'Socially-distanced Saint George's Day': Book and flower fairs to go ahead in Catalunya

IN EXACTLY one week's time, Saint George's Day will be celebrated – in Catalunya, where the tradition is very different but the patron in question is the same as the one honoured in England.

Known in Spain's north-eastern region as Sant Jordi, the saint is not so much associated with dragons or Master Carvers dishing up a roast dinner; here, the custom is, historically, for people to give their loved ones a flower, a book, or both on April 23.

Nowadays, Sant Jordi's Day means a gigantic retail fair in nearly every town in Catalunya – the biggest, of course, being in Barcelona – with stalls selling flowers, usually roses, and books, and famous authors from around the world signing their works for the public.

The literary side of it comes from what is now known as International Book Day – the date when two of Europe's most famous authors, William Shakespeare and Miguel de Cervantes, passed away in the year 1616, aged 52 and 69 respectively.

In reality, Miguel de Cervantes – whose epic Don Quijote de la Mancha remains the best-selling novel in Spain's entire history – left this earth 10 days before the British poet and playwright, but the date of April 23, 1616 is the same, because England was still using the Julian calendar at the time and Spain had already transitioned to the Gregorian calendar, which is the one in current use in most of the world today. 

Authors who have signed copies of their works in several languages on El Dia de Sant Jordi in Barcelona include prolific thought-provoking chick-lit writer Marian Keyes, Minnesota-born Norwegian Siri Hustvedt, and British historian Mary Beard.

Last year's Sant Jordi fair did, in fact, go ahead, and was one of the few key dates on Spain's calendar that was not sacrificed to the pandemic – although it did not take place on the actual date, when the country was in the middle of what was probably the strictest lockdown in Europe; instead, Catalunya opted to stage a 'quarter-year' version on July 23.

This year, it will continue, but on the right date.

Social distancing requirements mean, however, that the Sant Jordi street fair will not be limited to one day; numbers will be reduced in the market areas, so the stalls will be out for several days, before and after April 23, to give everyone a chance to visit them.

In towns, villages and cities with more than 5,000 inhabitants, the regional government of Catalunya says stalls should be set up directly outside florists' and book shops, but at a safe distance, and activity should take place as much as possible in the open air.

Stands must be disinfected regularly, and hand-sanitiser must be available for all members of the public who enter.

A maximum of 1,000 people will be allowed into outside areas of the fair, and 500 in indoor parts.

Full details will be released on Monday, but it is expected that book-signings will not involve readers coming face to face with their literary heroes and heroines; they will, most likely, order a book from the shop and request a dedication inside it, then pick it up within the next few days.

Measures in place for the book and flower fair in villages with fewer than 5,000 residents will be decided upon by their local councils, the regional government says.

A street plan was drawn up for the Sant Jordi fair in Barcelona towards the end of March, during which it was calculated that there would be space for around 275 book and flower stalls, with about 30 of these set aside for book-signings, and another 10 or so much larger, ring-fenced areas in the outer parts of the city.

Special dispensation for the saint's day celebrations has been given on stall opening times, meaning they will be permitted to operate until the later hour of 21.00.

Separate entrance and exit routes will be set up to prevent crowds colliding as everyone tries to head in different directions.

For Barcelona city, the main fair zones will be on the Passeig de Gràcia, the metropolitan area's main and most up-market shopping district; the section between the C/ Aragó and the Sant Pere ringroad; the Jardinets de Gràcia gardens; the Plaza Reial; the Passeig Lluís Companys, and the Diagonal between the Illa Diagonal and the Corte Inglés department store.

As for book-signings in person, a maximum of two authors per hour will be on stalls and in shops; booking a slot for an autographed edition is not compulsory where this takes place in the open air, but recommended; members of the public permitted inside book shops for signings will be limited to between 30% and 50%; readers cannot pose for selfies with authors, nor can there be any physical contact between them.

Anyone buying from a book shop in Catalunya on Sant Jordi's Day itself will automatically get 10% off the purchase price.

Book and flower fair zones in Catalunya's other three provincial capital cities will be on the Passeig de la Copa de la Devesa, in Girona; the Carrer Major (C/ Mayor) in Lleida, and the Rambla Nova in Tarragona.