This is the Diada Castellera in Tarragona: dates

I have always been drawn to the Castells, One traditions and popular festivals most important Catalonia, but I had not had the opportunity to attend one of these days.

Now during the trip through Tarragona and its region of Priorat I have been able to see one of the most important Parties of Castells that are celebrated in said city, known as Diada Castellera, which is the prelude to the local festivals of Santa Tecla.

Did you know that these human castles, Castells in Catalan, they are declared Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity by Unesco?

Curiosities about the history of castells in Catalonia

La tradition of the Castells in Catalonia It has its origin in some dances that were already performed in the 15th century in the Valencia area around religious processions, which ended with the construction of a human tower.

In Catalonia this tradition focused on building human castles as high as possible.

It was in 1712 when the first castle built in Catalonia, specifically in the town of Valls from the Tarragona region of Alto Campo.

And during the 19th century this tradition spread throughout Catalonia.

Nowadays in Catalonia there are more than 100 collars, groupings of castellers, although they have also been established collars in places as exotic as China or Peru.

The activity of collars It takes place from March to November, with training during several days of the week and a long castle festival calendar.

Diada Castellera in Tarragona

Our experience in Diada Castellera of Tarragona has begun by visiting the headquarters of the glue Xiquets from Tarragona, one of the four currently existing in the city.

The headquarters of a colla is located in warehouses or in buildings with a central patio, as is the case of the aforementioned Xiquets, since the center of the colla is a space with sufficient height to be able to rehearse the construction of these incredible human castles.

In a glue like that of the Xiquets from Tarragona There is a great atmosphere of family and friends, and it has more than 500 members.

Already in those rehearsals, like the one I was able to attend a while ago glue Vella de Valls, you can see that everyone can participate in this activity, since many hands and the strength of many bodies are needed to build the castle.

It was in the 80s of the last century when women began to participate, who you see now form an important part of any of the castells that are built.

And, of course, the boys and girls who go up to build the last floors of the castle and put the final icing on the cake are very important.

Strength, balance, courage and sanity are the key words that mark the rise of a castle.

At the party of the Diada Castellera de Tarragona, all members of the collars Participants gather around the historic center of the city to go in a parade towards the Town Hall Square.

Before starting said parade, at the headquarters of the glue of the Xiquets there is a last meeting in which the colla cap (head of the glue) gives the last instructions and, above all, transmits the energy to all the members to build the planned castles.

At parade of the collars The children occupy the first rows, and it takes place under the music of the dulzainas and drums of their musical groups.

The members of the four collars Participants are grouped from the façade of the city hall in positions that have been drawn in advance, as well as the order of lifting the Castells.

In this edition of Castells which we have attended, two of the collars currently with the greatest prestige in Catalonia, the aforementioned glue Vella de Valls and Castellers of Vilafranca.

The show was completed with the performance of the two collars most outstanding of the city of Tarragona, the aforementioned Xiquets and Jove Xiquets.

In these meetings of Castells each of the collars You have the opportunity to build several castles, which have more or less difficulty.

If you are not familiar with this tradition, you should know that there are a series of rules that must be followed in the lifts, such as having three attempts to complete them.

You will see the importance of establishing a first floor with the careful placement of the arms and heads of dozens of castellers whose strength and drive will be key to keeping the human castle standing for several minutes.

On the first floors the strength of the castellers It is combined with good balance, and as floors are climbed, the lightness of the people who are climbing as well as their greater dexterity are increasingly important.

To indicate the type of castle intended, a term with two numbers is used; So, for example, an 8/4 describes an eight-story castle with four people per floor.

The more floors and fewer people per floor, the greater the difficulty.

Currently the challenge of collars is being done Castells 10 stories, although I will tell you that a 9-story castle was built at the end of the XNUMXth century.

Starting from one of the first floors, the exercise is accompanied by the music of the dulzainas and drums that, regardless of the glue whatever it is, they always play the same tune.

It is truly impressive to see the skill and speed with which the children climb the human castle, which is not considered to have been lifted until the last child climbs to the top floor and raises his or her hand.

But the exercise is not completed until it produces a clean release of the castle, a key moment that requires even greater resistance and skill since fatigue already makes balance difficult.

In the video that accompanies this report you will see that several of the castles ended up falling in a scene that may cause you some fear.

Although it may seem incredible to you, from what we have seen in the history of Castells There is only a reference to three deaths, although, as a physical exercise and the risk it entails, injuries and, of course, the blows suffered in falls are common.

The day ends with building human towers by a single person, which is enormously difficult.

In short, a tradition that you should try to see during your tourism trip, and to this end, here you can consult the Castells calendar in Catalonia this year.