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Catalonia - Too Cool For Spain
Blogging from Blanes, Catalonia: A sun-drenched, beautiful, Mediterranean coastal area of Spain, Catalonia still thinks it is too cool for Spain. A friend who has lived here for 8 years says that the Catalans consider themselves the hard-working ones, whereas the Southerners are supposed to be the slackers. (Californians - sounds familiar?) He says they are all equally relaxed about getting anything done.
An area of 6.5 million (16% of Spain as a whole), rich in its own history and a language distinct from Spanish, Catalonia now pines for independence from the rest of Spain (in part because they are angry they send more in tax revenue than they get back), apparently willing to forgo the substantial (150B+ Euros) monetary support from the EU, even though its GDP is less than the support the country gets. A recent vote showed this willingness to secede. And, not too surprisingly, this wouldn´t be the first time.
Maybe it is the food. Catalonia boasts one of the world´s most heart-healthy diets. Rich in fish, bountiful vegetables and the freshest fruit sold daily at bustling local markets, it sets the standard for the "Mediterranean diet," whose birthplace, arguably, is the famous La Boqueria market in Barcelona.
Yet, it´s also home to a sometimes strangely liberal lifestyle, as evidenced by the fact that it´s one of the few places in the world where cannabis-derived drugs are available over the counter at the many farmacia. It´s also bucking age-old Spanish tradition, by moving to banish bull-fighting. Better get here fast.
Filed under: Arts and Culture, History, Learning, Food and Drink, Europe, Spain
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
jmchez Sep 6th 2006 3:47PM
Balkanization anyone? The fact that some of the barbarian tribes that formed Europe after the fall of the Roman Empire ever managed to become world powers in spite of their constant tribalism is beyond me. Basques, Celts (Galicia, Wales, Scotland, Britanny), Slavs; these idiots just can't abide living with one another!
They also don't seem to want to have children (negative birth rates). Because of that, I would say that in 50 years, they would be ruled by a new set of Muslim masters except that Europeans lash out with a greater capability for brutality that Muslim Jihadists can only dream of. It's going to be nasty.
Juan Sep 7th 2006 5:33AM
I have been living Bcn for 3 years by now, being Southerness i have to say that at least Bcn different from Catalunya is open to everybody and the independency is just a dream of a few. My real believes is that is just about the money.
Iva Sep 9th 2006 6:25PM
Virtually all of Europe has been struggling with its position on nationalism. On one hand, the little cultural differences from region to region (that the locals passionately enforce) give Europe the flavor that people like about it, but on the other hand, that very same passion tends to breed intolerance. Unfortunately, you can't create a melting pot in Europe. The pot is too old to melt anything.
Maria Sep 12th 2006 8:38PM
I just have to comment on the "Cataluña is too cool for Spain" Having born in Seville from Catalan parents, I can testify que the Southerness are as hard worker or even harder than the Catalans. We just enjoy life more!!
Tom Sep 14th 2006 4:49AM
Nice article! I have to take issue with jmchez's paranoid fantasy about dhimmitude and balkanization. Catalonia no longer has 'a negative birthrate'. Towns in the metropolitan district of Barcelona are among the highest for birthrate in Europe.
The difference between work ethics in the north and south is that down south in July and August, siesta is more a necessity than a foible. Also because there's less industry down there. Of course, the individual worker will generally work as much as he or she can, wherever they are.
Eduardo Oct 17th 2006 2:42PM
I´m from Seville in the South, have lived in Barcelona and I like it, but I feel like many of them see the rest of the country as apart from them. If they just accepted that this other ¨rest¨ do not mind that they are the way they are, we would all be happy, but it´s a minority who try to make a separation which is silly. And the difference is not only that we work as hard as they do, but when we do something right, we celebrate it. That´s why we party a lot.