Christmas in Catalonia and England

 Our Nativity Scene.

Our Christmas Log

Aquest nadal ho passarem a Catalunya – crec que és només el tercer cop en 25 anys que veig un nadal català. El fet és que normalment anem a Anglaterra perquè (a) decanses de veritat només si marxes de casa, (b) és dels pocs moments a l’any quan podem veure la família anglesa, i (c) el nadal és una mica més bonic allí (per mi!).

Però, segur que aquest any ho passarem de meravella –ja tenim l’agenda plena d’activitats i moments socials, a més a més de les ganes de celebrar TOT.

Bé, m’han demanat que expliques una mica les diferencies entre un nadal català i un d’anglès. Recomano llegir el post tan en català com en anglès, perquè potser diré coses diferents.

En la meva experiència, el nadal comença molt més aviat a Anglaterra. Des d’octubre, la gent ja pensa en regals i les botigues en van plenes.

El temps. Allà sempre fa fred i el cel és gris. No neva gaira a la meva zona – Yorkshire – però algun any si, i els dies són molt curts. Si vols veure una mica de llum de dia, t’has de espavilar a matinar, i pensa que a partir de les 12 el sol ja va de baixa. Són dies per estar dins de casa, mirant un sense-fí de pel·lícules de nadal o estrenos de novetats de Disney etc.

A Anglaterra es menja molt, però aquí també. Potser fins i tot aquí es posa més emfasi en el menjar – al UK el dia de nadal, fem com un gran dinar de diumenge però amb quantitats doblats. El típic són el gall d’indi, “stuffing”, i moltes verdures fetes de diferents maneres. De primer, una sopa o un cocktail de gambes. I molts de postres, sobretot Christmas Pudding, que pot sortir cremant si ho fem bé (inundat amb cognac). Però, sigui com sigui, en una hora hem acabat i estem al sofa dormint.

A casa meva, la nit del 24 no fem res d’especial, com a molt bevem un licor més original i anem a dormir aviats. El 25 ens llevem aviat i trobem tots els regals baix l’arbre. Quan ja els hagim obert i muntat, i hem esmorzat, potser sortirem tots (menys la mare – ja se sap que li toca ...) a passejar, a escoltar musica pel carrer i/o a visitar algun tiet. Natros dinem entre l’una i les dos, només la família directa, i passem la tarde a casa jugant, mirant la tele, i dormint. De vegades venen tiets, iaios, o amics a l’hora de sopar (5 o 6) i fem entrepans del gall d’indi que ha sobrat i continuem jugant.

És bastant típic el dia 26 anar també a visitar els tiets i iaios que queden per a veure. De casa en casa, i a cada casa un got de jerez o una cervesa, o una tassa de te. A les cases que arribàvem a l’hora de dinar o sopar, pos, entrepans i snacks.

Que més? Si, el nadal potser una bona època per gastar diners. Però (a) no passa res per gastar si en tens (tampoc és que t’ho emportaràs a l’ataud), i (b) cada u és lliure de consumir tant o tant poc com vol – segur que hi ha famílies que no gasten tant en regals, i/o que pensen en altres aspectes del nadal.

Evidentment, sent anglesos, també es beu molt – però cada cop menys diria jo, degut als preus i una mica de sensibilització! Quan jo era un nen, recordo que mon pare en plegar de treballar el dia 24, ell i els amics anaven sempre directes al pub i no teníem mai ni idea de l’hora que arribaria a casa ni en quin estat. Quan li despertàvem el dia 25 a les 6 del matí, normalment es podia calcular com li havia anat ...

Lo que jo enyoraré aquest any, a banda de tot això – pos, lo dormir! Dormim molt més a Anglaterra!  A casa nostra estrany és la nit que anem a dormir més tard de les 10.30 :)

Per cert, jo he explico com un anglès que viu a Catalunya, però per a saber lo que diu una catalana que viu a Anglaterra, recomano visitar aquest blog!

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So, only the third Christmas we’ve spent in Catalonia in the last 25 years. Normally we go “back” to Yorkshire to see family and friends – and also because, let’s face it, you only really rest when you get away from it all. So, what’s a Catalan Christmas? Well, here’s my personal highly subjective view on a small town (Tortosa has a population of 35,000) Catalan festive season. I suppose life in the big city of Barcelona is more cosmopolitan and a mixed bag of Christmas festivities, but here in Tortosa it’s still relatively traditional.

Firstly, Christmas shopping and spending money is obviously common here but not to the extent that it is in England. The whole thing doesn’t really kick into action until December, whereas in England the shops are full of Christmas stuff from September onwards! Another example, today, the 23^rd, the supermarkets opened at 9.15 as usual and the shops I wanted to go to didn’t open until 10 am, as usual!

