{"id":60767,"date":"2015-12-17T14:24:13","date_gmt":"2015-12-17T13:24:13","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.shbarcelona.com\/blog\/en\/?p=60767"},"modified":"2016-06-10T15:48:43","modified_gmt":"2016-06-10T13:48:43","slug":"reasons-why-you-should-celebrate-christmas-in-barcelona","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.shbarcelona.com\/blog\/en\/reasons-why-you-should-celebrate-christmas-in-barcelona\/","title":{"rendered":"Reasons why you should celebrate Christmas in Barcelona"},"content":{"rendered":"<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Usually, on the 25<sup>th<\/sup> of December Catalan people will eat a broth like <em>sopa de galets<\/em> or <em>la carn d\u2019olla<\/em>, both made with generous amounts of meat.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.shbarcelona.com\/blog\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/83331815_fb1d26a36e.jpg\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-60755\"><img class=\"size-medium wp-image-60755 alignleft\" src=\"https:\/\/www.shbarcelona.com\/blog\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/83331815_fb1d26a36e-300x197.jpg\" alt=\"Barcelona turron\" width=\"300\" height=\"197\" \/><\/a>The next day, Catalans celebrate <strong>Dia de San Esteban<\/strong>. The traditional meal eaten in <strong>San Esteban<\/strong> is Canelone, which are made using the meat that was not eaten the night before.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">But stars of the Catalan Christmas food are the <strong>sweets<\/strong>. The most popular ones are <strong>polvorones<\/strong>, a type of almond cookie that crumbles inside the mouth, <strong>turr\u00f3nes<\/strong>, thick nougat tablets, and <strong>tortel de Reyes<\/strong>, a round pastry with a hole in the center, filled with Catalan custard or marzipan and covered in crystallized fruits and dried nuts.<\/p>\n<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_17 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-grey\">\n<div class=\"ez-toc-title-container\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<span class=\"ez-toc-title-toggle\"><\/span><\/div>\n<nav><ul class=\"ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1\"><ul class=\"ez-toc-list-level-5\"><li class=\"ez-toc-heading-level-5\"><ul class=\"ez-toc-list-level-5\"><li class=\"ez-toc-heading-level-5\"><ul class=\"ez-toc-list-level-5\"><li class=\"ez-toc-heading-level-5\"><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/www.shbarcelona.com\/blog\/en\/reasons-why-you-should-celebrate-christmas-in-barcelona\/#Related_article_Catalan_Christmas_dish_galets_soup\" title=\"Related article:\u00a0Catalan Christmas dish: \u2018galets\u2019 soup\">Related article:\u00a0Catalan Christmas dish: \u2018galets\u2019 soup<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul><\/li><li class=\"ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2\"><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/www.shbarcelona.com\/blog\/en\/reasons-why-you-should-celebrate-christmas-in-barcelona\/#The_amusing_and_unusual_characters\" title=\"The amusing and unusual characters\">The amusing and unusual characters<\/a><\/li><li class=\"ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2\"><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/www.shbarcelona.com\/blog\/en\/reasons-why-you-should-celebrate-christmas-in-barcelona\/#The_weather\" title=\"The weather\">The weather<\/a><\/li><li class=\"ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2\"><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"https:\/\/www.shbarcelona.com\/blog\/en\/reasons-why-you-should-celebrate-christmas-in-barcelona\/#The_lovely_Christmas_markets\" title=\"The lovely Christmas markets \">The lovely Christmas markets <\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<h5 style=\"text-align: center;\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Related_article_Catalan_Christmas_dish_galets_soup\"><\/span>Related article:\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.shbarcelona.com\/blog\/en\/catalan-christmas-dish-galets-soup\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Catalan Christmas dish: \u2018galets\u2019 soup<\/a><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h5>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"The_amusing_and_unusual_characters\"><\/span><strong>The amusing and unusual characters<\/strong><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">While the nativity scene is something that can be found in many houses across the world, there is one little character that only be found in Catalonia, Valencia and Andorra: the <strong>Caganer<\/strong>. This colorful ceramic figure presents a man who is squatting, with his pants down and bare buttocks, while a small pile of feces rests right below him. The man is dressed in traditional clothes, wearing a white shirt, a black vest and a red bonnet.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">The Caganer is said to represent prosperity, by defecating on the land, he fertilizes the fields for the coming year. It has become such a famous figure, that it can now be found year long in several stores in Barcelona. There have even been created other versions of the Caganer, depicting famous people like Barack Obama, the Queen of England, Bono from U2, Einstein, Marilyn Monroe and much more.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">But this is not the only strange part of the Catalan Christmas tradition. There is another character that makes his appearance on December 8<sup>th<\/sup>, staying until Christmas Eve. The <strong>Tio de Nadal<\/strong> or <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=dB_N7-HXTlI\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\">Caga Ti\u00f3<\/a><\/strong> is a small log with a friendly face and a red bonnet that can either be made at home or purchased. The <strong>Caga Ti\u00f3<\/strong> (Poo Log) is covered with a blanket and fed by the children every night. When the children go to bed, parents hide Caga Ti\u00f3\u2019s food, so the kids think the log has eaten them. On Christmas Eve, the children sing a song and hit Caga Ti\u00f3 with sticks, enticing him to poop out presents for them. After the song they reach under the blanket and discover small presents.