How to spend Easter in Barcelona

The 23rd of April is traditionally celebrated as a composition between a Catalan St. Valentine’s Day and a kind of book fair. The legend of Saint George (Sant Jordi), the dragon slayer and traditional princess will shadow you all the time.
It is not really clear from exactly when the habitants of Catalonia have been celebrating this spring festival. According to records, its roots reach back to the 15th century when the legend says that George snatched a princess from the jaws of a dragon and killed it. And from it, supposedly a rose had arisen.
Moreover since the year 1926, the 23rd April is also the “day of the book” in Spain. The death of Shakespeare and the most famous Spanish author, Miguel Cervantes, coincide with the Saint Jordi day which led to the fact that for the first time the “day of the book” nearly had been forgotten and hardly celebrated.
Only much later the ‘day of the lovers’ had also moved into the ‘day of the book’ in Catalonia. On this day however, it is now the day both of the rose and the book- the day of love and culture.
Men give roses to their women whereas the women give books to their men. In the meantime men also give roses to their mother, female friends and colleagues. The whole city will celebrate this big spring festival. The tradition has nowadays been exported to countries far and wide, for example, to Japan!
In the evening you will meet Barcelona thousands of people in Barcelona who are out the streets. Those of you who will be lucky enough to stay in Barcelona for this time should definitely join in and experience the tradition. Especially the Ramblas which represents more or less the heart of Barcelona and will be crammed full of little stands of roses and books. When the day is over there are hardly any left and every woman will be proudly carrying at least one rose around with her. The Catalan dance “Sardana” is going to be presented all day long at Plaza Sant Jaume. Many bookstores in the centre will be open for 24 hours and offer readings from Cervantes’ bestseller Don Quixote. Concerning the books you can gain lots of bargains on Saint Jordi Day. Booksellers often provide their wares at reasonable prices.
Furthermore every year lots of artists and buskers around the city make sure that there is a romantic atmosphere. Normally months before the event some Hotel Barcelona are already booked up and this shows clearly that this holiday is famous all over Spain.
A comparison with Valentine’s Day in Venice might be a bit exaggerated; nevertheless Saint Jordi is a good opportunity to spend a memorable day in an amazing Hotel Barcelona.