The weather – contrary to popular belief it does get cold in Catalonia. All those British ex-pats emigrating here as you don’t need to spend money on central heating – well, you do! But, obviously it never gets as cold as England, and 90% of the time we get blue skies which is great (but not very Christmassy). Yesterday we were around 12º in the daytime, maybe 5º at night. I remember, though, having Christmas dinner outside on the verandah in 2003, at about 20º!

Catalans are not big on Father Christmas, although he has joined the party recently. A more traditional and common activity is the “Christmas log”. Families search for these logs in the forest (or in a supermarket if you live in a city). They then cover them with blankets to keep them warm and spend the days before Christmas feeding the log mandarin peel or carob beans. Kids leave the food at night, and while they sleep, the log eats! Then, on Christmas Eve, the family gather around and take it in turns to hit the log with a stick while singing a song. One of the songs talks about hitting the log until it (literally) pisses white wine and shits sweets and treats. And yes, the log does sh*t little presents for all the family. You continue beating it and looking under the blanket until the poor log has nothing more to give up and merely excretes a toilet roll (or an onion). 

Which brings us on to the typical tradition of setting up a nativity scene at home. You can buy or make all the necessary elements – the barn, animals, chief characters, flora and fauna etc. Even atheists like ourselves do it! However, the most surprising element for a non-Catalan is to see one of the ever-present characters, the “crapper” – el caganer. A guy who has been taken short at just the wrong moment, and while Baby Jesus is being born, he’s hiding behind the bushes having a cr*p!

As you’re beginning to see, the Catalans are a very scatological people with what I’d call a toilet sense of humour – in fact I only discovered the word “scatological” when I first came to Catalonia and read am English book explaining Catalan customs and character.

Here’s Stephen Fry on the subject, and the following song is a Christmassy song devoted to the “caganer”.

 Which neatly links to another aspect; for me, Christmas in England is music – Christmas songs, modern and traditional, everywhere you go, radio, TV, shops, people’s houses. It’s a significantly less present aspect of the Catalan Christmas, although some shops seem to have cottoned on to the idea that if you pipe festive tunes in to the customers, they may spend more!

Christmas Day and Boxing Day are usually taken up with big family meals – with all the family, and go on for hours. Food can be a sort of pasta shape soup, canalones, sea food, and so on. I’ll let you know more in a couple of days!

New Years’ Eve and the “Arrival of the Three Wise Men” are big events, also to be blogged about soon.

Having said all that, by coincidence today I’ve found an excellent blogpost by an “internet friend”, a Catalan who lives in England, who can explain Catalan customs much better than me – please visit her here :)

Bon nadal!

3 Christmas songs

Ja ho he dit més d'una vegada - m'encanta nadal (m'encanta qualsevol festa), i m'encanten les cançons de nadal. És una tradició molt britanic, o anglosaxo, aixo de fer cançons de nadal de l'estil pop, jazz, soul, country, metal, punk .... i veig que els catalans també estan començant a fer-ho cada cop més. Les cançons de nadal, molt lligats a un determinat moment en la vida sempre porten records. Durant els 4 anys del blog he penjant una vintena d'exemples, i avui faré una cosa que normalment no faig - repetir cançons.

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I've said it before and I'll say it again - I love Christmas (and anything else you can celebrate) and I love Christmas songs - traditional ones of course, but now I'm thinking pop music, soul, country, rock, punk, all those Christmas songs that any artist worth their salt brings out at this time of year. Christmas songs are obviously closely connected in your mind to a certain moment in your life, and in this way they usually evoke memories in a way that "normal" songs perhaps don't.  I've posted over 20 of my faves during this blog's lifetime, and today I'll do something I vowed (almost) never to do - repeat songs.
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1. Slade - Merry Christmas Everybody

Aquesta em recorda les nits de nadal quan anavem al pub amb els amics de l'institut als principis del 80. Quan encara no tenies l'edad legal i el més gran de la colla havia de comprar les begudes. Ballant i saltant i cridant com un boig tan aviat comença aquesta joia. Buscant el famos "christmas kiss" d'alguna noia de classe en qui mai més tindries la valentia de parlar.

This one reminds me of the nights in Hoyland pubs in the early 80s, as underage drinkers with my comprehensive school mates - oldest-looking one getting the drinks in - screaming and jumping about like mad folk as soon as this song kicked in - trying to sneak a "Christmas kiss" with a girl from school who you'd probably never be brave enough to talk to again.

