Jota, the song that travels up and down the Ebro river

Legend says that 1000 years ago, when most of the Iberian Peninsula was under muslim arabic rule, there was a singer and poet in the city of Valencia, by these days "Balansiya", called Ibn Jot. He used to sing very fresh and popular songs. He became so famous among the people of Valencia that the other singers and artist became jealous of him so they decided to claim to the religious authorities that the letter of what he was singing was among Islam and the Koran.

Ibn Jot was expelled from Balansiya and decided to go further north. While travelling northwards he kept singing his melodic songs in all the souks and medinas he visited. Lately he arrived to the Ebro river bassin, to the city currently know as Tortosa, by that days "Turtuxa", also under islamic rule.

We cannot know if his songs were revolutionary or not as his detractors argued, what we certainly know is that his musical style, the "Jota" (From his name Ibn Jot) is now very popular in...what a surprise! all the Ebro valley, from Tortosa up to Cantabria through Aragon, south Navarre, Rioja and Burgos province.

Maybe Ibn Jot fell in love with the Ebro River and the landscape created by this river with its merchant ships carrying goods from distant lands and fishermen catching all kind of fish in its blue water.

What is true is that know, in 2009, the only place in Catalonia where Jota is still sung and danced is in Terres de l'Ebre, the area south of Catalonia around the city of Tortosa. These pictures, taken last weekend in the small town on Paüls, give proof of it.

Le Puy-en-Velay et Avignon, les jumelles de Tortosa

Je suis parti pendant ces vacances de Pâques à les villes jumelles françaises de Tortosa, Le-Puy-en-Velay (Auvergne) et Avignon (PACA).

J'y suis allé avec un vieil connu de la ville de Le-Puy, Mr.Oriol Gracià, qui a vécu un an là-bas et donc il avait beacoup de connaissances bien gentilles comme Romuald le prof qui aime la photografie, Marie, qui a un fort caractère car elle travaille avec des enfants autistes et en plus elle a supporté 3 mecs dans son appart pendant 4 nuits, Marie Louise, qui a montré une grande gentillese en pretant son appart sans nous connaitre du tout et sans y etre présente, Helène, la vraie princesse de Polignac, Patricia, l'écrivante charmante au visage à l'Amélie Poulain et la franco-ukrainienne Helena qui est la vraie vedette de la ville entière.
Mais nous ne sommes pas partis tous seuls de la Catalogne moi et Oriol car il y avait aussi un autre mec, César, et deux filles, qui faisaient au même temps une jolie representation de la beauté de la femme catalane, Cinta et Sònia.

Sans tous eux, le voyage n'aurait pas été le même, je vous assure.

Ça m'a etonné de voir comme, dans un pays à priori homogène, surtout si on se met à comparer la France avec l'Espagne, ces deux villes presentent un caractère fortament different l'une de l'autre.
Ainsi, par exemple, la ville de Le Puy se trouve bien eloigné de toute voie rapide, au moins si on y vient du sud comme c'était notre cas. Il y a au moins 90 minutes de conduite des les autoroutes qui traversent la France du Nord au Sud. Et pourtant la ville est bien vivante, il y a plein de commerces ouverts en centre ville et un marché très interessant le samedi matin qui cohabite avec un centre commerciale en banlieu "à l'americaine".
Apparentment il n'y pas aucune autre activité economique que le commerce et l'agriculture mais ça ce n'est pas une raison pour que les jeunes partent ailleurs. Malgré qu'ils le font, Lyon est seulement à 130 km, ils restent volontiers en ville, histoire de voir des qu'on arrive d'une ville comme Tortosa.
Pour ce qui concerne le tourisme tout est placé autour du début d'une des branches du Chemin Saint Jacques et de la promotion de sa dentelle et la lentille verte. Un vrai succès de tourisme identitaire qui n'est pas agressive avec l'entourage.

Mais des qu'on bouge à Avignon tout a changé, la ville est beaucoup plus peuplé et ici on est dans la vraie France metropolitaine, c'est-à-dire, il y a des gens de tous couleurs et de tout origine geografique, chose que n'est pas si evidente de voir sur Le-Puy-en-Velay, beaucoup plus "gaulois" ou "occitain", à vous de determiner.
J'ai bien aimé voir le soleil de nouveau auprès trois jours en Haute Loire et j'ai aussi aimé voir le palais des Papes et la Roine. Il faut bien voir la ville cet anné si vous ne la connaissez pas car on y fête le 700 anniversaire de la proclamation du premier Pape d'Avignon.

