Andalusia Day

February 28: Andalusia Day

            Andalusia Day is celebrated every February 28. It was this day in 1980 when the area of Southern Spain called Andalusia became an autonomous community of Spain. Schools and  businesses are usually closed, and school children will do some cultural activities or events to prepare for the day. The Andalusian flag is two green stripes and one white horizontal stripe, so you will see this everywhere. Some local towns have parades or cultural events to mark the day.

This is an excerpt from my book "Welcome to Rota," in the section that discusses Spanish culture and holidays.

Carnaval

The 'Welcome to Rota' book has a section explaining all the local holidays and fiestas. The text here is an excerpt from my book. The photos are not mine.

Carnaval

            The date for this celebration changes each year, because it is the week (or weeks) leading up to Ash Wednesday. Usually it is in late February or early March. In the United States, New Orleans is known for their Mardi Gras celebration. In Spain, Cádiz is the center of Carnaval activities. Carnaval is a riotous celebration of music, costumes, and of course food and drink. For a week or more, there are public and private celebrations in every town. Everyone dresses up in crazy costumes, similar to an adult Halloween party. There are parades, comedic musical performances, food tastings, and costume competitions. Transportation like busses and ferries run all night long to transport drunken revelers to and from the events. It is not a particularly child-friendly event, and in Cádiz especially there are huge pressing crowds. But there are smaller parades and celebrations in all the local towns, so you don’t have to go to Cádiz to join in some great fun. Rota and Puerto both have small celebrations, and Chipiona’s is particularly well-known and family-friendly.

 

In Cadiz, huge colorful floats covered with singers and performers process through crowded streets in the Grand Parade.

Food is an important part of Carnaval, and each city has different tasting opportunities.

Small performing groups are everywhere. They always dress in a similar theme, sometimes medieval, sometimes something like scary Halloween costumes, and other times just crazy colors. Also, men love to dress up as women at Carnaval.

Cities usually have at least one child-friendly event, like a children's parade.

Every city has a Carnaval Grand Master, a Queen, and her court of princesses. In Rota, the little girls are called ninfas.

Presenting the Book at the Castle

The Welcome to Rota book is gaining local recognition and attention! During the editing process, I received assistance from Marijo Resinas Verano from the Welcome to Rota Office (pictured on the right). She helped me edit the Spanish culture and food sections of the book, and provided tons of insight into local recipes, store locations, and Spanish laws.
I had always planned to call my book "Welcome to Rota," but while I was writing my draft, a tourism office opened outside the base gate with that same name. Before publishing, I contacted them to make sure there was no copyright infringement if I used that title. Approval went all the way up to the office of the Mayor. Not only did she approve the title, but she invited me to come to the Castle (Rota's Town Hall is a 15th Century castle) and present the book to her staff.

A few weeks ago, I had a private meeting with several of the Mayor's Delegates:
Senora Auxiliadora Izquierdo, delegate to Office of Education and Institutional Relations,
Senora Marijo Resinas Verano from the Welcome to Rota Office, and
Senor Jose Luis Luna, official delegate to the Office of Tourism. They met to ask me about the book and determine my purpose for writing and publishing. Once they realized the book helps Americans get involved in local activities by explaining the culture, naming stores and restaurants, and providing travel info, they were excited for me to share it with as many people as possible.


So today, February 10, I was invited back to the Castle for a public presentation of the book. This was open to the public, so both Americans and Spanish attended the event. I did a brief introduction in Spanish (not perfect, but they literally applauded my efforts!) and then read some selections from the book. Marijo (her real name is Marie José) sat next to me and translated.






From the cultural section, I read a description of Carnaval, which is the week-long celebration equivalent to Mardi Gras. It begins this weekend, so I thought it was fitting. From the food section, I read a description of local fish-- how to buy them, cook them, and serve them. And from the travel section, I read my description of a walking tour of Rota, recommended to every newcomer. As you can see, it was a very animated and fun reading!


 


The Town Hall Staff was so excited that an American undertook the project of sharing the Spanish culture and local knowledge with other Americans. The purpose of the book is to help Americans make the most of their time here, and to smooth the way for local interactions, so that moving and getting settled will be a lot easier. The Tourism Office wants as many people as possible to get a copy of the book, so the book will now be sold at the Tourism Office in the Castle, and at the Welcome to Rota Center just outside the gate! I provided them with copies to sell, and was also able to sign and sell a few books after the presentation. So I guess this was my first book-signing event!

I received these gifts from the Welcome to Rota office!

I was very grateful to have my family's support and presence. We took the kids out of school so they could be involved in this awesome cultural opportunity. They were a little nervous and not sure what to think, but I was happy they could be involved. They are really very proud of me, and will bring me into their classes next week so we can show-and-tell about the process of writing and publishing a book to the class. A special thanks to my husband for wrangling the kids during a formal public event!