Day of the book. Day of the Rose.
Maybe you remember this post. Today is Sant Jordi. Today is “la diada”. It’s been amazing so far: there are roses in the living room (my mum’s and my sister’s) and I am still over-excited by the discounts.
Last Saturday I got to see Chuck Palahniuk because he was promoting the Spanish translation of Tell All. I was able to ask him about his relationship with his translators. He seemed such a nice man, calm and grounded, and his views about writing were really interesting.
Then I spent the night in a role-playing club playing Ubongo, Bohnanza, Dixit and Arkham Horror, eating sandwiches and having fun with friends. This too was because of Sant Jordi.
And today I have visited my favourite bookshop and my parents have given me two books as presents: Elantris by Brandon Sanderson and The hundred thousand kingdoms by N.K. Jemisin. Maybe I’ll be back later with a friend (just snooping around is enough for me). WIIIIIIIIII!
This is the best celebration EVER.
On St Valentine’s Day
I’m not normally interested in St Valentine’s Day, even after starting a relationship I pretty much ignore any kind of celebration. In fact, I used to hate it for the usual reasons. My boyfriend is not really into ritual presents and I feel very much relieved about it. Sometimes my parents buy a cake, like the one we will be having tonight for dinner. This year I learned about the “horny werewolf day” thing (Warren Ellis’ idea, not mine) and ended up reading about the Lupercalia and the Lykaia in Wikipedia, which is really interesting and sort of kinky in a good way.
However, I know that the cultural impact is different for the English-speaking world: I was in Dublin for St Valentine’s Day and I remember the decorations and the mood. So Happy St Valentine’s Day for you, the one reading this~ Happy V-day everypony!~
I’ll be celebrating my favourite (and romantic) holiday on April the 23rd: Sant Jordi/Saint George’s day, day of the rose and the book in Catalonia. All the books are discounted, bookshops have street stands and there are authors signing everywhere. In schools children are supposed to be creative and win writing contests (and that’s how I got my Harry Potter collection). You can find roses in every corner of the streets and people go to great lengths to be original and romantic. It’s my favourite day of the year while also being commercial and rooted in Christian tradition. Maybe that is why I don’t hate St Valentine’s anymore. Be it chocolate or books, everyone should have fun their own way.
