Monthly Archives: December 2010

“Cr**py” Catalan Christmas Customs! El Caganer and El Tió

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Let’s get right to the point:- in my Catalan/English dictionary “Caga” is translated as “shit” and “El Caganer” is translated as “the shitter”.  As you’ll see that’s not at all offensive to the Catalans but as those words may sound offensive to some let’s settle on the words “poop” and “the pooper” for the rest of this post!

So, what on earth does this have to do with Christmas Customs? In Catalonia, as in many countries it is the custom to have a Nativity Scene in homes, schools and public places.

El Caganer - The PooperThe Catalan Nativity Scene expands to a whole village scene rather than just the Stable and Manger. And there is a very curious custom. Tucked away somewhere (usually away from the stable) there will be a character squatting with pants down or skirts up having a poop! This is the Caganer – The Pooper! In Catalonia there seems not to be the embarrassment or taboo about normal bodily functions. And pooping is for sure the great leveller! It is said that the origin of the Caganer in the Nativity scene is a symbol not only of fertilising the earth but of equality. Traditionally, the Caganer was a peasant but in last decades it has become the practice to depict celebrities,sportsmen, politicians- in fact anyone famous, past or present.

Any public figure is likely to be portrayed as the caganer! (photo credit: Flickr varsovia103)

 

We had some American guests staying here a few years ago who were delighted to find one of George Bush! (I won’t tell you what they said – but it wasn’t complimentary to GB!)

 

This isn’t the only custom with a “pooping” theme. There is also Caga Tió -The Pooping Log! In early December a log with a cute, carved face is placed inside the home. It is covered with a blanket and then each day the children have to give it food to “eat” to fatten it up. In Catalonia the main gift giving day is January 5th on Day of the Kings. But on Christmas Eve the Caga Tió will poop small gifts for the family. This is done by beating it with a stick whilst singing this song – or variation of it

Caga tió, (poop log)

caga ametlles i torró, ( poop almonds and nougat)

no caguis arengades (don’t poo herrings)

que són massa salades, (they’re too salty)

caga torrons (poo sweets)

que són més bons. (that are much nicer)

i si no vols cagar…(and if you don’t want to poo)

et donaré un cop de bastó, (I’m going to hit you with a stick)

caga tió! (poop log)

caga! (poo!)

caga! (poo!)

caga!(poo!)

The blanket is removed and surprise surprise – Caga Tio will have obligingly pooped sweets and goodies for the family to enjoy!

Walking in Southern Catalonia – La Moleta and Wild Ibex

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Date of walk: Fri 10th Dec

Temperture in Tortosa: 16C

Mountain Temp: approx 13C

Wind: N 3-6km/h

This is the first walk we chose from the new walking guidebook for Southern Catalunya -find it page 76 – Walk 9.

The drive to the starting point was quite straightforward turning from the C12 on the South side of Xerta up an asphalted track.  After the Bassa d’Ossera we negotiated a couple of hair-pin bends then it was an easy drive to the Font Nova starting point. Font Nova is a fresh water spring and when we arrived there were a couple of people there busy filling up dozens of bottles.

La Moleta and Gorse Covered Hill

La Moleta and Gorse Covered Hill

From Font Nova we could clearly see the summit to which we would climb. The climb to the top is on the South / South West side of the mountain – with great views towards Mont Caro – and approaches the huge summit outcrop from the rear. It was a lovely clear sunny day so being on this side meant we benefited from the very welcome winter sunshine (we’d just come back from an icy, snowy England!) This southern aspect was

Heather Shrub

Heather shrub

covered in yellow gorse, rosemary which was also still in flower, and a lovely pink heather type of shrub.  We were accompanied by the constant buzz of bees and lots of butterflies – amazing for December!

However, the highlight of the walk was the wildlife we encountered. As we approached the summit we saw one lone male Ibex with huge horns on the opposite rock face.

Lone Ibex

Lone Ibex

He saw us too and stood for a good minute or so staring across at us before he trotted off and took a position on a ridge some distance away. Magic! A few minutes later a colony of 20-25 griffon vultures took to the thermals above our heads. The view of them through binoculars was superb.

Ibex family

Ibex Family

We continued to the crag atop the mountain. As we made our way round to the front of the rock a family of Ibex leapt up from behind the shrubs right in front of us! A male, a female and 3 young ones. By the time we had grabbed and focused the camera they were already some distance away. But no matter – it was another superb sighting.

All that remained now was to tackle “La Moleta” itself. Iron rungs and cables facilitate the climb to the top, from where there are superb views across the Ebro Valley, to Tortosa and the Delta. Crystal clear inland – there was a sea mist that day all over the coastline so the Delta was not visible. As if I cared! We’d had a fabulous walk, enjoyed sunshine, birds, flowers, great views and wild ibex!