On espère d'y aller de nouveau à Le-Puy lors de la fête du Roi de l'Oiseau le mois de septembre et à Avignon à propos de la Grande Fête qui finira avec la celebration du 700 anniversaire en octobre. Faudra préparer des habillements medievales et de la Renaissance!!

Cépendant on espère voir aussi des ponnotes et des avignonais à les Terres de l'Ebre!!!

First hanami in Terres de l'Ebre

Terres de l'Ebre, the catalan regional subdivision located roughly 200 km south of Barcelona, will celebrate next sunday 29th of march from 16h to 18,30h its first hanami in the area near the village of Paüls.




Weather permitting, of course. But apparently there's nothing to fear so far.



A hanami is the festival held in all the public parks of Japan in the first spring days. In consist in sitting down the cherry blossoms (Sakura) to contemplete the beauty of the flowers while drinking sake and green tea with family and friends.



Japanese people has been celebrating hanamis for the last 1000 years, it helped to remember them that life is short and they must enjoy the beauty of this world as soon they will have to die, specially if they were samurai and knew that had to engage into battle.



Terres de l'Ebre produces, mainly in Miravet and Paüls, around 50% of all the catalan cherries, that means that we have quite a few cherry trees, don't you think so?



The problem is that, unlike japanese, our trees are not located in public parks but mainly in private properties.



Some of the member of the Terres de l'Ebre blog writers, pushed by our past proved dinamism, had the idea to try to organize a similar event in our homeland, just to see what happens.



So we have got in contact with the owner of one of Paüls cherry trees fields, who is at the same time the owner of a small rural hotel called "La Remulla" and she allows us to celebrate the first hanami in southern Catalonia for free.



These are the features:



Sunday 29th from 16h to 18,30h


In Vall de Baiges, near Paüls, 5,2 km from the right turn before Paüls village indicating "Vall de vinyes", just keep in your left all the time for 10 minutes or so. The spot is where you will find some big rocks fallen from the mountain in your left.



This is a picture of the spot

Bring some big pieces of plastic like rubish bags (clean and empty of course) or beach towels to sit over.

Bring also some biscuits or your own sake. Green tea will be offered by Paüls mayor.

It is also requested to all participants to prepare a small poem (of your own or any other author who must be referenced), song or small text about one of the following topics to be read in public:

- Cherry blossom
- Spring arrival
- Natural beauty of Terres de l'Ebre
- Japanese culture (Before WWII)
- Relations between Terres de l'Ebre or Catalunya with Japan

Finally, please have in mind that the area is located in a narrow valley so there's no plenty of room to park the cars. If possible park your car in Paüls and get into another car with empty seats heading to the same place.

Hope to see you in Paüls!

Our ancestors the iberians

In chic and expensive Ile Saint Louis, in Paris (France), there's a restaurant called "Nos ancetres les gaulois". It's a different concept of french restaurant where you can eat wild boars and drink wine in horns like Asterix and their friends but paying then a bill like a XXIst century parisian.

Its location, in one of the most romantic and special places at the heart of french capital might show how the french love everything related to their history prior the arrival of the Roman Empire.

Quite surprisingly, another proud mediterranean people, the Spanish and the Catalans, do not know so well their preroman history. Maybe this is because we didn't have an Asterix comic, maybe it's because Julius Caesar did not write so much on his war in Hispania as he did in his war in Gaul (Current France).

The fact is that most spaniards, catalans and inhabitants of Terres de l'Ebre when asked what do they know about iberian culture all what they might answer you just that there's a statue called "Dama d'Elx" and, if lucky, they could even point you out the location of any settlement like Ullastret in Empordà area or castellet de Banyoles in Tivissa (Ribera d'Ebre).

Very few know that the well settled tradition of "Bou Embolat" may have its origins when 2500 years ago, as the carthagians leaded by Amilcar landed in current Alacant and Santa Pola area (Southern Valencian country), the iberian tribe of Elx received them attacking with a bull with fire in their horns.

The mighty carthagians fleed for the first occasion scared by the brave animal who seemed to came directly from hell but at their second try they knew what was happening and they were not so scared.

