It's All Fun & Games! ('til somebody breaks a rib)

Sadly, the last post, this one and most likely some to come will begin with "a couple weeks ago" as I've apparently had more important things to do than update. Sometimes The Sims 3 just calls, you know?

A couple weeks ago (sigh), David and I were sitting here in the apartment debating about whether or not to attend the party in Sitges. Sitges is a beautiful little city situated between Barcelona and Cubelles. It's a popular tourist destination, especially with "our people", as it has a thriving gay community and nightlife. I'd spent an afternoon there during David's vacation time (the same week we visited Cambrils and Tarragona), but much like Gracia prior to attending its annual festival, I had yet to see it in its true glory. Debatably, I still haven't, as it hosts one of the craziest Carnaval parties in Spain, an event I'm both looking forward to and dreading as David's friends have the obligatory tradition of dressing in coordinating drag costumes.

David and I were exhausted from all the partying. We still hadn't quite recovered from the Cubelles party. We eventually rested on the decision to... well, rest. I was taking a nap when David received a call from his friend, Gloria. Gloria has a very exuberant personality, and is endowed with the never-failing gift of talking you into doing things you're really not in the mood for. The baffling thing is that she doesn't use any legitimate arguments in doing so, but relies solely on her distinctively expressive voice and high squeals to distract and perplex you. She's much like Jasper from the Twilight Saga, except instead of transmitting calm, sedative vibes; she makes everyone around her damn perky.

A few hours later, the whole gang was packed like sardines in a train departing from Cubelles. It was unusually hot on this night, and there wasn't even a hint of a breeze. The only distraction from the heat was the aura of excitement radiating from the crowd. It was obvious these people waited all year for this. And to think I'd pleaded David to stay at home and sleep.

Just as in Cubelles, the night was initiated by an impressive fireworks show. This was not your average show. You would think by now, they would lose their allure, but Spain continues to blow my mind with the ingenuity of these presentations. They really know how to fire up a crowd.

The presentation was divided into phrases, like a beautiful piece of music. For about a half hour your eyes were bouncing from focal to point to focal point. Flames cascaded from the prominently placed cathedral. They emerged from the water, raining sparks on the sea of boats docked just off shore to observe the show. The most creative part was a series of booming works used to form a rhythm. The crowd clapped along with the "BAM... BAM... BAM BAM BAM" created by the flashing explosions. Also notable was a fountain-like display set off from a pier.

The only shame was that the lack of movement in the air, which caused the smoke to hover, created a white blanket that with each minute concealed more and more of the spectacle.

Immediately following the fireworks, our group made our way to the sand. It's such a Spanish tradition to congregate on the beach, passing around homemade cocktails and basking in the celebratory ambience. This segment of the evening was reminiscent of my first huge Spanish party, San Juan of '07. I had know idea back then that I'd be sharing many more perfect nights with the same crowd. David is blessed with some amazing friends.

This night, for me, marked a new beginning. I really bonded with each and every person. I no longer felt like an outsider. I may not be Spanish, or even speak the language very well, but I am accepted. I have a place. I have numerous friendships, all complete with hilarious stories and priceless memories.

No Spanish party is complete without dancing. My favorite kind? Dancing in the street.

Long after the party could have ended, I found some treasure partially buried in the sand: an almost full bottle of Bacardi. Some friendships are set in stone over untiring and enlightening conversation. Others, perhaps less glamorously, are locked in over mutual vomiting.

When it was time to go home, our tightly-knit group had unraveled. A part of the group boarded a train that ended its route in Vilanova, one stop prior to Cubelles. Other parts were still scattered throughout Sitges. David and I were running to catch the Cubelles train when I took a rather gruesome fall. Here we were further separated.

Oddly enough, it didn't matter. When the final train left us in a now brightly sunlit Cubelles, we all staggered out of different cars. Just like in a scene out of movie, the group gathered, as if this conclusion were planned. I was in a great deal of pain, but could have partied on longer. We posed for one more photo and called it a night... or rather, morning.

Days later, when the pain in my ribcage still hadn't resided and I finally made a trip to the doctor. I discovered that I had indeed cracked or broken a rib. The pain would last another month or so. The memory of my first Sitges party would live on for much, much longer.

This Party's on Fire!

Cubelles 2010

This past weekend I had the pleasure of participating in my first party-- or, festa mayor-- of Cubelles. In Catalonia, each city, town (and neighborhood for that matter) reserves a week each summer to celebrate their individual heritage. As David has spent the vast majority of his summers in Cubelles, this party is as much of a tradition as any holiday you or I know and love.

