TARGET 060816

Barcelona's Festa Mejor Gracia

Children play in colored foam along one of the streets celebrating Festa Mejor Gracia in the Gracia district of Barcelona on August 16th, 2006

Basically, the Gracia Festival is a 24-hour-a-day party that lasts a whole week. Gracia is one of the last traditional barrios of Barcelona. It is a strange mix of old locals, anarchists, young bohemians and odd characters. The Festival has been going on for 100 years or so and revolves around the communities of every street (or most streets) decorating the road in a certain style or theme. There is a prize but it is more or less always won by one street - Carrer Verdi (who take things very seriously) - and everyone gets together to transform the streets into scenes from hell, heaven, blockbuster movies or mythological motifs depending on whim.

All the inhabitants chip in and food is bought and cooked and eaten in all-day parties (every day) that the residents all turn up to. Beer stalls line the streets and about a million and a half people from other barrios or out of town pour into our small patch and go wild for a week. Needless to say, sleep is almost impossible.

For more pictures and information about the Gracia Festival, click here and here

For a resident's personal account, click here