2. Fairytale of New York - Kirsty MacColl and the Pogues
Aquesta potser la millor cançó de nadal mai gravada. Té de tot.
Maybe the best Christmas song ever - it has everything - judge for yourselves.




3. Silver Bells - Jim Reeves
Aquesta em recorda quan era molt però molt jove, és dels primers records que tinc, veure el LP de cançons de nadal de mons pares - un disc de vinil en una tapa que obries i formava un escenari de nadal en relleu. Vam passar hores jugant amb això i posant aquest disc.

This is one of my earliest memories, Christmas-time or any-time, mum and dad's Christmas LP, a pop-up Christmas scene within the album cover, playing with the scene over and over, putting the record on the old record player - I've not got much of a memory, but this image seems like yesterday ....



So, just three songs - but if you are one of those people who doesn't have an extense knowledge of Christmas songs (you'd be surprised but these people exist) don't hestitate to check out my other posts!

Tornarem - Xeic #DoubtsRegardingCatalonia

Cinc preguntes que sovint amics i familia no-català em fan. 1. Per que ser independents en un món cada cop més unit? 2. Això deu ser pels diners, no? 3. Si tanta gent vol ser independent, llavors a que espereu? 4. Acabarà com Bosnia? 5. Com podeu fer un referendum si Espanya no ho permet.

Les meves respostes personals, a continuació (en anglès!).

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After various posts on the Catalan Issue, today’s deals with a few questions which non-Catalans (friends, family ...) often ask me. And feel free to ask more!

1.Why bother becoming independent in an ever-more connected world – especially as the European Union tries to become a union, with decisions made in Brussels?

Well, firstly, it doesn’t really matter whether you or I think it’s better or worse to be independent. It’s more basic than that – if seven million people want to make their own mind up on that, fine. If the majority of these wants independence, then so be it.

However, getting back to the question: try asking France and England if they want to give up their independence. Not many countries in the world, upon becoming independent, have ever decided to go back to depending on another state – hence, there must be something good about it! Obviously if this attempted union of countries called the EU is to move forward it will be through decisions made by the countries with voting rights – and if you ain’t independent, you don’t get a seat at the table, or your snout in the trough.

Personally, I think small efficient countries are the future, where people still maintain contact with their culture and have real options of participating in their own future and democracy.

2. So, how come this has all come so sudden – must be about the money then (present economic crisis)?

I think the international media has only just taken it on board, since the last three protest demonstrations with over a million people, but it’s a feeling that’s been in place for a long time – maybe even 300 years! Ever since I landed here in 1988, in small town Catalonia the majority of people I’ve met have always been in favour of independence. I think the “problem” is that the Catalans are a very cautious people and the collective consciousness hadn’t yet been aroused. Maybe lots of individual people thought the same but hadn’t realised that this was feasible and, hence, kept (relatively) quiet. The big boom of the public protests and internet connections, and a very open debate, has led to the emergence of a realisation that “we could go for this!”. If any one act did give it a boost recently though, it was probably in 2009 I think when the Spanish government refused to accept Catalonia’s new “constitution” (passed in a Catalan referendum).

3. So, if most people want this, what are you waiting for?

Precisely my question over the last 25 years. Catalans tell me its due to their excessive cautiousness and (misguided) common sense, plus a memory of Franco and fear of losing democracy once more or how Spain might react. Obviously as years go by, these fears lose their strength in the new generations. The fact is that they’ve decided to go for it now!

4. Will this turn nasty – i.e. Bosnia?

Standard answer – this is the European Union, a NATO country. How can you even imagine a violent outcome?

Real answer – watch this space – many second league politicians, police unions, retired military generals are calling for imprisonment of Catalan president, abolishing Catalonia’s autonomy, and military intervention if the Catalans do not accept this quietly. Here’s where Brussels (and London, Paris, Berlin etc) have to step in and tell Spain what is and what is not acceptable in a 21^st century Europe.

5. How can Catalans hold the independence referendum if Spain won’t allow it?

Good question. The Catalan Parliament, through 2/3 of its members from 5 different parties, have called the referendum for the 9^th November 2014, independently (pun intended) of whether Madrid authorises it or not. They hope to convince Madrid to accept it – but they won’t. So, they’ll do it anyway. Then what? Police confiscating ballot boxes? Catalan President being arrested? How do you stop the 3 million adults who will want to vote Yes this day?

And to wind up, a cool "rural-ska" group sing this protest song about defending the Catalan language - video clip shows the mountains near where I live, and where the disastrous Battle of the Ebro took place.

