Sant Jordi

Hello, dears!!

Do these ring a bell? ;)

My cousin and I bought the same ones in different colours...

How was your week? :) I was lucky enough to go to Madrid last weekend, and I just wanted to do a quick post before I show you all the cool places I got to see. I'm still going through all the pics, and I think I'm going to have to divide it into a couple or 3 posts for them to be of a reasonable length... ;)

So anyway! I know it's kind of late for that, but I just wanted to show you how I spent my Sant Jordi... (St George's day, the 23rd of April) It's in fact a very celebrated holiday here in Catalunya, and there's actually a story, a legend to it. There are of course thousands of versions and variations, but it goes more or less like this:

There was once a kingdom that lived frightened by the greediness of a dragon, who enjoyed eating their cattle, and every once in a while, a couple of citizens too. After some time, the King declared that a young virgin should be given to the dragon once a month in order to appease the beast's hunger and keep it occupied and away from their livestock... But the King had a daughter, and when they drew lots to determine which lady was to go first, the Princess' name was the one elected. Everyone was saddened by it, for she was loved by all, but the Princess submitted to this sacrifice with grave determination. 
She was left by herself at the entrance of the dragon's cave, awaiting the beast's arrival at nightfall. But with the last rays of sunshine arrived a handsome Knight on a white horse. St George was his name, and he'd come to save her from such terrible fate. He fought well, and won the dragon. A pool of blood stained the earth, and from it came out a beautiful red rose. St George picked it carefully, and gave it to the Princess, whom in return, and to thank him for his troubles, offered him a book.

What do you think? Did you like it? ;) We're told this story at school or at home since we're little kids, everyone knows it here... The tradition says that girls should be given roses (any colour!), and guys books (any kind!), not necessarily by lovers. For example, every year, I get a beautiful rose from my dad:

But being a bookworm, I always end up getting (by other people or by myself) plenty of books as well! :)

So anyway, it was a fun day, because being a Saturday, we walked around the city, and got to see all the street stands with books, and roses, and all the people out and about doing the same... I was with my beloved little cousin (isn't she just beautiful?), and we had a great time.

By the harbour, to have lunch

We also went to Rambla Catalunya, where most of the people in Barcelona go to buy their books and roses.

We reached les Rambles, where you can find older books & stranger people... ;)

This year, I treated myself with a book from the wonderful Music Emporium (piano sheet music to learn blues and improvisation... been wanting it for a while!):

... and this beautiful rose:

To walk around the city, I decided to go for a comfy and colourful look that I didn't have to think much about. What do you think?

[photo by dear mom :)]
Bimba & Lola off-white shirt

Bimba & Lola pants

H&M customized blue cardigan (why customized? I promise to post about it soon! :D)

Bimba & Lola gray leather bag

Camila's beaded sandals

For dinner, we went to this beautiful spot, called Fragments Café (Plaça de la Concòrdia, 12)... *-*

They have like a secret garden inside, and the food is just delicious, such a smart mix of influences.

So anyway, happy belated Sant Jordi everyone, and have a great beginning of the week!! :) I'll try to have all my Madrid boutique reviews ready as soon as I can... ;)









[All photos are by me unless specified otherwise. I'm happy if you decide to copy and keep them in your computer as reference, or post them in your blog or anywhere you want. But you MUST put my name or a link to the blog somewhere, saying where you took them from. Not putting anything is in my opinion almost as bad as saying you took them yourself.]