Sant Jordi Festival in Barcelona 2016 - Catalunya's Valentine's Day. The "Rose and Book

Sant Jordi, or Saint George's Day is much more than a simple feast day in Barcelona. It is the Catalan equivalent to Valentine's Day and love is in the air!

Each year, the streets are filled with people strolling around grasping books and roses wrapped in ribbons in the colours of the Catalan flag (The Senyera).

Sant Jordi is not a public holiday; therefore all of the shops and restaurants are open as normal. However, there is no mistaking the feeling that this is fiesta time.

The Background to Sant Jordi

The story of Sant Jordi is the same as the one that is known worldwide. Saint George was a hero - he saved a beautiful Princess who was about to come to a sticky end at the hands of a dragon who had been terrorising a village. There are various versions of the story but these facts always remain the same. Sant Jordi is the Patron Saint of Catalunya and his tale is well-known throughout the city.

What happens on the day?

The basic idea for Sant Jordi is that men give women roses and women give men books. And it can be anybody, not necessarily your partner or somebody who you have taken a liking to. For this feast, boys buy roses for their mums; girls buy books for their friends. Also, in today's forward thinking society the rules are no longer set regarding who gets what. A girl is just as likely to receive a book and vice versa.

The streets and squares of Barcelona are filled with stalls selling books and roses. It is a picturesque sight in the Spring sunshine. Couples walk hand in hand clutching roses. The buses are jam packed with old Catalan people, tipsy from a day of strolling from bookshop to vermouth stop.