Laia Festival and Carnival 2013!

Well, January has sped by (at least for me) and the weather seems to be holding up as far as the cold is concerned, although it's very windy! The new year's resolutions have gone down the pan, the gym subscriptions have gone back to the drawing board and it's time to put off everything for another year, right?! So the second weekend of February in the Catalan Capital usually always conjures up two people: Carnastoltes and Laia.

If you have no idea what I'm talking about then, you should at least have realised that it's Carnival weekend all over the world, and that the best place if you're in Barcelona to celebrate is Sitges. As usual, my kids have been given their orders from Sa Majestat Carnestoltes and have been going to school this week in pyjamas, slippers and dressing gowns and the like.

Santa Eulalia, or Laia, as she's more affectionately known, is the children's saint and over the coming week, there are plenty of activities celebrating her - Tuesday 12th, for example, loads of Museums are free to visit and on the 16th and 17th, most others organise something special. Although many of the activities are created with children in mind (workshops, processions, puppet shows, expositions, etc.) there are also activities for adults, too - a great example is the audiovisual mapping of buildings as part of the Llumbcn festival with amazing shows from 19h to 2230h at Plaça Sant Jaume, revisiting some of the best shows of the past few years. There is literally far too much for me to explain in just one blog post, so click the lñinks I've left or download the programme here (pdf). Events occur all over the city, but principally around the old town - the cathedral (where she's buried), Plaça Padro (newly refurbished and the place she died), Las Ramblas, etc. See you there!!

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Cosmo Caixa Celebrates Barcelona's Forgotten Saint

Just in time for the Carnival celebrations this coming week, we have another reason to celebrate something dear to the children of Barcelona (or aren't we all children of Barcelona?) and that's the celebration of little Laia - Barcelona's forgotten Saint. Santa Eulalia, as she is better known, was a little girl who endured torture and a pretty gruesome death from the old Barcelona heirarchy due to her protests about the treatment of Christians. However, she's also remembered as the Children's patron saint of the city, and each year, the council prepares her festival, specifically centered around children's events.

So this year Cosmo Caixa is organising 3 events free of charge  - but with limited places - to tie in with the other festivities. There is an exhibition of stick insects, a seperate exhibition of fossils and dinosaurs from the Gobi desert, and a puppet show of different kinds of animals showing children the differences in nature through theatre. With more cold weather looking to come our way, might be an idea to get the kids in somewhere warm and entertan them!

There are of course, many other activities going on throughout the city to celebrate and remember Laia, and the official website for the full programme of events is here. The festival dates also co-incide with the festival of light in the city, which embraces the idea of the illumination of some of the city's best buildings and offers a different look at some of the most-seen edifices in the city - like the spectacular live "Magic House" which is broadcast onto the town hall facade and not even the rain from La Merçe last year could prevent people from "ooh-ing" and and "aah-ing". Clever stuff. There's also a clever instagram competition going on over the two days of the festival, so if you think you'll be a good snapper, check it out.

Expect all the usual cultural shenannegans like castellers, gegants, xocalatadas, dances, parades, all sorts. And of course, many of the museums open their doors during the festival too, so it's a great opportunity to soak in some more culture for free!

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Barcelona Remembers Laia in Style

Not many people know, but Barcelona really has two patron saints. Our Lady of Mercy is the obvious one, made famous by September's La Merce celebrations, and you'd be forgiven for guessing at Saint George (Sant Jordi) as the other, but he's actually for the whole of Catalonia.
No, I'm talking about Santa Eulalia, or how she's affectionately known, Laia.



Laia is kind of remembered as the children's saint, and probably because she died so young. A little girl who protested in defence of the Christian persecution, she was only 13 when she died - and a particularly horrible death at that. She is warmly remembered and even has her own "mini" gegant on display at the city's ministry of culture building on las ramblas. Fitting, then that it's the start of carnaval week, and even if the weather looks like it doesn't want to play along (it's raining, and apparently is going to be like this all week!) then there's plenty to keep things happy for the kids!

Starting on Friday, there are many activities going on around the old town, and for a full programme of events, see the city's website. Just a selection of activities to whet your appetite however, are the parades through the gothic quarter, hip-hop workshops for the kids, classical music concerts in the maritime museum, various dances and theatre pieces and a correfoc fire-run, too! The city's museums are all joining in the fun starting from today, and many have free entrance on Saturday, for example. Full details here (pdf).

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Santa Eulalia - the Forgotten Saint of Barcelona

Most people know that Our Lady of Mercy is the parton Saint of Barcelona - celebrated in the week long festival of "La Merce" in and around the 24th September. However, Barcelona has a second Saint, often referred to as the Children's saint - Santa Eulalia.

Eulalia is buried in the crypt of the Barcelona Cathedral, and if anyone deserves to be a saint, then poor "Laia" as she's affectionately known, ticks all the boxes!
From a well-to-do family from Pedralbes, 13 year old Eulalia was an early crusader.
The story goes as far back as the year 303AD, so no-one really knows the full story, and everyone who tells you the story will add on their own details.

The govenor of Barcelona, Dacian, was enraged by the girl’s outspoken views on his treatment of the Christians, that he ordered a punishment for each of her years, which were all extremely barbaric. The 13 punishments are not all clear, but what is clear from all accounts is that she never spoke a word during each torture. The poor girl was maimed with hooks, put in a barrel with broken glass and nails and thrown down a hill, hot oil was put on her wounds, she was whipped, placed in a box with fleas, and finally nailed to a cross in the place that is now Plaça Padró in the Raval.

You would think that would be enough for the title of saint to be bestowed on the little girl, but the story doesn’t stop there.

Until the 9th century, her body lay in the basilica of Santa Maria del Mar, when it was decided that her body be moved to the cathedral. A great procession of the city’s wealthy population followed the pall bearers until the gates of the city. Legend has it that the whole procession stopped, that the coffin had become too heavy to carry through the gates. Prayer ensued, and an angel descended and pointed a finger at one of the Canons, who admitted to having taken a finger from Eulalia’s body, as a keepsake. Once the finger was returned, the procession continued and to this day Santa Eulalia’s body rests – intact – in the cathedral’s crypt. The city’s gates were re-named “Puerta de Santa Eulalia” (gate of Santa Eulalia) until the city walls were torn down, and the spot is still called “Plaça de l’Àngel” or Angel Square.

The church at Plaça Padró (which used to house local radio station) has been undergoing extensive renovation work – I think part of it is to become a nursery – and locals have petitioned for the body to be moved again, to what they say would be her rightful burial place, and for the Plaça to be re-named. However, in this case and considering the history, I think it’s perhaps better to leave Poor Eulalia where she is!

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