Catalunya experience

In Poland the children get presents on Decembre 6 which brings, depending on the region, Santa Claus or the Star. In Catalunya the children have to wait one month more. On January 6, the Catalan children get up early to look for the gifts that the Kings of the East have left them during the night. The tradition of the Reis de l’Orient begins many days before January 6. Children write letters addressed to Melchor, Gaspar and Baltasar asking for what they want.   Before going to sleep, the children leave prepared water for the camels, as well as turrones (the traditional catalan sweets made from almondes and sugar) for the Kings. In the morning, they receive the gifts, or charcoal if they have behaved badly. For the dessert in every Catalan home is served the traditional tortell de Reis – a sponge cake with cream and crystallized fruits.

Every year on December 28 in Catalunya is celebrated the day of jokes. You have to be careful! At every step you can meet a joker who's ready to make fun of you. Unless, you do it first ;) Tremp is a small town in the province of Lleida in Catalunya where the tradition is cultivated in a special way. This day, the inhabitants of Tremp hang the llufa - the giant paper doll on the belfry. After the parade they sing him to come down and later they burn it. It is also typical to stick the paper dolls on the back of the persons you want to make fun of.  On December 28 you can read many humorous articles and see many fake news on TV. Most of the information is jokes. Many jokes are made between family and friends. No one gets angry because everyone has the right to joke this day!

In Europe there are many different Christmas traditions. In Poland we are waiting for the first star in the sky to start the Christmas Eve. After the dinner we look for the gifts under the Christmas tree which the Star brings us. What about the Catalan Christmas tradition?  In Catalonia the gifts brings the Christmas log - cat. el Tió de Nadal. It is made from the wood and always wears the traditional Catalan hat. The children take care of him, give him food and put the blanket so he's not cold. Later, they sing the song and bit him with sticks and they ask him to shit the gifts: "Caga tió, caga torró, avellanes i mató, si no cagues bé  et daré un cop de bastó. caga tió!" Shit, log, shit nougats ( turrón ), hazelnuts and mató cheese, if you don't shit well, I'll hit you with a stick, shit, log! I have no doubt that the Catalan Christmas tradition is the most orginal and funny in Europe :D

Catalunya is one of the most important destinations for every wine tourist 🍸Firstly, there are a lot of wineries which you can visit for a very reasonable price. You can not only try a very good wine there but also see how it has been produced. Secondly, Catalunya is famous for the best sparkling wine ever  - Cava. Priorat is one the most important wine regions in Catalunya and Spain. Every bottle of wine produced there is of the best quality. I was in Priorat and I had the opportunity to visit one of the wineries. The owner showed me his vines and explained how he took care of them. Later I tried three types of wine and the taste of them was rich of many different flavors and aromas. It was a wonderful experience.  Cava - in Catalan "cava" means cave which were used for the preservation of aging of wine years ago. There are two types of cava: white and rose and is produced in varying levels of sweetness: dryest, brut, seco, semiseco and dulce. Almost every bottle