The 'Wirdheim in Vilanova' Event Calendar - May 2009

Up-date: The Champions League final will be showed on big outdoor screens in many places, eg. in Vilanova, Vilafranca and el Vendrell (see May 27 here below).

For those of you who are in Barcelona, I would recommend the giant screen at Maremàgnum. True culés (except for those who are already t in Rome) will watch the game in Barça's Miniestadi, but tickets there have already been sold out.

Information (in Spanish) on where to find big screens in the rest of Catalonia can be found in LaVanguardia.

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During our first years in Catalonia I considered it more or less impossible to find out about when different activities - say a castellers performance – would take place. Although the ajuntaments of most towns have quite good web pages, their activity calendars often leave out events which I would expect to find there and still today does it happen that I learn about interesting things only after they have happened.

To help expats as well as temporary visitors interested in Catalan popular culture, to encourage locals to send me recommendations and, above all, to organise myself, from now on, I will present a monthly entry on events to come. Taking my starting point in Vilanova i la Geltrú, where I live, the intention is to cover also the rest of the Penedès area. I will allow myself to be totally subjective and limit the information to activities where I, at least theoretically, would consider going.

Here is a summary of what I see as important dates, from a cultural point of view, for the month of May 2009:

May 9, Vilanova i la Geltrú (Garraf): A circus performance called El primer año es difícil... los demás, imposibles. Find here more about Penélope and Aquiles and La Vela, respectively.

May 10, El Vendrell (Baix Penedès): Castellers performance by the Nens del Vendrell and the Bordegassos de Vilanova. Plaça Vella at 13.00.

May 10, Barcelona and Madrid: At 19:00 FC Barcelona meets Villarreal at Camp Nou. The three points of a victory can mathematically make them the winners of the Spanish Lliga of 2008-09, in case Real Madrid does not win over Valencia. At 21.00 Espanyol meets Atlético Madrid at the Vicente Calderon stadion. The three points of a victory would secure their position in the premier Lliga for the next season. (Just in case: lliga is Catalan for liga in Spanish)

May 13, Valencia: FC Barcelona and Athletic Club de Bilbao plays the final of the Copa del Rei.

May 15, Calafell (Baix Penedès): Festa de la Cultura Penedès and Reconneixements culturals collita 2009. A celebration of the Penedès culture and those who - according to the Institut d'Estudis Penedesencs - do the most to build and spread it.

May 15-17, Vilafranca (Alt Penedès): Les Fires i Festes de Maig - o dels enamorats – a multisectoral (wine, cava, food, cars and agricultural machinery) May trade fair with a history dating back to the 12th century.

May 16-17: The International Museum Day: A Day of Open Doors at the Victor Balaguer museum of Vilanova (Saturday, Sunday and Monday) and Vinseum in Vilafranca (Saturday and Sunday).

May 16: The Eurovision Song Contest. I have to list this – firstly, because I come from Eurovision crazy Sweden and secondly because it is one of the few annual activities which manages to create pan-European experience, like it or not.

May 17, Vilafranca (Alt Penedès): Colles Castelleres de la Veguria Penedès. A major joint castellers performance where, among others, the Castellers de Vilafranca and the Bordegassos de Vilanova will take part.

May 27, Rome: At 20:45, FC Barcelona meets Manchester United in the Champions' League Final. In Vilanova the game will be shown on big screens in the Plaça de les Casernes (organised by the Bordegassos) and in front of the church in la Geltrú (organised by the neighbours association). In Vilafranca the neighbours association of Sant Julià will show the match in Plaça de la Sardana and in el Vendrell the big screen can be found in Plaça Francesc Macià.

May 29-31, Vilanova i la Geltrú (Garraf): The Trapezi Circus Festival. Find here my blog entry on Trapezi 2008.)

Exhibitions:

Trans-lúcids at La Sala in Vilanova i la Geltrú (Garraf)

Fotomaig, Sitges (Garraf) – Sitges’ annual May photo festival starts at the Espai Cultural Pere Stämpfli.

Castellers:

For castellers (human tower) performances outside the Penedès area, please, refer to the tag Agenda Castellera at the Coordinadora de les Colles Castelleres de Catalunya, or the Calendari at LaMalla.cat/castellers.

General:

Wirdheim in Vilanova will to the greatest extent possible refer to official pages (usually in Catalan) for information on the time and location of all events and can unfortunately not guarantee to present the latest up-dates or changes of program.

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Technorati tags: Castellers, Catalonia, Expat, Festa, Garraf, Penedès, Sitges, Vilanova