View to Mt Caro on Ascent

View to Mt Caro on Ascent

Barn Owls at the Ebro Delta

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Family photo!

It was a stroke of luck that just before I turned off my computer on Saturday night I had a last peek at Facebook and noticed Cristian Jensen’s update: Sunday morning they were going to be ringing Barn Owls at the Riet Vell Nature Reserve on the Ebro Delta! Well, I wasn’t about to miss the opportunity to see these lovely birds close-up so we were up and out early on Sunday morning and made the trip down to the Delta. Incidentally, Cristian runs Audouin Birding – a birdguiding company offering tours in this region, throughout Spain and also abroad. Apart from being a really nice guy and very knowledgeable, he is also a licensed ringer for the SEO (Sociedad Española de Ornitología – similar to the RSPB)

Youngest owl showing fluffy down

The youngest - so cute!

Anyway – on to the Barn Owls – in the first building there were 5 young ones in the man-made nesting box. They were aged something like 5-7 weeks old. (The eggs are laid 2-3 days apart) You can see from the photos that there is an age difference as some still have a lot of fluffy down. The birds were amazingly passive whilst they were being ringed. I was able to gently stroke one and it was incredible! The softest thing I’ve ever touched!. It was an absolute treat to be able to see such beautiful birds close-up.

In the second building the breeding pair hadn’t been so successful. No chicks at all here. Broken egg shells indicated that the contents had been eaten -probably by a rat. Which is quite ironic given that the owls main diet is rats.

Rat skulls can be seen very clearly in the photo of the owl pellets that were picked up from the floor. So on this occasion the owls prey had become the predator! Sad but that’s nature.

Model of Owl face

We were also shown this interesting model of an owls face. This hasn’t been made as a piece of art though, it actually has a very important job. In the event of chicks being abandoned/parent birds being killed, this is used to shield the hand and pass food to the chicks through the whole in the “mouth”. I’m sure in a dark nest the chicks are easily fooled into thinking this is mum!

About Barn Owls in Catalonia

Barn Owls are generally present in all open agricultural places throughout Catalonia up to an altitude of 1,500 metres. However, the Ebro Delta is blessed with one of the highest breeding densities in all of Catalonia.. It is normal for them to breed twice a year here. The first brood at the end April and the second at the end of October. The survival of the Autumn brood can depend more on the weather than the availability of food. A rainy and windy spell in Autumn can affect the parent owl’s ability to find their prey as they do this by sound location.

In the past – like many raptors – the Barn Owl was persecuted by man. It was also affected by chemical products used in agriculture which diminished it’s fertility. The Barn Owl is now a protected species in Catalonia. Thanks to the legal protection along with a growing awareness of nature conservation and the provision of nest boxes the numbers have recovered. Once again the Barn Owl can often be seen at night flying silently over the rice fields in search of it’s prey.

30 Self-guided Walks in Southern Catalonia

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Book cover

Mountain Walking in Southern Catalunya

The mountain ranges of Tarragona offer fantastic walking. But it’s a secret! You wouldn’t know it by looking at most guidebooks because the area is barely mentioned.  Once here and you venture up into these enticing mountains you discover that the area is criss-crossed with both long-distance and regional hiking routes – mainly linear.   During at least the last 5 or 6  years many local, overgrown paths have also been cleared and new signage erected. What has been lacking is the availability – in English -  of good, detailed descriptions of circular day-walks.  So it’s great news to see a new publication “Mountain Walking in Southern Catalunya” by Philip and Vivien Freakley. Vivien and Philip have spent 5 winters researching and writing this guide and to quote the book “have knitted together apparently unrelated scraps of footpath”. The handy pocket-size guide book published by Cicerone details 30 walks, graded for difficulty along with simple route maps and photographs. The majority of the walks are in the Els Ports Mountains with a few in the Cardo and Montsia ranges and one being a linear coastal walk.  And for good measure the book has some interesting chapters on the geology, wildlife, history, architecture and culture of the area along with useful practical advice such as travel and what to do in an emergency.

So,  escape the grey, damp and soggy walks in Britain and Northern Europe and come and check out this little known area of Southern Catalunya. Mid-September to late May are generally suitable months for hiking. With milder weather, longer days and stunning scenery what more could you ask for?  You can buy your own copy of the guidebook from  Cicerone or  Amazon .

Details:

Title: Mountain Walking in Southern Catalunya

Author: Philip and Vivien Freakley

ISBN: 9781852845827