There are 14 posts filed in Countdown to Christmas 2016 (this is page 1 of 3).
I hope you’ve all enjoyed following this year’s Countdown to Christmas and today’s big finale features both a Catalan (above) and English (below) video.
I wish you all a very Merry Christmas, Bon Nadal or Feliz Navidad and hope that this very special day brings all the peace and joy you deserve!
The obligatory Santa-related video this year comes from Ray Stevens and is a tame comedic number about the virtues of being good.
It’s also decidedly catchy!
Throughout this Countdown to Christmas, I have tried to entertain and inform, with a variety of videos to suit different tastes and styles.
Today, though, I hope you will permit me a little self-indulgence as I prepare to see my fiancée again for the first time since 18 October.
Regular readers or followers of my Twitter feed will know (or at least got the hint) that the past twelve months have been shit (sorry, but there’s no other way of putting it), and I have spent the grand total of 64 days out the the 370 days since I moved back to the UK (or 17% of that time) with my bride-to-be – many of which were not “full” days due to one or both of us travelling the 870 miles (1,400km) that presently separates us.
So today’s Countdown to Christmas is another Catalan entry but, rather than focusing on Catalan culture, is a more romantic affair. The lyrics roughly translate* as follows:
Now that the night has become longer
Now that the leaves dance in the corner
Now that the streets are partying
Today the cold brings back many memoriesNow that the words abound
Now that the wind blows so strong
Today I do not need to see you, or even speak
For knowing that you are by my sideIt’s Christmas in my heart
When you smile happy to see me
When the night becomes colder
When you embrace my bodyAnd the colourful lights
Light me up night and day
You light them with your smile
When you talk to me from the heartIt’s the void that is left when you get up
It’s the void that is made at home when no one is there
All we are left with are small details
Like leaving a long hair on a jumperYou said that you would never return
The pacient time has gone past
Who could have said that today you’d be waiting
That we would have found ourselves together by your sideIt’s Christmas in your heart
When I smile happy to see you
When the night becomes cleaner
When I embrace your bodyAnd the colourful lights
Light me up night and day
They light up your smile
When I talk to you from the heart
* Roughly translated by me, so apologies for any errors!
We’ve already explored the Caganer and today we’re going to look at another poop-tastic Catalan Christmas tradition: the caga tió.
The QI video clip I posted last week already referenced the the “poop log”, but American comedian and actress Kate McKinnon does a much better job of explaining the caga tió tradition than Stephen did (or I could):
Today’s Countdown to Christmas entry, then, is a celebration of the caga tió by Ambäukatunàbia, an entertainment group formed in April 2008 by a collection of youth workers, and which also takes in some traditional verses used by Catalan children when beating the poop log with their sticks. The lyrics roughly translate* as follows:
You already have me here, like every year just before Christmas,
I keep you company during these very special days.
The wind is frozen on the mountain where I come from,
a barretina [traditional Catalan hat] and a blanket would be great for me.Poop log!
Hazelnuts and nougats!
If you don’t want to poop,
I will beat you with a stick!Poop log!
Hazelnuts and nougats!
If you don’t want to poop,
I will beat you with a stick!During these days in which you welcome me into your home
fill me with fruit, biscuits or a crust of bread.
The day I feel very tired and at bursting point
you take the stick and prepare yourselves to sing!Poop log!
Hazelnuts and nougats!
If you don’t want to poop,
I will beat you with a stick!Poop log!
Hazelnuts and nougats!
If you don’t want to poop,
I will beat you with a stick!I am very tired… uuuuf…
at breaking point.
Pay attention!
What will come out?Poop log, hazelnuts and nougats,
don’t poop herrings which are too salty.
Poop nougats which are better!Poop log, hazelnuts and nougats,
if you don’t want to poop I will beat you with a stick,
If you don’t want to poop I will beat you with a stick.Poop log!
Hazelnuts and nougats!
If you don’t want to poop,
I will beat you with a stick!Poop log!
Hazelnuts and nougats!
If you don’t want to poop,
I will beat you with a stick!
Next year I will be celebrating Christmas with my (by then) Catalan wife, and I am thoroughly enjoying learning not just the Catalan language, but also the history and culture of the region. I hope you’ll enjoy the little nuggets spread through this year’s Countdown to Christmas, too!
* Roughly translated by me, so apologies for any errors!
They call this Christmas where I’m from!
It’s been a while since an Irish video has appeared on the Countdown to Christmas, so it’s about time to feature Dropkick Murphys.
Today’s offering combines a catchy (honest!) song with an equally appealing video – and with four days to go and many people beginning to panic about last-minute shopping, something a little more upbeat is just what the doctor ordered!