Sweet Bells - Kate Rusby #Barnsley

Res més complicat que la pregunta "d'on ets?". No ho sé. Mons pares i mons iaios vivien a un poble petit anomenat Blackerhill, i jo vaig viure allì fins als 7 anys. Però no vaig neixer allì, vaig neixer a un altre poble que es diu Chapeltown. Vam marxar de Blackerhill per a viure al poble del costat, Hoyland, i vaig viure alli fins els 18 anys - i mons pares encara hi viuen. Però si algu de fora de la zona vol saber d'on soc, sempre havia de contestar Barnsley, la ciutat "mare" d'aquests pobles, ja que no son gens conegut un cop surts del condado de South Yorkshire. Per tant, passo, o passava, la vida dient que era d'una ciutat que era una mitja-veritat. Del 18 als 21 anys, vaig viure a Birmingham per anar a l'universitat, i dels 21 fins ara a Tortosa, Catalunya. Aqui si algù em pregunta d'on soc, no puc dir ni Barnsley - com a molt els sona Yorkshire, o frases tipus "a prop de Manchester". 

Bé, tot aixo ve perque volia fer 4 frases sobre Barnsley, però he trobat una entrada a un altre blog que ho explica molt millor que jo, per tant, li he demanat permis per fer un "copiar i pegar" i ho verem a continuació - en anglès.

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So, where are you from? Such an easy question but I have such a variety of answers. My grandfolks and parents lived in Blackerhill, as did I until the age of 7. However, I was born in a nearby village called Chapeltown. When I was 7, my family moved to the neighbouring town, Hoyland. However, outside a radius of 20 miles, these places are unknown so I usually just say/said I was from Barnsley - the "mother" city of these places, and a well-known town in England - for many reasons!

From 18 to 21 I lived in Birmingham trying to work out why I'd gone to university. Since then, I've been in Tortosa, southern Catalonia. In fact I've now lived here longer than in England. Nowadays, over here, I can't really say I'm from Barnsley either as a quick answer - the easiest solution is to say Yorkshire (the county), or something vague like "north of England", "somewhere near (but not too near I hope) Manchester".

Anyway, all this waffle is because I was going to write about Barnsley - but someone's beaten me to it, and wrote a much better description than I could ever do. So, with the author's permission, here goes:

Barnsley is a town of some 75,000 souls situated twelve miles north east of Sheffield. It was once the capital of the Yorkshire coalfield - a hard-working town for which the saying "where there's muck there's brass" was probably created. 

I have rarely had  reason to visit Barnsley. Once, when I was little, Dad drove us through the town and I observed first hand the black "mountains" that appeared to surround it - giant slag heaps made up of spoil from the local coal mines. It was a very different landscape from my rural birthplace in East Yorkshire. There was something of the "dark satanic" about Barnsley whereas we looked out over green or golden arable fields that stretched across the Plain of Holderness all the way to the Yorkshire Wolds. I could hardly imagine what it might have been like to grow up in all that muck and industry as my mother's family had done....

..... and now VISIT the full Barnsley description blogpost HERE and that way you can see the photos too :)

But remember to come back here to hear the Barnsley Nightingale ...

This too shall pass - OK Go

Yet another great video which I just had to post. And the song ain't bad either! By the way, the whole video's done in just one tracking shot.

La Via Catalana - Pepet i Marieta #ElProcésCatalà

Pos, si, torna el moment de fer un petit "actualització" del procés català - directament en anglès :)

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Afraid so, it's that time of month again, time for an update on the never-ending Catalan Independence Show. I will not go into the reasons for and against independence, or details of how the situation has evolved over the last few years as all this is to be found in previous posts. No, today's is just a brief note on where we are today - obviously Catalans would like to be in the same situation as the Scots, i.e., with the central government (UK / Spain) allowing a legally-binding referendum on their future. However, it's not the case. The Spanish govt, and chief opposition party, have made clear that the Spanish Constitution will not allow a referendum or independence.

However, over 80% of Catalans believe they should hold a referendum. Plus there is a similiar percentage of Catalan parliamentary support  for this. Sooooo, the Catalan President asked Spanish PM Rajoy about this before the summer and got a clear NO for an answer. Now, they are going to ask again. This time, even more formally. The idea is that the Catalan Parliament passes a proposal for the referendum question and its date, and takes this proposal to Madrid for the Spanish Parliament to decide on. Presumably the Spanish Parliament will say NO, and Catalonia will decide to hold a referendum anyway. After this point, nobody knows what will happen ...
Will the EU step in, to avoid unrest and political instability in such a key area of Europe? Will Spain order the imprisonment of the Catalan President for organizing an "illegal" referendum? What will the people do if their President ends up in jail? Will Spain use force, even military force, to physically prevent the referendum taking place?

