Dia de Sant Jordi

Celebrated annually on April 23rd and named after the Patron Saint of Catalonia, Dia de Sant Jordi, places brave young Catalans onto the barren battlefield of love in a hopeful search of that special someone. Armed with nothing but a rose and the hope that someone will reciprocate their love, Catalan boys give their crushes roses, and the recipients of these roses respond by dropping some knowledge on their love-struck admirers, in the form of a book. The idea is that while a rose might show a momentary glimpse of puppy-love, the knowledge in a book lasts forever, and that knowledge will stare back at you with nagging eyes 20 years later, telling you to wash the dishes and quit snoring. I like the idea, but let's be honest; in a taste contest, chocolate easily beats knowledge every single time, no questions asked.

Dia de Sant Jordi is only celebrated in Catalonia, so it should come as no surprise that Catalan flags could be seen everywhere. The gold and red flags hung from balconies, decorated the covers of books, and even tied together bouquets of roses which of course suffocated in the white-knuckle death grip of pre-pubescent boys. I was dissapointed to not catch any of these sweaty, nervous, smelly adolescents crying in any public spaces. While you might be right to point out that I have no soul, the surprising presence of Catalan patriotism in a  celebration similar to Valentine's day made me feel like some how I got thrown into a holiday blender  that mixed the store-bought cheesiness of Valentine's day and the fair-weather patriotism of July Fourth.

Commercialized love and beer-battered barbecue aside, the  blooming spring time love of Dia de Sant Jordi proved that, well, sometimes chocolate and jewelry just don't cut it.

Disregarding my bitterness for a quick, sappy, momentary lapse in clarity, Dia de Sant Jordi helps keep the hope of romance and everlasting love alive in a world where feelings are bought and sold every day in the forms of lingerie, food, and greeting cards. It's the holidays and small values like these that really highlight cultural differences in our respective societies. I could leave it at that, with my temporary moment of vulnerability and crap-shot attempt at being poignant, but I also just read that about half of total annual book sales in Catalonia happen on Dia de Sant Jordi.  Slick move St.J, slick move.

Palabra del Dia: Leer - To read
De todos modos, hoy nadie lee nada mas. Today no one even reads anymore anyways.