St. George's Day

Late Wednesday night I left Italy and got in to Barcelona, one of the coolest cities I have been to. I visited Spain five years ago with my family and absolutely loved it. This time I am here for a shorter period and will be staying within Barcelona, but I am excited to be back. Things are just different in Spain. For instance, I didn't get to my friends apartment until midnight but that didn't mean we weren't going out. In Spain it is unusual to go out partying for the night before 1:00 or 2:00 a.m. I'm a bit of a night hawk and love to stay up until the early hours of the morning so am excited to be here. We left the club at 5:00 a.m. and the party was still bumping when we left. This is a crazy town.
Yesterday was St. George's Day, the Spanish version of Valentines Day. St. George's Day is unlike the commercialized American version of the holiday though, and in my opinion, is way cooler. Instead of lavish gifts and chocolates and cards and such, guys only get the girls a rose or two, and it is only for their true sweetheart. In return, the girls buy their man a book. Maybe I'm just biased because I love books, but this version of the holiday seems much more manageable on the wallet and more personable to a significant other.
As I strolled down the La Rambla, the main vein of the city that runs down to the Mediterranean with vendors and markets of all kinds along the way, there were countless rose vendors, many of which are organizations raising money for a cause, as well as huge temporary outdoor book stands. All books are 10% off as well so everyone in the city had something to be excited about. I was looking for a place with English books but came up short.
The weather is beautiful so I am going to go enjoy the day. Nothing like 80 degree weather.