If the referendum cannot be held at all, will the Catalan Parliament make an unilateral Declaration of Independence? Then what?

However, let's not get ahead of ourselves. To reach this point, first, as I said, the Catalans want to make a final effort at getting Spain's OK, and to this end, they want to present a referendum proposal to Madrid before the end of 2013. The problem is that this idea is one they have been telling us all year, and now we're about to enter December and they haven't finished arguing yet. The beauty of proportional representation voting systems means there are 4 or 5 different Catalan parties who want to work together on this, but each has a different idea on how to do it. Each party has their own idea on the question and timing, and possible future steps to take. To try to present a unified front to Madrid, the Catalan President is trying to take on everybody's ideas but they are getting nowhere. Will they get their act together? How can they lead us into independence with all the possible risks this involves if they can't even choose a referendum question? Watch this space ....

... but to finish on a positive note, here's the video of the 1.6 million people 400 km human chain for independence held on 11th September. 1.6 million people who DO know what they want!

The Mississippi Squirrel Revival - Ray Stevens

Moral of the story - don't take a squirrel into church.
By the way, I first found this song a couple of years back on an excellent blog which I do not visit half as much as I should - Keep the Coffee Coming.

On top of the world (2) - Moon landings and other wacky theories

Tornant al video d'ahir - quantes cosetes heu vist? Jo he trobat uns quants, i Google unes altres ...

Per a començar, ajuda saber que una de les teories sobre la no-arribada a la lluna es basa en que va ser el director Stanley Kubick qui va gravar la pel·lícula del fals atteratge - teoria que es va embolicar més amb el documental fals (un mockumentary) sobre aquests "fets". Els creients en la teoria aquesta també pensen que Kubrick va deixar pistes en la pel·licula El Resplandor (The Shining).

Bé, primera imatge, lo xiquet en el tricicle - una copia de l'imatge del El Resplandor. A més, porta un barret d'alumini per protegir-se dels suposats rajos que envien els russos.

minut 0:07 - nom de la botiga, anagram gairebé de  Stanley Kubrick

0:11 Nom al jersei del xiquet (i despres veiem que està als vestits dels astronauts; SNOGARD => dragons (nom del grup) al reves.

0:13 marca de la tele, Monolith - recordant la pel·licula 2001.

0:17 el paper de la pared té el mateix dibuix que la alfombra a The Shining. Aquesta alfombra de The Shining, en teoria tenia el mateix dibuix que el centre de control de NASA. Fins i tot a la Shining, el xiquet porta jersei de Apollo 11 i es fica al mig de la pista.  

0:25 numero de la casa, 2001! 

0:33 VW Beetle, com la pel·li The Shining

0:36 Foto de Paul McCartney

0:40 maquina d'escriure de The Shining, 2 besssons de The Shining, i un simbol masonic a la pared.

0:49 simbol del "all-seeing eye", la teoria que els franco-masons ens controlen.
0:51  237 = nombre de la habitacio de The Shining = distancia, en miles, fins la lluna

0:59 pas de viatnants, del LP Abbey Road dels The Beatles

1:03 la matricula del cotxe canvia, i ara diu "Ben is dead" (Ben s'ha mort); a un dels cotxes de Abbey Road dels Beatles van posar la data de neixement de McCartney, una pista de la teoria que deia que McCartney s'havia mort.

1:06 0009 LAH =>  HAL 9000, de la pel·li 2001

1:44 Mono com en una pel·li de Kubrick 

2:16, al clipboard, posa SK - Stanley Kubrick :)

Segur que hi ha més cosetes, a banda d'una ambientació bonissim - els russos, Nixon, els hippies, Easy Rider etc :) Enjoy it! 

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So, about yesterday's pop video: to start with, it's worth knowing that some people believe the Americans never landed on the moon, and one of the branches of this "conspiracy theory" claims that film director Stanley Kubrick actually filmed the "landing" in Hollywood. This is complicated even more by the false documentary (mockumentary) Dark Side of the Moon which claims to prove this theory - but is itself one big fake!

Kubrick-moon believers also believe that in the film The Shining he put clues as to his involvement in the "moon con".

Anyway, here's what yours truly and Mr Google have come up with - but there's probably loads more to see ...

First image, the tricycle is like the one in The Shining. And the tin foil hat is great, many Americans believed the Russians were bombarding them with some kind of rays and wore tin foil for protection - apparently.

