Barcelona's April Fair - Feria de Abril

Today is the last day of the 37th edition of Barcelona's April Fair. Some of you may be thinking, “Why does a so-called April fair happen in May?” – and those of you who know Spain may be asking, “Isn't the April Fair held in Seville each year?”
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Well, the original April Fair, which was first held in 1847, is the one that occurs in Seville each year. It usually starts two weeks after Semana Santa (Holy Week). There are also smaller April Fairs held in several Andalusian cities and towns at around the same time.
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In 1971 immigrants to Barcelona from Andalusia, and their descendants, began their own version of this rite of spring. Today Barcelona's is the second largest April Fair in Spain, rivaled only by the one in Seville. This fair typically runs from the last week of April through the first week of May.
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So, just what is an April Fair? Well, first and foremost, it is fun. Secondly, it's an opportunity to revel in Spanish, especially Andalusian, culture – flamenco, sevillianas, rumbas, boleros, pienetas, mantillas, shawls, riding jackets, castanets, cantaores, bailaoras, Jerez sherry, manzanilla wine, tapas, gazpacho, ham, and, my favorite, the Spanish confection churrrrrrrrros!
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In Barcelona's version, the April Fair is also a celebration of multiculturalism. This is in recognition of the fact that Catalonia absorbed hundreds of thousands of “internal immigrants”from Andalusia, Murcia and Extremadura during the 50s, 60s and 70s and is now absorbing a new wave of immigrants, but this time from Latin America, Morocco, Pakistan and Eastern Europe. Indeed the current President of the Catalan government, José Montilla, was one of these “immigrants” from Andalusia, having relocated with his family to Catalonia when he was 16.
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Because of all this, aside from the typical pavilions (casetas) dedicated to towns in Andalusia, you can find others like the Casita Latina, the Centro Cultural Gitano La Mina (The Gypsy Cultural Center of La Mina) and the Moroccan pavilion, with food, drink and gifts on sale in support of El Colectivo para la Defensa y la Protección de las Constantes Sagradas del Reino de Marruecos (The Collective for the Defense and Protection of the Sacred Attributes of the Kingdom of Morocco). In addition, visitors to the festival are a mosaic of people from around Spain and the world. However, there are usually not very many tourists. For that last reason, I find it a particularly authentic experience.
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Another difference between the events in Seville and Barcelona is that in Seville the pavilions are privately owned and one must be an insider of sorts (e.g., a family member or friend, a member of an organization or willing to pay a lot of money) to gain entry. While in Seville members of the public can walk around and “press ones nose to the glass,” metaphorically speaking, at Barcelona's more egalitarian event anyone can walk into a pavilion, sit down and, if they dare, dance! In Seville, the pavilions are decorated, but tend to all look similar from the outside. In Barcelona pavilion interiors and facades are colorfully, often cleverly, decorated -- and in Barcelona, there is a even a contest for best decor!
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Each year the sponsoring organization, FECAC (Federación de Entidades Culturales Andaluzas en Cataluña = Federation of Andalusian Cultural Groups in Catalonia), chooses the top three pavilions, as well as the best interior and best facade. This year there were 58 pavilions and the prizes went to:

• 1st Prize – La Casa de Andalucía de Cerdanyola
  
• 2nd Prize and Best Facade - La Hermandad Nuestra Señora del Rocío-Los Romeros de Barcelona
  
• 3rd Prize & Best Facade - Centro Cultural Colonia Egabrense de Santa Coloma de Gramenet
  
