A year ago, Sant Jordi became the first great collective celebration in times of covid, after having already overcome the hardest months of the pandemic, which prevented its organization, precisely, in 2020. This year, the aim is for April 23 to be as similar as possible to how it was before, without having to pass controls to access different perimeter enclosures spread throughout the city where writers and roses were in 2021. "We hope this will be the first of a new post-pandemic reality," stressed this Monday the Deputy Mayor for Culture, Jordi Martí.
With sufficient anticipation, the Barcelona City Council, the Cambra del Llibre, and the Gremi de Llibreters have presented the main attraction of this Sant Jordi, a literary super-block without cars that will go from Diagonal to Gran Via and will be nestled between Balmes and Pau Claris. A total of 140,000 square meters that will be filled with books and roses next Saturday, April 23, encouraging a leisurely stroll and trying to avoid the crowds that have always characterized this celebration. "We have to make sure everyone comes to stroll," explained the president of the Gremi de Llibreters, Maria Carme Ferrer.
On Paseo de Gràcia, there will be the stalls of bookstores and florists, while on Rambla Catalunya there will be those of associations and entities that could not participate in 2021. This area will be freely accessible, without controls like last year. Author signings, as highlighted by the president of the Cambra del Llibre, Patrici Tixis, will also return to being as before, organized by bookstores, leaving behind the shared spaces that were set up in 2021. All these measures will be adjusted according to the epidemiological situation which, for now, seems like it shouldn't cause any more scares.
The aim is to encourage a leisurely stroll and try to avoid the crowds that have always characterized this celebrationIn this super-block of Sant Jordi, traffic will be cut off throughout the day on both Paseo de Gràcia and Rambla Catalunya, as well as on the horizontal streets that cross them. This way, Barcelona residents will be able to walk peacefully through this car-free zone, where vehicles will only be allowed to circulate on adjacent streets, such as Diagonal, Gran Via, Balmes, and Pau Claris. Their passage through Valencia and Aragón will also be permitted.
This idea was already planned for 2020 and was about to be presented when the lockdown was decreed, Martí recalled. Two years later, it has incorporated new features, such as the inclusion of Paseo de Gràcia, after the prominence it gained last year.
Other areas of the city, such as Paseo Lluís Companys, Plaza de la Vila de Gràcia, Plaza Orfila, Plaza Reial, Plaza Universitat, or Paseo Sant Joan will also have spaces for booksellers and florists next April 23, which will also recover the traditional Sant Jordi breakfast at the Virreina Palace. Also, the day before, Friday, April 22, stalls will be allowed to be set up in front of flower shops and bookstores, hoping to register good sales, especially considering that reading is experiencing with the pandemic one of its best moments in recent years.