A free Sagrada Familia visit

Residents will now have a chance for a free Sagrada Familia visit. On the occasion of the Santa Eulalia festivities, the Sagrada Familia will hold two Open Doors days this February.

This is the second time that the Basilica gives out free tickets to celebrate Santa Eulalia. In 2022, they gave out 6,000 of them. This year, 9,000 tickets will be distributed after a draw on the 6th.

Residents can visit the Basilica for free on February 11th and 12th from 3 pm to 6 pm.

Participation is possible until 10 am on February 6th. You can register here. The Foundation will notify the winners of the draft directly. They will each get four tickets.

I applied, did you? If you did, good luck!

On the Santa Eulalia festivities

The Santa Eulalia party is Barcelona’s winter festival and is held annually around February 12th in squares and streets across the city.

It is a small street party full of popular culture activities, including the procession of Laies (a Laia is a shortened version of the Catalan name Eulalia), Santa Eulalia’s parade, human towers, sardana dancing, and a fire run with beasts and devils.

I dug into Santa Eulalia. To my surprise, she is considered the patron Saint of the city.

I thought the Virgin of La Merce, usually celebrated in September each year, was the city’s patroness. And by the way, on the occasion of La Merce, the Basilica will also have its traditional open door days.

So who is Santa Eulalia?

During the Roman Empire era, in the fourth century, Christians were persecuted under Emperor Diocletian.

A 13-year-old girl who lived in Barcelona, in Sarria, named Eulalia, protested against the repression, was gruesomely tortured, and died a martyr for her ideals.

From then on, Barcelonians started to venerate her. She became a symbol of solidarity and defence of justice for the local folks.

And La Merce?

La Merce became a Patron Saint of Barcelona during the 17th century after a locust plague that devastated the city.

To end it, the people of Barcelona prayed to the Virgin of La Merce. From that moment on, La Merce became the patroness of the city.

It turns out that both Saints cohabit and are Patronesses of the city. Aaaah! Although the Merce celebrations are much bigger and much more popular.

Other information

Here is the program (in Spanish): program.

Do not miss the big sardana dance that will be held in Placa Sant Jaume on the 12th.

I have recently updated my post about the Sagrada Familia. Check it out to find out more about this fascinating and spectacular building.

Post edit 2023: List of winners

I did not win. Next time! You can find the list of winners here.