Who knew they had maypoles in Spain?

Going into the experience, I hadn't a clue what to expect. David had explained the affair by telling me that there would be fireworks, people dancing with giant sparklers and ultimately a huge party in a plaza near his parents' apartment. Since fireworks and the like are nothing new to me, I focused more on the party, bracing myself for a Spanish-style extravaganza that would inevitably go on into the wee hours of the morn. What I wasn't prepared for was a rich anthropological experience that not only left an impression me, but also opened my eyes to a vast cultural identity of Catalonia that extends far beyond Gaudí and Sangría.

Amazingly they performed this same dance the morning after the party. And let's just say it wasn't a quiet performance.

Prior to the fireworks and much-anticipated street gathering, David and I went to the historical downtown of Cubelles to see the traditional performances seen above. As the festivities transitioned from quaint folk dances into unrelenting and mind-boggling pyrotechnics, I began to feel like I was in a special on the Discovery channel. What to David and his friends was such a normal and mundane aspect of the annual celebrations (that they haven't even bothered to attend in many years) to me was an awakening. It's moments like these, that still occur after having more or less adapted to my surroundings, that make me feel more alive than ever and ecstatically grateful that I've been handed this new life.

The pink, female dragon has lost her flame in her old age, but now carries the gift of turbocharged, watery breath, which amply moistened the left side of my head later on.

Now, as I previously mentioned, David had told me about the Correfocs, some kind of "fire dance". He described men dancing with around with fireworks... "like sparklers" he described. HA. When a group of tiny children bearing protective, devil-looking costumes began to roam the plaza with spinning "sparklers" only a little larger than I'd imagined, I thought "Well, awwww, how cute!"

The crowd began to back away from the plaza as the second, now slightly taller group took the stage.

Shortly after, they brought in the big guns: full grown men equipped with what could easily be mistaken for weapons of mass destruction.

Anyone else getting a slightly satanic vibe from this all?

And as that apparently wasn't enough to clear the joint, all hail the Dragon!

No communal celebration is complete without a parade. All of that fiery goodness went on the move, bouncing sparks all over the maze of centuries-old narrow streets. The dancers, the dragons, the music all accompanied. Also present were Charlie, the legendary clown (apparently), and the Cubelles giants! (I assure you I am just as lost as you are.)

Hide your children!

This image is just so intense.

After the parade, some resting and dinner with David's family, we met up with his friends and arrived at the beach just in time to see the fireworks. We were closer than I had ever been to the ignition point, as they were set off right on the beach. I saw so many types of fireworks that I had never seen before! The show was the perfect length and very entertaining. I had a flashback to a similar scenario on a certain New Years Eve in a certain other foreign continent and was brought to tears by this perfect fairy tale moment that I had been denied just a few years ago. Everything was perfection. And the evening had just begun.

My favorites were these, which were shot off from beneath the water.

After the fireworks, we gathered with more friends to watch the encore of the correfocs.

These children are encouraged to play with fire.

Have you ever gotten sparks in your eye, Gabriel? It burrrrns.

At that point, some of the core Cubelles guys headed to Patrick's parents' apartment to get the drink on. I met Patrick when I was in Barcelona before celebrating San Juan. He's part of this amazing French family that speak a bazillion languages and live all over the world.

At his place, after taking some Jello shots that his sister had made (you should have seen the faces on the rest of them as they struggled to comprehend this foreign concept), she excused herself and her Portuguese boyfriend to the apartment of Gerard (also present) where the "older crowd" would be hanging out. We made ourselves comfortable on the terrace and played an amazing drinking dice game that was strikingly similar to many drinking games I knew from back home.

When David and my two liter bottles of vodka and orange Fanta were about halfway depleted, we went upstairs to gather the other troops, and then headed back towards the beach for the main event.

The bands played everything from American oldies to local Catalonian music to the Black Eyed Peas. I won't go into much detail as this post is already reaching novella lengths, but I will add that I played the part of the infamous Gloria this year, who is well known for her annual "upset" in the streets of Cubelles. Oh yes, good times.

I will also say this: during the entire party, which for us stretched on until just about sunset, I didn't once think about being in a foreign country. I didn't once think about language barriers. It was all about fun and drink and friends and celebrating all of the wonder that life has to offer. This is my life, as every day is for each of you. And in the end all that matters is whether or not we've made the most of it. I'll cherish this night for the rest of my life, and am already anxious for Cubelles 2011!