<\/p>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"The_weather\"><\/span><strong>The weather<\/strong><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Many people\u2019s idea of the <strong>Christmas season<\/strong> is of cold and snowy weather, and although it is nice to see snow outside, it is also nice to able to step outside and hang out in the sun. <strong>Barcelona<\/strong> is a very sunny city where it only rains a very small number of days a year, so if you are coming to <strong>Barcelona<\/strong> during the holiday season, you have a great chance to spend a sunny <strong>Christmas<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"The_lovely_Christmas_markets\"><\/span><strong>The lovely Christmas markets <\/strong><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.shbarcelona.com\/blog\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/250_Fira_de_Santa_Ll\u00facia_a_la_pla\u00e7a_Vella-1.jpg\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-60745\"><img class=\"alignright wp-image-60745\" src=\"https:\/\/www.shbarcelona.com\/blog\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/250_Fira_de_Santa_Ll\u00facia_a_la_pla\u00e7a_Vella-1-300x150.jpg\" alt=\"christmas market barcelona\" width=\"336\" height=\"168\" \/><\/a>In the end of November or beginning of December, a variety of <strong>Christmas markets<\/strong> start being assembled. The most famous <strong>Christmas markets<\/strong> in Barcelona are <strong>Fira de Santa Ll\u00facia<\/strong>, at Pla\u00e7a Nova, right by Catedral de Barcelona; <strong>Fira de Nadal a la Sagrada Fam\u00edlia<\/strong>, at the garden located in front of Sagrada Familia, and <strong>Feria de Reyes de la Gran V\u00eda de Barcelona<\/strong>, all along Gran Via de les Cortes Catalanes.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n<div style=\"display: none;\"\n    class=\"kk-star-ratings kksr-valign-bottom kksr-align-left \"\n    data-id=\"60767\"\n    data-slug=\"\">\n    <div class=\"kksr-stars\">\n    <div class=\"kksr-stars-inactive\">\n            <div class=\"kksr-star\" data-star=\"1\">\n            <div class=\"kksr-icon\" style=\"width: 25px; height: 25px;\"><\/div>\n        <\/div>\n            <div class=\"kksr-star\" data-star=\"2\">\n            <div class=\"kksr-icon\" style=\"width: 25px; height: 25px;\"><\/div>\n        <\/div>\n            <div class=\"kksr-star\" data-star=\"3\">\n            <div class=\"kksr-icon\" style=\"width: 25px; height: 25px;\"><\/div>\n        <\/div>\n            <div class=\"kksr-star\" data-star=\"4\">\n            <div class=\"kksr-icon\" style=\"width: 25px; height: 25px;\"><\/div>\n        <\/div>\n            <div class=\"kksr-star\" data-star=\"5\">\n            <div class=\"kksr-icon\" style=\"width: 25px; height: 25px;\"><\/div>\n        <\/div>\n    <\/div>\n    <div class=\"kksr-stars-active\" style=\"width: 150px;\">\n            <div class=\"kksr-star\">\n            <div class=\"kksr-icon\" style=\"width: 25px; height: 25px;\"><\/div>\n        <\/div>\n            <div class=\"kksr-star\">\n            <div class=\"kksr-icon\" style=\"width: 25px; height: 25px;\"><\/div>\n        <\/div>\n            <div class=\"kksr-star\">\n            <div class=\"kksr-icon\" style=\"width: 25px; height: 25px;\"><\/div>\n        <\/div>\n            <div class=\"kksr-star\">\n            <div class=\"kksr-icon\" style=\"width: 25px; height: 25px;\"><\/div>\n        <\/div>\n            <div class=\"kksr-star\">\n            <div class=\"kksr-icon\" style=\"width: 25px; height: 25px;\"><\/div>\n        <\/div>\n    <\/div>\n<\/div>\n    <div class=\"kksr-legend\">\n            <strong class=\"kksr-score\">5<\/strong>\n        <span class=\"kksr-muted\">\/<\/span>\n        <strong>5<\/strong>\n        <span class=\"kksr-muted\">(<\/span>\n        <strong class=\"kksr-count\">1<\/strong>\n        <span class=\"kksr-muted\">\n            vote        <\/span>\n        <span class=\"kksr-muted\">)<\/span>\n    <\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Usually, on the 25th of December Catalan people will eat a broth like sopa de galets or la carn d\u2019olla, both made with generous amounts of meat. The next day, Catalans celebrate Dia de San Esteban. The traditional meal eaten in San Esteban is Canelone, which are made using the meat that was not eaten [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":41,"featured_media":60935,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[4595],"tags":[3326],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shbarcelona.com\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/60767"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shbarcelona.com\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shbarcelona.com\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shbarcelona.com\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/41"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shbarcelona.com\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=60767"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/www.shbarcelona.com\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/60767\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":110969,"href":"https:\/\/www.shbarcelona.com\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/60767\/revisions\/110969"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shbarcelona.com\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/60935"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shbarcelona.com\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=60767"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shbarcelona.com\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=60767"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shbarcelona.com\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=60767"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}