• Best Interior - La Hermandad Nuestra Señora del Rocío de Rubí

All the pavilions of Barcelona's Feria de Abril are welcoming places where members of the public can rest from walking around the fairgrounds, buy a drink, eat a meal, snack on tapas, listen to music, watch dancers, or get up and dance. Most of the pavilions are sponsored by cultural associations created by and for Andalusian immigrants and their descendants. There are also pavilions sponsored by political parties from just about the entire spectrum. In addition to pavilions, there are stalls selling clothing, arts, crafts, and food items from around Spain. There is also a fun-fair for kids, with a Ferris wheel and other rides, as well as little stands selling hot dogs, ice-cream, cotton candy, drinks and, of course, churrrrrrrrros!
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Admission to the fairgrounds is free. Prices in the pavilions are regulated by the fair organizers, but prices in the stands and stalls are not. So, the best deals are on food and drink often in the pavilions.
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The entire thing is an 11 day feast of sight, sound, smell, touch and taste. And the joy is contagious – whether its that of the professional dancers on the stages, the colorfully costumed bands of singers & dancers who roam around the grounds or the civilians strutting their stuff on the pavilion dance floors.
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¡Viva la feria de abril!
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Carloz
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P.D. Y, ¡viva los churrrrrrrrros!

No Comment / Sin Comentarios

STATISTICS TAKEN FROM ARTICLES IN TODAY'S EL PERIÓDICO NEWSPAPER:

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According to a study by the Catalan Center for Opinion Studies, 81% of Catalans do not know who the president of the Catalonian parliament is. (It's Ernest Benach i Pascual.)

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According to a study by the Restaurant Guild of Barcelona, 98% of Catalan hotels, bars, restaurants, etc. employ foreigners.

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Foreigners make up at least half of the staff of 58% of these establishments.

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48% of these individuals are from Latin America, 24% from Asia, 11% from Africa, 10% from Europe and 7% from Oceania.

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29% work as waiters, 24% as cooks, 24% as dishwashers, 12% in customer service, 12% in miscellaneous positions and 0% (none) in management positions.

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ESTADISTICAS DESDE ARTICULOS EN EL PERIÓDICO DE HOY:

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Según un estudio del Centro de Estudios de Opinión de Cataluña, 81% de los catalanes no sabe quién es el presidente del parlamento de Cataluña. (Es Ernest Benach i Pascual).

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Según un estudio por el Gremio del Restauración de Barcelona, 98% de los hoteles, las barras y los restaurantes en Cataluña emplean extranjeros.

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Los extranjeros constituyen por lo menos una mitad del personal de 58% de estos establecimientos.

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48% de estos individuos son de América Latina, 24% de Asia, 11% de África, 10% de Europa y 7% de Oceanía.

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29% trabajan como camareros, 24% como cocineros, 24% como lavaplatos, 12% en el servicio de atención al cliente, 12% en varios puestos y 0% (ninguno) en altos cargos.

Immigrant Reading

Aside from the free daily newspapers I've mentioned before, there are also at least two weekly papers targeting immigrants: Sí, Se Puede and Barcelona Latino. Both papers publish editions in Madrid, Catalonia and the "Levant", which is how Spaniards refer to the Southeastern coast.

Sí, Se Puede's full name is, "Sí, Se Puede el periódico de la integración", or "Yes, You Can the newspaper of integration." It's aimed at immigrants from Latin America, Africa, Eastern Europe, Asia and the Near East.

Sí, Se Puede is a Spanish owned company and claims that its main objective is to inform immigrants about how to integrate and about what is going on in the community. It also owns and operates a foundation named "Fundación Sí, Se Puede." Although I read the paper when I can, I really know nothing about the foundation and how genuine a non-profit organization it may, or may not, be.

Barcelona Latino is part of the "Latino" group of papers by a company named Novapress, which doesn't provide a lot of information about itself on its website. (Which leads me to believe it is probably not owned by Latin Americans, just as Sí, Se Puede isn't owned by immigrants.) Their byline is "La voz de nuestra comunidad," or "The voice of our community." As the name implies, it targets Latin Americans living in Spain. The paper claims to "identify emotionally" (sounds a little scary) with its Latin American readers and to provide information useful to their lives.

