BARCELONA WORLD EXCITING RACE 2010-2011

Last 31st December 15 yachts set sail from the port of Barcelona in the round the world Barcelona World Race 2010-2011, which is the second edition of an excitingly mad race that takes place every four years. Absolutely unique it is the only round the world yacht race that is double-handed (two co-skippers per boat) in which no external assistance is permitted or there is a penalty.

The race is organized by the Fundació Navegació Oceánica in Barcelona and the arrival is estimated for the end of March 2011, as well in Barcelona, with three different points of passage at the three Cape (Good Hope, Leeuwin, Horn) and the Cook Strait. 

The length of the course is about 25.000 nautical miles or for non-sailing minds, 46.300 kms. There are 15 teams, 6 more than in 2007 edition. All of the participant teams are:

- Central Lechera Asturiana

- Estrella Damm

- ESP 45

- Foncia

- Forum Maritim Catala

- Fruit

- Gaes Centros Auditivos (this Spanish-British team is female 100% .... Come on girls!!)

- Groupe Bel

- Hugo Boss (Alex Thompson, the British member of the team, had to be replaced by a substitute two days before starting the race, because of an urgent appendix operation)

- Mirabaud (this team is a couple partner in real life too, out of curiosity).

- Neutrogena Formula Norueg

- President

- Renault

- Virbac-Paprec

- We are water

Half the teams are Spanish, there are also 4 French teams and the rest are mixed teams from different countries.

The progression of the competitors in the race can be followed on the official web site, in this link: BARCELONA WORLD RACE website.

As well as the official website, you can also download the race podcasts with the audio content from the video conferences and the different communication between the boats. And besides, the Barcelona World Race will be present on all the major social network sites, as Facebook, Twitter or YouTube.

It will be quite exciting to keep following them!

KINGS' DAY CELEBRATION OR EPIPHANY'S DAY

Today many Three Kings Parades have taken place in every Spanish town, just the day before the Three Kings will bring to Spanish children (and adults too!) the presents they have asked them for. This celebration, called the festival of Epiphany, is the last celebration before Christmas is finished in Spain.

the three kings arriving by sea

or skiing

 
or over floats

Melchor, king of Arabia, Gaspar, king of Tarsus and Balthasar, king of Ethiopia were always a part of the Nativity scene, they were the three kings who saw the star over Bethlem when Christ was born. They followed it to find the Christ child on January 6th. They brought the Christ child gold, frankincense and myrrh.

As long with the celebration, it is very typical to eat on the 6th the Kings Cake (Roscón de Reyes). It is a sort of tasty and beautiful bread made with  crystallized fruits, nuts, orange peels and blossoms  and its shape really evokes a crown, sometimes filled with cream or chocolate or other delightful contents.

The cake has a small trinket (often a small plastic toy) inside, and the person who gets the piece of cake with the trinket has various privileges and obligations (such as buying the cake for the next celebration) and he (or she) is crowned and becomes the king or the queen of the banquet.

In Madrid it is very traditional as well to make a huge Roscón de Reyes in benefit to Aldeas Infantiles (a children charity association), this year the Roscón weighed 2.100 kilos and 4.000 madrileños could eat a little of it with a hot chocolate.

Also tomorrow on 6th January the Loteria del Niño (Child’s Lottery) will take place, it is as traditional as Christmas Lottery. In spite of its name, there is nothing little in this draw because with a total prize pool of €840 million and a jackpot prize pool of €120 million, you have a one in three chance of winning on El Niño.

And the day after tomorrow it can be really said Christmas is over in Spain!

THE SPANISH BELEN TRADITION ..... AND CAGANETS

Christmas is nearly over (in fact, in Spain we are still waiting for the 6th of January for the Three Kings, who will bring the presents for children and for no children!) and as a sort of  an epilogue to these holidays  I am going to post today a few photographs that I have taken during these last days. Some of them were taken of the city but I also took some of several belenes I took the chance to visit.

As you probably know belenes or nativity scenes is very traditional in my country, every true Spanish homes has a belén, just like other countries across the world, where Christmas trees take centre stage in town and village squares, each town and village in Spain has its own belén.

Some of these scenes are breathtakingly beautiful and elaborate and can be visited in town halls and churches across the land. Even personal ones can take over whole rooms in the house and just with the Christmas tree it is a magical family time spent putting it together and adding all the little touches. As well as the traditional religious characters and popular local scenes, one special character is paramount to the Spanish belen. He is known as 'el Caganet' (in Catalan) whose origin comes from the 18th century Catalan peasants and to be polite, he is a figure in a squat position doing a poo! His presence symbolises the fertilisation of the land for the coming year but of course provides much amusement for the children. Although an important and historical figure in the belén, he has been banned from public nativity scenes in many towns by local governments so as not to cause offence . . .

An this is a caganet

you can find caganets in different versions.............

politicians......

Spanish royal family

football players as Messi

racing drivers as Fernando Alonso

bullfighters.... and bulls

any celebs

and even yourself if you order it! they are so funny, aren't they?