through their pages. Everywhere you looked women and men scurried through the crowds, roses in hand.
I was lucky enough to spend part of the holiday with my Catalan friend (who I actually met 10 years ago in high school!) Sant Jordi is his favorite holiday, and I was lucky to get to experience the tradition through his eyes. Walking the streets of Barcelona, there was a palpable energy and spirit - something that I think represents a cultural difference between the US and much of Western Europe. In the US, we mostly celebrate holidays with our families and friends, inside our homes. But Sant Jordi is a city-wide celebration. The heart of Sant Jordi takes place on the streets; it flows through the crowds and is woven into the fabric of the Catalan culture.
Another side effect of hanging out with my Catalan friend: slow indoctrination into the Catalan independence movement. I’m joking but I’m not. My friend couldn’t resist the opportunity to buy me a special pin that Catalans wear to symbolize their solidarity with the Catalan exiles and political prisoners. Later, we placed a symbolic yellow rose (the color of Catalunya) on wall of roses symbolizing the wish for Catalan independence. With these declarations of support, combined with the Catalan words he casually mixed into our conversation, we joked that the brainwashing was already well underway.
Red roses for Sant Jordi. Note the Catalan flags on all the tables!
Showing my solidarity.