Both papers usually offer features on individuals who have successfully adapted to life here (usually successful business people), updates on issues effecting immigrants (which I always appreciate), news from home countries (nothing from my country, but then that's usually in every other paper), sports coverage, entertainment and lots and lots of advertising. Here are a few of the popular advert categories:

Money Transfer Services
Banks
Long Distance Phone Plans
Attorneys
Autos
Fortune Tellers
Dental Clinics

...and pretty much in that order. So, although neither paper mentions it in their mission statements, another goal of theirs is also to sell advertising, like all papers. And I suppose the fact that Spaniards are publishing such periodicals is a sign of the growing economic power of immigrants here.

I usually enjoy reading both newspapers, but I wish they had more information about local activities and community listings. I'm sure I'm not the only immigrant who would find locations and contact details of important services a handy thing to see in a paper.

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In addition, I'd like to see a listing of where restaurants that serve food from various nations are located. As it is, I just see the odd advert for an ethnic restaurant now and then, so I catch as catch can. As a matter of fact, I'm looking at an ad right now for a place named Mi Cali Bella that says it specializes in Colombian and Ecuadoran cooking. Hmmm, sounds interesting. I'll try to check it out soon and let you know how it is. In the meantime, I'm going to cook myself some dinner!

Ciao amig@s,

Carloz

Barcelona - Pakistani "capital" of Spain

Sometimes after a long day, like today, I don't feel like cooking dinner nor am I hungry enough to go out to eat. In this situation I sometimes pop down to the Pakistani owned convenience store next to my apartment building to pick up a couple or three of the large, generously stuffed homemade samosas on offer there for 75 cents a piece. Mmm, delicious! This little convenience store is one of several owned by Pakistanis in my neighborhood -- indeed, throughout Barcelona.

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My first contact with such a business occurred not long after moving to Barcelona. It happened one Sunday when I was looking for a convenience store because here, as in all of Spain, larger stores are not allowed to open on 'the day of rest.' So, I stopped a policeman on the street to ask if he knew a place that was open where I could buy bread and milk. I can still hear his reply, "Quieres decir un Pakistani?" (Do you mean to say a Pakistani?)

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I wasn't sure what that meant, but I replied something to the effect that, if that's what he called a convenience store with Sunday hours, then, yes. It turned out to be exactly how locals refer to such shops and my first introduction to Barcelona's large, thriving Pakistani community.
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After living here a bit I began to sense that Barcelona probably had the highest concentration of Pakistani immigrants in all of Spain, consisting mostly of men, many of whom seemed to come from the Punjab. Recently I discovered a couple of interesting reports that actually confirm these perceptions: Multiculturalism and Health and Immigration, Education and the Labour Market. For example, the first one states that 95% of Pakistanis in Barcelona are male and are not only from the Punjab but from a particular city there - Gujrat. The second report claims that 69% of Pakistanis living in Spain live in the province of Barcelona.
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Although it looks to me like the convenience store is the major business they are involved in, they also seem to be heavily represented in 'locutorios' (small businesses where you can pay to use a phone by the minute), Internet cafes (often combined with locutorios) and restaurants. In addition the local gas company's butane delivery staff appears dominated by Pakistanis and the many construction sites around the city usually have at least some Pakistani laborers. Obviously, Barcelona is a place where many Pakistani immigrants are establishing a life for themselves.
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I would love to know more about the history of this community and how Barcelona came to be the destination of so many. (I've heard estimates as low as 10,000 and as high as 60,000.) I have asked a few Pakistanis about this, but have not discovered much other than things like, "I had a friend/neighbor/relative who lived here" or "who knew someone who lived here."
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Although I don't know when the immigration began, I believe the majority have arrived relatively recently. (Another perception verified by the Multiculturalism and Health report.) However, I do know one man from Pakistan, an owner of an electronics shop, who has lived here for over 25 years and who has raised his children here.
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If anyone knows anything about the history of this community, please feel free to share it here. It would be another piece in the puzzle about how Barcelona has become (or maybe I should say, is becoming) such a diverse and interesting place.
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Chao amig@s
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Carloz