SAINT GEORGE´S CHURCH - SANT JORDI

PARISH CHURCH OF SAINT GEORGE (SANT JORDI)

Small but strong, not in vain was one of the few that were built thinking about worship and the protection of the population in the past, where Berber incursions were abundant on the island, a dangerous place to frequent looting and kidnapping of people who were sent to other lands as slaves

Small but strong, not in vain was one of the few that were built thinking about worship and the protection of the population in the past, where Berber incursions were abundant on the island and so it was a dangerous place for living due to frequent looting and kidnapping of people who were sent to other lands as slaves.

But along the Christian faith that built this church is the important work of protecting that some churches performed in the past. Here in this church is quite clear, to see the crenellated roof, which made ​​my delight imaginative picturing small battles between good ones(who were inside trying to defend themselves) and bad ones who were trying by all means go inside the small fortress

The roofs of some of its chapels contrasting with the bright white of the walls which in turn are contrasting with the blue sky, all in a very typical architectural vision in old buildings on the island. These chapels are from the eighteenth century when the church was not anymore a fortress and turned exclusively to worship.

Nowadays, as more peaceful time, this building is dedicated solely to the Christian worship. Its simplicity is its greatest feature like most churches on the island. Its three crosses (indispensable in the field churches) are located very close to the front door protected from strong midday sun by a magnificent and large porch that shelters and shade at the entrance of the temple, where voices echo of the assistants to the church service and after they greet and chat themself for a while.

In the western part this building can be seen in a less pleasant side, since instead of the calm white walls from the other side, so here we are aware of the more hard evidence of the previous stone fortress stage.

Below the image of St. George, a saint almost mythological faces a fierce dragon who kills in order to save a beautiful maiden (hence on the island to the inhabitants of Sant Jordi are known by the nickname of "matacucas" kills bugs ) And is venerated especially in former Soviet or Anglo-Saxon countries (eg the flag of England is simply the cross of St. George) that is repeated in countless flags of countries, including Georgia, Sardinia, and the former republic of Genoa among others, and is present in the coats of many places, including London, Milan, Aragon, Catalonia or Barcelona, Freiburg, Batalha in Portugal, Bologna, Montreal ... and even more places. The Moscow coat of arms bears the image of the saint.

CALA SAONA

CALA SAONA - FORMENTERA -

The last paradise in the Mediterranean as it is called to Formentera is now gorgeous in the spring, but from now on the small number of visitors every day grows as season advances toward the middle of the hot summer months. But still they have not arrived yet (although they are about to do so) the masses of Italians who with their "motorinos" will change the face of this island.

The turquoise waters reveal that we are in Formentera, which enjoys a spectacular colors and worthy of the best images of the Caribbean, which together with the blue sky as a set of several shades of blue and turquoise that really impress a lot.

From the beach you can access several trails that lead us down the coast of the island and, close to the coast there are some interesting piers or docks houses made ​​of wood and used to keep small boats from Formentera fishers keep them there while their boats are on standby awaiting the return to the sea.

This beach is the only one in the West side of this island, and there is no one around just rocky coast. Its white sands and calm waters make them highly recommended for families and people who love snorkel. Being situated on a bay waters are usually pretty quiet sea.

TYPICAL COSTUMES DETAILS IN IBIZA

TYPICAL DETAILS

Ibiza was a great unknown place in the world few decades ago, and then was gradually discovering the world and the first tourists enjoyed an island where everything was virtually unchanged for centuries. Among other things the costumes of their inhabitants. The arrival of tourists made things become different for their people, maybe in forty years has been brought forward a few centuries on the island, but thanks to some people efforts in maintaining the traditions nowadays we can still see how our ancestors were dressed and how it was their life style.

Ibiza and Formentera in its folklore and costumes are unique, as the folklore of the rest of the Balearic Islands is totally different, like the architecture of Ibiza which is sober and simple, the folklore of this island remains at the same rate as architecture although perhaps with many colorful touches. For example, in their musical instruments (always played by men) we can see that in their hands they use large castanets made ​​of juniper (some sources say are the biggest in the world) and elaborate for relief and different designs surfaces.

In the women's dresses we see that there are two types. That of "gonella" (a kind of long skirt pleated narrow) and usually wore headdress, or a hat or a long veil on her head with which covered the head to attend religious services. Women even in the twentieth century (at the end of this century began to disappear) always had covered the head with at least one tissue (picture below) and very rarely left her head uncovered. Hats (pictured above) but very sober always wore colorful ribbons as decoration, like those held the jewelry (on holidays) that carried the girls chest and marked their economical "status". The oldest were coral and silver jewelry and the most modern ones (XVIII century) were made by gold.

Usually these gold beads on the chest, they would inherit and enlarging over time from mother to daughter. Usually use at least two or more large beads in rhomboid shapes called "collarets" and then a finer accounts thick gold chains that used to take nine or thirteen strings (moon numbers), although for reasons of superstition they turned in twelve. They carry a large gold cross and sometimes below a jewel of gold with a religious image. Complete the collection of gold jewelry a large number of buttons and rings on every finger 3 (24 total) except on thumbs.

On the other hand, men of Ibiza in the folklore does not leave out the details. Curious the Phrygian cap (also called barretina) with curved top cap (the bottom black was the hallmark of the maritime areas) and has a curious history, as the origin of this piece would be in ancient Phrygia (now Turkey), in Roman times was the hallmark of the freedmen. In the nineteenth century, symbolizes freedom and the republic. In the shield and/or flags of several countries in Latin is present as a symbol of freedom such as Argentina or shield their former flag of 1,840 and shields that are on the flags of Haiti, Paraguay, and El Salvador, and in the shields of Bolivia, Cuba and the seals of the Senate and the U.S. Army among others. As a curious note regarding this cap is that only used in Pitiusas and is totally absent in the rest of the Balearic Islands, although used in several Mediterranean areas (sailors places), and is widely used in rural areas as Sicily, Sardinia, Catalonia, Valencia, Naples and even the Balkans.