During first weekend of october the inhabitants of Terres de l'Ebre have the chance to approach themselves to Iberian traditions and cultures in the four iberian archeological settlements in Terres de l'Ebre, Alcanar, Vinebre, Tivissa and Gandesa. There will be guided tours, gastronomy, iberian crafrt markets and you can even learn how to write using the iberian alphabet.

And in Alcanar activities already start this weekend with the iberian market.

Do not miss this opportunity to learn a little bit about our ancestors!

Reto para Rajoy

Este mensaje va dirigido a los organizadores de la campaña electoral de Mariano Rajoy.

Quedan 5 días hábiles hasta el final de la campaña electoral por las elecciones del 9 de marzo.

Les reto a que antes del viernes a medianoche Mariano Rajoy se presente en Tortosa, no hace falta que sea para dar un miting político, basta que vaya a cualquier sala de prensa y diga las palabras "mágicas" que ayer dijo en Zaragoza:

".....el agua que sobre, la que se tire al mar..."

Con ello se hacen un tremendo favor en dos sentidos

1) Demostrando que el mensaje del PP es efectivamente el mismo en todo lo que ustedes denominan "territorio nacional"

2) Recuperaran, tal vez, el voto perdido por el PP en esta parte de Cataluña, hasta finales de los 90 su principal bastión político (Donde incluso vino Jose María Aznar en 1995) y donde desde entonces no se ha visto ni un solo máximo dirigente popular a la vez que el voto a la vez que se experimentaba una caida drástica en el número de votos.

¿Por qué será?

Le jour que les "ebrencs" iront au ciel

Ebrencs=Habitants de la region de l'Ebre au sud de la Catalogne.

À la petite ville d'Amalfi, au sud de l'Itale, pres de Naples, il y a un affiche fait avec des faiances où on peut y lire en italien "Le jour que les amalfiatains iront au ciel pour eux, ce jour là, sera un jour comme tous les autres".

Effectivement, la cote amalfitaine est un petit coin de paradis, avec ses villages mediterraneens qui regardent le "Mare Nostrum" avec des citroniers et des chataigniers qui entourent la ville.

Laissez-moi vous dire une chose, il n'y a que les amalfitains qui beneficient de ce privilège au sud de l'Europe.

Chez nous, au sud de la Catalogne, nous disposons de grandes montaignes avec des fontaines et des chevres sauvages, un grand espace humede avec plein d'oiseaux, les bouches de l'Ebre, des petits villages calmes qui se reflexent dans ses eaux comme Miravet, des orangiers et des aumondiers partout, des villages maritimes comme l'Ampolla ou l'Ametlla de Mar ou les pecheurs s'occupent de ses affaires de la même manière que ses ancetres l'ont fait il y a plus de 1000 ans. Et si tout ça ne suffit pas, on dispose aussi d'une region interieure qui a charmé des artistes de taille mondiale comme Pablo Picasso au même temps qu'on produit un vin rouge fort et de caractère aussi que notre celebre vin doux, la "mistela".

La seule difference avec Amalfi?? Les americains n'y ont pas débarqué aux années 50....

Parce que, croyez-moi, nous nous avons vraiment gagné le droit de vivre au ciel, suffit de lire les declarations de certains politiques de Barcelone qui affirment avoir negocié amener l'eau du Roine au Barcelone.....pour que après les dirigeants politiques français viennent affirmer le contraire....

Kosovo joins the club of european free nations. My views.

Since I was born, in 1979, the following new states have appeared in the map of Europe.

From Czecoslovaquia:

Czech republic
Slovakia

From the USSR:

Estonia
Letonia
Lituania
Belarus
Ukrania
Moldova
Azerbaijan
Georgia
Armenia

From Yugoslavia:

Slovenia
Croatia
Bosnia
Macedonia
Montenegro

and finally today Kosovo has split from the last remain of the "Great Serbia"

Only one country has decided to join another country, the RDA joined the RFA creating what today we know as "Germany".

No one of this 19 nations is located in western Europe, no one of them was already included into the European Union at the time of his birth.

So as there's no model for us Catalonia will have to continue to walk in its own way, very few catalans could understand our parliament takes a similar decission without a referendum or without assuring to keep our current level of prosperity, in any case the independence would have to lead to better (and inmediatal) economocial prosperity, not less.

What cannot be understood is the reasons for which the main political parties in Spain do not want to recognize the independence of Kosovo. Do they fear to loose support as the elections approach? Why do the UK would support the cause and not Spain?