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Festa Major de Grącia 2008 Barcelona |
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The Festa Major de Grącia 2008 !
The 191st Festa Major de Grącia 2008 is a week long neighbourhood festival from 15th to 21 August with a delightfully varied programme of over 600 events events organised for neighbours and families in Gracia. But visitors are welcome!
 Click here for pictures of Festa Major de Grącia 2007
The practical details.
During the Fiesta de Gracia the Barcelona Metro will be open all night from on Thursday 14th and Saturday 16th August. On Friday 15th August the metro will run until 2 am.
The 15th August is Asuncion day, which is a public holiday in Spain.) On the other days of the festival the normal metro timetable will be in operation.
Every night of the Festa Major de Gracia festival there will be a shuttle bus service usually from 11 p.m. to 5.15 a.m running from the junction of Carrer de Cņrsega and Pau Claris to Plaza Catalunya to connect with NitBus night buses. Please check the official Barcelona bus website to check details www.tmb.net
Here are some useful Festa de Gracia links:
 Festa Major de Gracia official website (Spanish & Catalan)
Calendar of events Festa de Gracia 2008 (Catalan)
Official programme in PDF version 2008
Official website of Gracia barrio (neighbourhood) of Barcelona
Map of streets in Gracia that are decorated for 2008 Festa de Gracia
Highlights of Gracia festival 2008
In 2008 15 streets and squares are festively dressed up in elaborately themed theatrical carnival style decorations to compete for the prize of being the best decorated street or square of the festival.
On many plazas in the festival area there are find market stalls with food and drink and handicraft items.
The Festa Major de Grącia programme of 2008 features a rich presence of all the traditional cultural Catalan traditions including the Castellera de Festa Major which is the always thrilling human tower building.
There will be firework processions (correfocs), live music concerts, workshops, traditional Catalan dancing (sardanes), other kinds of dancing and festival processions (cercaviles) and more.
The festival also knows that to survive for 191 years traditions must go hand in hand with innovation and in keeping with that sentiment last years festival welcomed exciting new events like the "Les Tardes Cląssiques" or "Classical Evenings among others.
2008 is the "Ańo de Mercč Rodoreda" in Catalonia, the year of Mercč Rodoreda (Barcelona, 1908 - Girona, 1983), who was a famous Catalan writer. There will be events to celebrate her memory as part of the Festa Major de Gracia 2008.
About Grącia district and barrios
Grącia is a district of the city of Barcelona above Eixample to the south and sandwhiched between Sarrią-Sant Gervasi to the west and Horta-Guinardó to the east.
The district contains the neighborhoods barris of of Vallcarca, Penitents, El Coll, La Salut and Camp d'en Grassot. Grącia is bordered by the districts of Eixample to the south, Around 120,087 people live in Gracia.
The name Grącia originates from a Carmelite convent dating back to 17 de gener de 1626 1626 called "Nostra Senyora de Grącia (Our Lady of Grace)."
Until 1897 Vila de Grącia was a separate village and municipality from Barcelona city. To get through the fields from Barcelona to Gracia you traveled on the road called Passeig de Gracia, the passage to Grącia. This road still has the same name today.
In 1897 it was annexed to Barcelona in 1897 and as the city expanded Gracia was surrounded, but largely left intact, which explains why oldest barrio of Vila de Grącia has retained its old world charm in the midst of a modern city like Barcelona. .
Its this special atmosphere of Gracia that makes it very popular residential area for locals and foreigners alike and about 50.000 people live in the quaint narrow streets of Vila de Gracia.
Gracia has all the charm of the Ciutat Vella district, but the lack of major tourist attractions has kept the tourists, street artists and fast food chains away from the streets of Gracia leaving space for the residents to weave a neighbourhood tapestry of bohemian, stylish, artistic shops, cafes and restaurants. For food and shopping in Barcelona, it is definately worth a visit.
The only time when the tourists visit Gracia in droves is during the annual Festa Major de Gracia, which is one of Barcelona's biggest street parties.
A million visitors find their way to Gracia during this annual week long festival.
Thanks largely in part to the special nature of the Gracia neighbourhood and its surroundings, the Festa Major de Gracia has grown to be the most popular and largest neighbourhood festival in Barcelona, only surpassed in size and visitor numbers by the Barcelona Merce festival, which is in September every year.
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