Habaneras are the typical sailor songs that Catalan émigrés brought back from the Caribbean colonies. Named after the Cuban capital, these lovely sea shanties are sung in 4 or 5 part harmony, accompanied by guitar, accordion, and bass. Somewhat reminiscent of "napolitanas," habanearas are usually listened to while sipping piping-hot ron cremat.The concoction contains rum, sugar, lemon peel, coffee beans, and sometimes a cinnamon stick. It will be brought out in an earthenware bowl and you have to set it alight, stirring occasionally (with care not to spill and get burned) until it is ready to drink. The most famous festival of habaneras is held on the beach of Calella each July.

The cobla is the band which provides the highly unusual music for the dancing of Sardanas and the building of Castells. It consists of eleven players, and is made up of woodwind and brass, together with double bass.

The shrill oboe-like tenora long ago replaced the bagpipe as the leading instrument. The music is lyrical, somewhat repetitive, and fun; sounding like an odd mix of Bavarian Um-pah-pah and Middle Eastern music. The most celebrated cobla band, and the official band of the Generalitat, is La Principal from la Bisbal.

At many festivals, you are likely to see circles of people dancing the sardana, Catalunya´s national dance, and one which resembles no other Spanish dance. Its origins are thought to lie in the graceful dances of ancient Greece (which you can still see depicted on antique pottery in museums throughout the Mediterranean). One theory is that the Greeks introduced the dance during the period in which they maintained trading posts on Catalunya´s northern shores thousands of years ago. Others insist that the sardana was not practiced here until the fifteenth-century Catalan occupation of Sardinia, hence the name. In any case, the sardana in its present form emerged during the Renaixença (the 19C. Catalan renaissance) and had become so much a symbol of national identity that it was banned during the Franco period.

Sardana dancers link hands with raised arms, forming circles which grow bigger and bigger as more people join in. Traditionally, couples can join in at any point, but cannot cut in between a man and his partner on the right. When the circle gets too big, the dancers form more circles. One of the main features of the dance is its spontaneity - for instance, except on special occasions, dancers wear everyday clothes, (although the lace-up espadrille shoe is a perennial favorite for its pliability and comfort). People of all ages and ranks in life join hands and dance as if to emphasize that whatever their differences, they are first and foremost Catalans. The spirit of unity generated by the sardana is truly impressive. An extremely disciplined dance, the sardana calls for exact movements and expert timing, provided by a leader in each circle. For this reason, unless you think you´ve really got the knack, it's generally inadvisable for visitors to join in - one wrong move can put the entire circle out of step.

Along with the sardana, there are numerous other traditional dances specific to different towns or regions, often performed in local costume and evoking formative episodes of the area´s mythologies.

The following text is meant to give the traveller a preview of some of the Costa Brava's main points of interest. For a more in-depth guidebook intended to accompany the visitor step by step, the author of this text has written the most substantial of existing guidebooks to the Province of Girona. This 85-page Insider's Guide, with practical and detailed information on sights as well as listings for restaurants, markets, festivals, etc., is yet to be published, but loan copies are available at all of the rental properties we handle.

Catalonia's main attraction has been and perhaps always will be its combination of beautiful beaches and mild climate. But while sun-seekers flock to the sea-side resorts, that which is most unique and interesting about this land lies inland and practically tourist-free. With Catalonia's excellent road network, it is no hardship taking in some of the inland "cultural routes" while also working on your tan. To give you a idea of what is on offer, Catalonia has over 1,800 catalogued Romanesque churches, 200 castles of every epoch, and over 300 museums.

As early as the sixth century BC, Greek merchants established trading posts along the Catalan coast, then inhabited by proto-Iberian tribes. By the third century BC, the Phoenicians and Carthaginians had settled in (Barcelona is said to derive its name from the Carthaginian rulers Hamilcar and Hannibal Barca). They in turn were replaced after the Punic wars by the Romans, who established Tarraco, now Tarragona, at their capital for northeastern Iberia. With the fall of the Roman Empire, the Visigoths swept down from the north and took over as of the early fifth century AD.

An introduction to Catalan cuisine

Surely the most striking characteristic of Catalan cuisine is its bold mixing of apparently disparate ingredients. Some have explained the genesis of this culinary ingenuity as harking back to Medieval times Read more

• Catalan eating habits
• Bread amb tomaquet
• Tapas in Catalonia
• Wines and cavas
• Out for a drink

• First courses
• Entrées
• Desserts
• Sauces
• Sandwiches and snack food

Catalonia's unique cultural identity is manifested in a variety of festive activities that are particular to this autonomous region. Some occasions, such as Easter, Saint George's Day, and the night of Sant John on the summer solstice, take place all over Catalonia. Many other festivals are local. Each neighborhood, town, or village has its patron saint and sets aside a day to honor him in a festa major. These festivals often feature some of the activities described in the following links:

• Castellers
• Sardana
• Cobla
• Habaneras
• Gegants
• Correfoc

• Dates of some important festivals

A brief history of Catalonia

As early as the sixth century BC, Greek merchants established trading posts along the Catalan coast, then inhabited by proto-Iberian tribes. By the third century BC, the Phoenicians and Carthaginians had settled in (Barcelona is said to derive its name from the Carthaginian rulers Hamilcar and Hannibal Barca). They in turn were replaced after the Punic wars by the Romans, who established Tarraco, now Tarragona, at their capital for northeastern Iberia. With the fall of the Roman Empire, the Visigoths swept down from the north and took over as of the early fifth century AD. Read more

Introduction to touring Catalonia

• Girona: the Costa Brava and the low Pyrenees
• Lleida: the interior and the high Pyrenees.
• Tarragona: Costa Dorada, Ebro Delta, & Cistercian monasteries
• Barcelona: metropolis, Montserrat, and much more

A sample of our Insider's Guide
to the Provence of Girona

In addition to information which helps you to get orientated wherever you may be staying, our 70-page guidebook covers ten detailed itineraries which you can follow at your own pace, with plenty of optional detours of interest. Along with attention to the area´s principal sights, particular emphasis is placed on local gastronomy - Catalan cuisine being one of Europe's best kept secrets - with descriptions of local dishes, and listings (according to category and price range) of any given area's best restaurants. We´ll let you know where to find the best food shops, which local vineyards can be visited, and when villages celebrate market-day. Read more

An opinion piece

A critical look at tourism in the Province of Girona. Includes: the growth of mass-tourism on the coast, recent initiatives to redirect the orientation of tourism towards a more sustainable model based on rural tourism, and prospects for the future. Read more

Catalonia is a small country measuring nearly 32,000 square kilometers (12,000 sq. miles.) in the Northeast corner of Spain. With over 500 kilometers of Mediterranean coastline, stretching from the French border to the Ebro River Delta, Catalonia boasts an extraordinary variety of landscapes packed into a relatively small area (three quarters the size of Switzerland).