Minute 0:07 - The name of the shop is a rough anagram of Stanley Kubrick

0:11 Name on kid's jumper (and astronauts' gear) is Snogard, an anagram of the group's name - Dragons.

0:13 TV brand Monolith, remembering the film 2001.

0:17 Wallpaper has same pattern as the carpet in The Shining, which itself is supposed to be based on a plan of NASA launch pad. Kid in The Shining even wore an Apollo 11 jumper!

0:25 House number - 2001

0:33 VW Beetle - like in The Shining

0:36 Photo of Paul McCartney

0:40 Typewriter from The Shining, twins like in The Shining, and masonic symbol on wall

0:49 the "all-seeing" eye symbol which some link to the supposed running-of-the-world being carried out by the masons or other secret groups (Brian's comment: pretty bad job they're making of it!)

0:51 237 = room number in The Shining = distance to moon in miles

0:59 Abbey Road LP sleeve

1:03 Car registration number changes to "Ben is dead". Another wacky 60s' theory was that Paul McCartney had died and the Beatles showed this on the Abbey Road cover - Paul shoeless, and his birthdate was the registration number of a car.

1:06 0009LAH => HAL9000, the computer in Kubrick's 2001 film

1:44 monkey in another of Kubrick's films

2:16 SK on clipboard - Stanley Kubrick.

Apart from that, the music is great, and Nixon too! Pretty sure there's more stuff hidden in there, but I'll leave that to you ....

On top of the world - Imagine Dragons #CoolVideo

Em sembla que els Imagine Dragons han passat una estona molt divertida fent aquest video - ple de referencies a coses que van passar, o no van passar, als 1960s o 70s ... a vore quantes coses veieu? Demà posaré el que he vist jo i els que he trobat amb l'ajud del Google :)

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Looks like this group had a hell of a good time making this video. Packed to the brim with subtle references to things that happened - or didn't happen - in the 1960s and 70s. See how many you can spot. I'll post what I've noticied (some alone, some with the help of Mr Google) tomorrow :)

Radioactive -Imagine Dragons #Ceuta #Melilla

A monkey in Gibraltar.

Ceuta and Melilla border controls

Gibraltar border controls.

 A map.

Bé, m’han demanat si, després de Gibraltar, puc escriure 4 ratlles sobre Ceuta i Melilla! Bé, poso una mica d’historia – em podeu corregir si cal!

Quan els cristians van reconquistar la peninsula i van fumar fora als moros, van continuar fins el nord d’Africa. Aixi van conquistar Ceuta al 1415 i Melilla al 1497. Originalment Ceuta era de Portugal però per rotllos de reis etc va passar a ser espanyol – un cop s’inventes el concepte del païs d’Espanya (finals del segle XV). Al finals segle 19 i principis del segle 20, es va obrir “barra lliure” pels europeus a Africa i França i Espanya es van repartir el Marroc. Encara que Marroc va assollir l’independencia al 1956, Espanya es va quedar amb Ceuta i Melilla – i Perejil!

Entre les dos ciutats són uns 150.000 persones. Evidentment la majoria de gent que hi viu volen continuar sent espanyols, que vol dir que són ciutadans de la UE, igual que la gent que viu a Gibraltar vol continuar sent britanic. Que importa més, les reclamacions sobre la sobirania d’aquests llocs, o la voluntat de la gent que hi viu?

Mentre a Gibraltar la policia espanyola té un fart per registrar cotxes i bicis plens de tabac, les fronteres de Ceuta i Melilla són noticia mundial per les tanques de 6 metres de filferro i soldats armats que impedeixen que la gent d’Africa hi pugui passar. Els que si que poden passar amb facilitat són els europeus que viuen a Africa i volen  anar-hi per a comprar pernil i altres productes pareguts!
Mentre a Gibraltar la foto tipic és d'un bobby tipic anglès, molt amable i simpatic (normalment), la de Ceuta i Melilla és dificil fer una foto sense que surti un militar o un monument de Franco.
(La cançó no té res a vore en res de tot això!)

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Following on from the success of my blogpost on Gibraltar, my fan club have insisted I write a few lines on a similar case – the Spanish cities of Ceuta and Melilla in north Africa. I'll try not to get kicked out of Spain in doing so - although that is in fact every Catalan's dream !

These two cities, and other bits and bobs – mainly uninhabited small isles – have been Spanish ever since Spain itself has existed as a concept, that is to say the end of the 15^th century. Before that Spain did not exist - the Iberian peninsula was made up of different kingdoms (Aragon, Catalonia, Castile etc), some forming temporary alliances, others fighting each other.

