There is an air of excitement in the Catalan air over the city of Barcelona, as the countdown to Barcelona’s grandest fiesta of the year the – Festes de la Mercè has begun. Dates for this annual grand soirée have already been announced and this year’s Festes de la Mercè will be held from Friday the 19th of September until the Wednesday the 24th of September with the 24th of September being the main day of this festival. This Festival of Festivals is an annual celebration held in honor of the city’s patron saint the Virgin of Mercy. The 24th of September is always a public holiday in Barcelona as well.
Fireworks Display -Photo credit- juala de ardilla
The legend behind the festival
The legend behind the festival states that on the night of September 24th in the year 1218 the Virgin appeared in a dream simultaneously to King Jaime I at San Pedro Nolasco and San Ramón di Peñafort and requested him to be the founder of a new order of monks in order to save the Christians who were imprisoned by the Saracens. Then in 1687 the city of Barcelona was infested by a swarm of locusts and the people then invoked the help of the Virgin of Mercy, who then saved the city from these deadly creatures after which the City Council declared her to be the patron saint of Barcelona. Subsequently the Pope officially declared the Virgin of Mercy, as a saint in 1868 and since then Barcelona began hosting this annual party in her honor. During the years of General Franco’s rule the celebrations were rather muted but in recent years the celebrations have become more elaborate so much so that this grand Catalan fest has come to be regarded as one of the top festivals of the world.
Parade of the Giants -Photo credit -Sam Kelly
More than 500 events are held on the days before the main event which takes place traditionally on the 24th of September. This year’s schedule also includes the traditional parades, concerts, firework displays, air shows which will be held all over the city and its major squares like the Plaza del Forum, Avenida de la Catedral, Rambla Rava, Plaza Catalunya, at the Barceloneta beach, and the Passeig de Gracia. Entry to all of Barcelona’s museums is free on the 24th of September which is the main day of the fest.
The main activities fall into four main categories which are:-
Music Performances- Photo credit-Sam Kelly
The Festival of Music
Concerts and shows will be held in the many streets and parks of Barcelona along with the BAM music festival which is the independent music festival of Barcelona. This festival traditionally features European dance and music acts who perform in outdoor locations in conjunction with the events of the Festes de la Mercè. The 2008 line up for the festival includes performers like Antònia Font, Chacho Brodas, David Bazan, El Tercer Hombre, Krakovia, Kumar, La Kinky Beat and Nneka.
Human Pyramids- Photo Credit -Sam Kelly
The Festival of Tradition
This event is held on the main day i.e. the 24th of September and it includes energetic competitions where groups of revelers who are clad in traditional costume compete with each other to form the tallest human pyramid. Some of these pyramids are as tall as eight levels high and they are usually topped by a young child. The best place to view these pyramid formations is the Palca de Sant Jaume. The Festival of Tradition also includes the parade of the Giants which consists of processions during which gegants (giant wooden figures and capgrossos (dwarves with big heads) are paraded through the streets of Barcelona.
Devils at the correfocs- Photo credit-Dr Jaus
The Festival of Fire
This is undoubtedly one of the highlights of Festes de la Mercè. The Festival of fire features the famous Correfocs (the fire runs) which take place at dusk. During the fire runs, the large crowds of spectators are sprayed with sparklers by teams of people dressed as ‘Devils’ who run on the streets with bangers and sparklers. The Correfocs are all about pyrotechnics and are great fun if you enjoy fireworks. An additional attraction of these Correfocs is the large Papier-mâché Dragons who breathe fire and brimstone as they dance to the music of tambourines and drums.
Dragons at the correfocs- Photo Credit- Dr Jaus
The Festival of the Sky
This event takes place after the termination of the Festes de la Mercè. This year, the event which consists of an awe-inspiring air show which traditionally features jets, balloons and gliders is scheduled to take place at the Parc del Forum on Saturday the 30th September from 9 am to 2pm.
Apart from these main festivals, Barcelona’s biggest party in 2007 also included two smaller festivals namely the “25a Mostra de Vins i Caves de Catalunya” which was a wine tasting festival that showcased the excellent wines of Catalunya and “20a Mostra de Cuina barcelonina” which was a food tasting festival.
For more information on this year’s events do visit the website of the city of Barcelona or if you happen to be in Barcelona during the dates of the fest be sure to visit the main tourist office located on Plaza Catalunya opposite the Corte Inglés, which will be handing out information about all the events which are to be held during this rambunctious annual event.
If you need a hotel during your stay at the event do check out the deals being offered by various Barcelona city hotels like the Suizo Hotel Barcelona, Catalonia Rubens Hotel and Aramunt Apartments Barcelona for the festival.
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This entry was posted on Thursday, September 11th, 2008 at 8:47 pm and is filed under Europe, Fun. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
September 12th, 2008 at 2:02 am
I missed these when I was in Barcelona last year, now you are making me want to go back. Great pictures!