SAINT JORDI´S DAYWritten by Barcelona On Line - Ana Rodriguez
The Saint Jordi festivity, which takes place 23rd of April, is one of most beautiful holidays in Catalonia, above all in Barcelona. During this day, downtown streets are full of colours thanks to small book and rose stands that are put up in centre. Many curious tourists and neighbours walk through city. The men must give a red rose as a present to their ladies and ladies must give a book to their man. This day is also Day of Books, which is a remembering of Cervantes death.The rose tradition is not new. In Middle Age aristocratic class organized lord competitions, where men gave a flower to women. The red colour symbolizes passion and ear that is put together with rose stands for fertility. The legend The Saint Jordi was a lord and a martyr born in Capadocia (Turkish nowadays). He is hero of an exceptional gentleman story which took place in Libya. As a contradiction to this Catalonian tradition believes that it happened in Tarragona, in a small town called Montblanc. In Montblanc there was a dragon that feared people of town. Its stinky breath managed to kill people who come close to it. The neighbourhood wanted to sacrifice one person every day in order to avoid monster to attack everybody. Naturally problem was that there was nobody who wanted to be eaten by dragon. Therefore, each day they picked one person from population of town. The system was very effective until one day person who had to be delivered to monster was beautiful princess. Many people offered themselves, but king was uncompromising in despite of his sadness: His daughter had to be sacrificed like rest of his citizens.
| | Buying French PropertyWritten by Oliver Phillips
Copyright 2005 Oliver Phillips. May be freely reproduced "as-is" for private and commercial use. If you're looking for that special property in France, here are 8 quick tips that might help you on your way. 1. Get Photos & Information before you view property. You can cut down on wasted trips and expense this way. 2. Consider looking for property in areas that you haven't previously visited and are not familiar with. Certain areas command premiums only because they are widely known. 3. Consider your purchase thoroughly. As with any purhcase, buying without proper thought can result in unexpected costs. 4. Get to know area before you buy. Talk to people who have already purchased their home, holiday in area, or even rent for a period.
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