Sant Jordi, the emotional day of Catalonia
"And from the dragon's blood was born a rose that the knight Sant Jordi gave to the princess". Thus ends one of the most famous legends of Catalonia, Valencia, Balearic Islands, and Aragon.
It is an almost universal legend, famous in many parts of the world.
Whether it is called Georgio- Georg, Jorge, Gorka, Jürgen or Jordi - who decided to kill the dragon that terrified an entire kingdom and save the princess given as an offering to appease the wrath of the terrible monster, is now remembered every April 23 as an essential symbol of the Catalan tradition.
Love and Culture.
Two concepts that at first do not always go hand in hand are linked during the Sant Jordi Day. It's a day in which lovers are given a rose, but also a book (some even Catalan espadrilles ;-).
This is because, beyond the knightly legends, it is also the day of Books, since that same April 23 died two of the greatest writers in history, William Shakespeare and Miguel de Cervantes.
The day of letters and flowers, of lovers and lovers of letters ("Lletraferits" in Catalan, "hurts by the letters". Like the troubadours "sicks of love," it is also the day of the "sick" - passionate - of culture").
On this day, so festive, La Manual Alpargatera also usually sign up contributing its small grain of sand.
That's why in our 'Barcemola!' collection, we have designs of handmade espadrilles created especially for this day, printed with roses, fragments of poetry or stories, dragons, dragon feet, or models made in collaboration with writers and dedicated to letters.
Our culture is vital for us, that's why we want to live it, be part of it and share it.
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