And how did the cities become Spanish then? Well, as you may or may not know, or can Google, the Moors conquered most of the Iberian Peninsula between the 8^th and 14^th centuries. As the Christians reconquered the lands, especially in the 14^th century, they eventually crossed over into north Africa also, with the Portuguese king conquering Ceuta in 1415 and the Spanish conquering Melilla in 1497. The King of Spain also became King of Portugal in 1580 as used to happen through marriages and alliances etc, but in 1640 for some reason the two countries separated once more. However, Ceuta chose to remain Spanish.

When the Europeans shared out Africa between themselves, in the 19^th and 20^th century, Morocco was basically divided out between France and Spain. Morocco became independent  in 1956 but Spain kept hold of the two cities for strategic reasons.

Between them, Ceuta and Melilla occupy a mere 12 square miles with a total population of around 150,000 inhabitants. They are both in the European Union, being Spanish. And, as is the case with Gibraltar, the vast majority of their citizens do not want to change the present situation. So, however much Morocco may lay claim to them, who’s to say the 150,000 citizens can’t make their own mind up? 

A chief difference with Gibraltar – for obvious reasons – are the frontiers. The Spanish police spend a lot of time and effort trying to hinder people’s access to Gibraltar, and Spanish citizens spend a lot of time and effort trying to get in to smuggle cigarettes out hidden in their bikes, mopeds, car wheels etc. (for fairness, I must add that many Spanish citizens enter Gibraltar to work). However, the Ceuta and Melilla borders have a double 6-metre high fence of barbed wire manned by armed soldiers who have no qualms about shooting folk trying to get in. 
People who do get in easily though, and often, are the Europeans and/or non-muslims who live in Morocco and feel the urge to eat pork or get drunk.
While the typical photo of Gibraltar are monkeys or the smiling happy traditional English Mr Plod, in Ceuta and Melilla it's difficult to take a snap without a Spanish soldier walking past. There are thousands there, as well as lots of monuments and street names relating to Franco and his coup d'etât. Given that Franco was based in, and led his invasion from, north Africa he was (is?) a bit of a hero here.

Another difference is to be found in the fact that England conquered Gibraltar in 1703, but 10 years later Spain officially signed Gibraltar over to England for perpetuity in exchange for England dropping out of the War of Spanish Succession, whereas Ceuta and Melilla are Spanish basically through right of conquest but I don’t think Morocco has ever agreed to it.

The moral of the story; using history you could argue till the cows come home about what “should” happen, but who’s to say we have the right to boss 30 or 150,000 people around telling them which country they belong in? 

Right, couldn't think of a song related to this so I'm going with this one for the cool video!

Too much monkey business - Chuck Berry #Gibraltar

Gibraltar. No hi he anat mai i realment no tinc cap aspiració per a que continui sent part de "la meva patria" - no sóc gaire patriotic! Però entenc perfectament que si la gent que hi viu allì volen continuar sent britanics, pos, endavant. Per molt que sembla un cas estrany, una roca que fisicament està "penjada" de l'estat espanyol, el fet és que fa 300 anys que els espanyols ho van donar a Anglaterra. Clar, ara han passat anys, però la gent que viu allì continua pensant igual.

Si demà, la gent decideixi voler formar part d'Espanya, per mi cap problema - endavant. Realment és una questió tan simple.

Però, dins de tot l'embolic que es munta per aquesta roca, el que queda demostrat un cop més és que el govern espanyol no sap "guanyar amics". Com pensen que Gibraltar, Catalunya o qui sigui voldran estar amb ells si només rebem amenaces i insults?

Per més morbo, Gibraltar ja té equip de futbol internacional, cosa que demostra que Espanya tampoc sap fer amics dins de la FIFA!

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Gibraltar, 2 and a half square miles of rock stuck on the bottom of the Iberian Peninsula, with a population of 30,000 people and 230 monkeys. Gibraltar was given to the English in 1714 - given, not temporarily lent - in exchange for England backing out of the Spanish War of Succession, thus leaving Catalonia in the lurch. I'm not one of those patriotic types who insists the English (or British) flag must fly over half the world, but I do believe that people should have a say in their own future. And however strange it seems that this rock does not belong to Spain, as long as its people are happy the way they are, so be it. If one day, the majority of the population would rather be Spanish , fine, but as for now that is not the case.

The Spanish tend to use the "Gibraltar issue" as a way to take people's attention away from all the sh*t going on in Spain - especially in the summer when there's no football to do that job. However, I'm not sure they really care - I mean, how do you convince 30,000 people to choose to be Spanish by threatening and insulting them?

Which brings us back to Catalonia - how do you expect 7 million people to be persuaded to form part of the "Spanish project" if all we get are threats, abuse, and our rights being cut back?

