A bit about St Goerges Day (La Diada de Sant Jordi)
St. George's Day is celebrated by several nations of whom Saint George is the patron saint, including Georgia, Bulgaria, Portugal, England, Catalonia and the Gora. Most countries who observe St. George's Day celebrate it on 23 April, the traditionally accepted date of Saint George's death in 303. His feast date remains the second most important National Feast in Catalonia. There, it is known in Catalan as Diada de Sant Jordi and it is traditional to give a rose and a book to a loved one. This tradition, which combines a rose as a symbol of love and a book as a symbol of culture, has turned into a festive celebration which fills the streets and squares with book and flower stalls. It is a day for walking around and enjoying the spectacle of streets turning into open-air book shops. On Barcelona's principal street, La Rambla, and all over the city, hundreds of stands of roses and makeshift bookstalls are hastily set up for the occasion. By the end of the day, some four million roses and 400,000 books will have been purchased in the name of love. You will be hard-pressed to find a woman without a rose in hand, and half of the total yearly book sales in Catalonia take place on this occasion.
And while La Diada de Sant Jordi is not an "official" holiday, most romantics ditch the office to stroll the beautiful streets of Barcelona and to take in the sultry springtime weather. Love is definitely in the air, but even if you don't have a novio to smooch on a park bench there are still plenty of things to see and do.
For example, the sardana, the national dance of Catalonia, will be performed throughout the day in the Plaça Sant Jaume. And many book stores and cafes host readings by noted authors (look out for 24-hour marathon readings of Cervantes' "Don Quixote"). And there will be a variety of street performers and musicians on hand to add a romantic ambience to nearly every public square and plaza.
Additionally, April 23rd is the only day of the year when the Palau de la Generalitat, Barcelona's principal government building, is open to the public. Inside this Gothic architectural masterpiece you'll see huge displays of roses created to honour Saint George.
Catalonia has exported this tradition of the book and the rose to the rest of the world. This tradition inspired UNESCO to declare this the International Day of the Book, since 23 April 1616 was also the date of both the birth and death of the English playwright William Shakespeare (according to the Julian calendar) and the Spanish author Miguel de Cervantes.
St. George's Day is celebrated by several nations of whom Saint George is the patron saint, including Georgia, Bulgaria, Portugal, England, Catalonia and the Gora. Most countries who observe St. George's Day celebrate it on 23 April, the traditionally accepted date of Saint George's death in 303. His feast date remains the second most important National Feast in Catalonia. There, it is known in Catalan as Diada de Sant Jordi and it is traditional to give a rose and a book to a loved one. This tradition, which combines a rose as a symbol of love and a book as a symbol of culture, has turned into a festive celebration which fills the streets and squares with book and flower stalls. It is a day for walking around and enjoying the spectacle of streets turning into open-air book shops. On Barcelona's principal street, La Rambla, and all over the city, hundreds of stands of roses and makeshift bookstalls are hastily set up for the occasion. By the end of the day, some four million roses and 400,000 books will have been purchased in the name of love. You will be hard-pressed to find a woman without a rose in hand, and half of the total yearly book sales in Catalonia take place on this occasion.
And while La Diada de Sant Jordi is not an "official" holiday, most romantics ditch the office to stroll the beautiful streets of Barcelona and to take in the sultry springtime weather. Love is definitely in the air, but even if you don't have a novio to smooch on a park bench there are still plenty of things to see and do.
For example, the sardana, the national dance of Catalonia, will be performed throughout the day in the Plaça Sant Jaume. And many book stores and cafes host readings by noted authors (look out for 24-hour marathon readings of Cervantes' "Don Quixote"). And there will be a variety of street performers and musicians on hand to add a romantic ambience to nearly every public square and plaza.
Additionally, April 23rd is the only day of the year when the Palau de la Generalitat, Barcelona's principal government building, is open to the public. Inside this Gothic architectural masterpiece you'll see huge displays of roses created to honour Saint George.
Catalonia has exported this tradition of the book and the rose to the rest of the world. This tradition inspired UNESCO to declare this the International Day of the Book, since 23 April 1616 was also the date of both the birth and death of the English playwright William Shakespeare (according to the Julian calendar) and the Spanish author Miguel de Cervantes.
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