Drink Drank Drunk – Party season in Catalonia

As we have just finished the start of the party season, the official mark that summer has started, and that we are all back in quarantine…let’s see how to explain how your Sant Juan and Fiesta Mayor weekends went – Sober?

I doubt that, perhaps it was more of a ‘merry’ occasion. Were your cheeks flushing with colour (1) from the warmth of the alcohol on these brisk June nights to warm your soul? Did you become cheerful and chatty? Well, then you were definitely ‘merry’ just as one is on Christmas Eve after a few mugs of mulled wine (2). 

 Ahhh, what lovely Catalan traditions to see so many people with their families tipsily walking about the high streets (3) watching the town concerts and children throwing bangers (4) in the streets.

After all the youths have beared through the family (5) part of the evening, all the demons come out to play, ‘sauced’ on strongly mixed drinks (6) and armed with explosives – yes, you read correctly, EXPLOSIVES! Apparently it is the norm for parents to buy their reckless (7) offspring bangers and firecrackers to be launched in the park (and to bring ablaze the onlooking trees).

Nonetheless, all the ‘sauced’ twentysomethings (8) start blasting their speakers – as if they were back in the 80’s – to the top of the charts (9) while cruising around town (10) on their way to meet their mates to get ‘waved’ meanwhile catching up on the latest tea (11). 

Out of nowhere the vibe (12) suddenly changes to hype mode and everybody is downing their drinks (13) to become ‘trollied’…perhaps needing a bit of support from the one responsible friend of the group, who of course suggests switching to water for a bit. Then comes along that song you feel like singing. What a tune! (14).  This is when you notice how ‘bevved’ everyone is, dancing along to the beat with cup in hand. 

A key difference is when Brits start getting ‘pished’ the clubs start to draw down (15)  in the UK but in this wonderful land of split shifts (16) with siestas the clubs have only started to fill up. So you just have to follow your gut (17) into the chaos of the night and simply keep on having ‘one too many’ so that you don’t regret your life decisions and perhaps get with someone (18) to distract yourself. 

Just your luck, then along comes the hypeman (19) (or woman [we are feminists you know]) to keep pushing you on by exclaiming “go hard or go home!” So obviously you order a round of shots for you and your mates to get completely ‘battered’ to finish off the night on a high note (20), with absolutely zero regrets of the hangover (21) that is awaiting you in the morning.