To top it all, this week Gibraltar played their first international football match - an impressive 0-0 draw against Slovakia - which just goes to show the influence of Spain's diplomats.

Anyway, as I say, I don't really mind what the Gibraltarians do in the future, but at present, anyone who irritates Spain is a friend of the Catalans :)

Tea - Jim Noir

I like tea, I like cool music videos, and I like great music. So ...

33 Revolucions

Per acabar per ara aquest serie d'apunts sobre documentals-musicals, si no els vau vore en el seu moment, us torno a recomanar els programes 33 Revolucions del Canal 33. Cada episodi, de mig hora, es dedica a donar un punt de vista diferent sobre artistes catalans, barrejant la seva musica amb elements de la seva vida, i tot explicat a un cert ritme "slow" que ens dona temps de reflexionar i absorbir la musica.

Aqui trobareu tots els episodis encara a la pagina d'internet.

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Last but not least, to finish off the series of blog-posts on music-documentaries, I'll recommend this series "33 revolucions" which was broadcast earlier this year on Catalan TV. The programmes are in Catalan, obviously, but don't let that put you off! Each episode is relatively short and gives a "slow", original look at the life and life-style of some, relatively unknown, Catalan singers. Mixing music with their family, friends, parties, work, meal-times, we get to appreciate just where their music is coming from. This link allows you to see all the episodes - hopefully it will work abroad, who knows?!

Singers and groups included are (hence you can google them if the link fails); Joan Colomo, Joan Pons, Mau Boada, Senior i el Cor Brutal, Anna Roig i l'Ombra de Ton Chien, Raul Fernandez Refree, Oliva Trencada, Maika Makovski, Maria Rodés, The New Raemon, La Iaia, Raynald Colom, Sanjosex, and Las Migas.

Just as a taster, here's one of the artists ....

Hugh Laurie - Copper Bottom Blues

Fa uns dies vaig vore aquest documental, explicant el viatge /gir que fa Hugh Laurie i the Copper Bottom Band per les EEUU fins arribar a California i el vaixell el Queen Mary. L'objectiu és un homenatge a l'artista Professor Longhair qui havia tocat un concert de llegenda aquí fa 40 anys.

Els que heu seguit la carrera de Hugh ja sabreu que és un bon actor, i bon comediant, però el seu amor de veritat és la música. Ara fa un parell d'anys que s'ha dedicat a gravar i tocar blues, i de pas, explorar la seva historia. No us explicaré que passa al documental, ja que s'ha de mirar! Només dir-vos que és un fascinant viatge, que encara ens hipnotiza més quan ens ho explica una persona per la qual la música li representa tant.

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Saw this documentary a few weeks ago - Hugh Laurie and the Copper Bottom Blues band go on a tour of the USA with the objective of exploring the history of the blues and finally play a concert on the Queen Mary in California, just as Hugh's hero, Professor Longhair, has played 40 years before. 

If you've followed Hugh's career, you'll probably know that he is a decent actor, a pretty good comedian, but his real love is music. For the last couple of years he's been recording and playing blues and generally having a damm good time of it! This film is fascinating - whether you are interested in blues or just like hearing a real fan speak about their favourite subject.

Beware of Ginger Baker

Continuant amb el tema. Aquesta setmana hem mirat el documental Beware of Ginger Baker. Bonissim!

Ginger és un dels bateries més coneguts i més bons de l'historia del rock, encara que, segons ell, el seu primer amor és el jazz. Als 60 va formar part d'alguns dels grups més interessants  d'aquella epoca, com Cream o Blind Faith. Després, la seva excentricitat, impulsivitat i ganes de experimentar noves coses li han portat per una vida "de pel·licula". No se sap com, però ha sobreviscut els excessos i les drogues i encara viu, i toca, a Sur Africa, el lloc on el documentalista li ha fet l'entrevista. Una altra de les histories inoblidables que ens ha deixat la bona musica.

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Sticking with the theme - this week, yet another rock-documentary. The fascinating Beware of Ginger Baker.

Ginger first came to fame as the drummer of 60s' groups like Cream or Blind Faith, and was quickly recognised as the first great rock drummer - although he'd rather be known as a jazz drummer. After the brief exhilarating lives of these groups, his excentricity, impulsiveness, and desire for new experiences led him to an amazing series of adventures in the world of music (and polo!). Somehow he also managed to survive his lifestyle and all the drugs, and still lives, and occasionally plays, in South Africa - which is where the documentary-maker went to interview him. Another fascinating story that rock music has gifted us with.