Els Tres Tombs - Saint Anthony and the feast of the animals
Durada: 24 min
18/01/2025
Saint Anthony, Catalonia's protector of animals, is honored with a feast day on January 17. The festival is known as Els Tres Tombs, or 'the three laps' in English, and is celebrated in honor of both animals and the saint. This year marks the bicentenary of the Tres Tombs festival in Barcelona. Andreu Bernadàs, president of the Catalan Tres Tombs federation, explains how the organization aims to keep knowledge of a past world alive. We also learn about the ruc català, Catalonia's unique breed of donkey, talking to members of the Adopt a Donkey movement and visiting a sanctuary run by Gratitud Pallars to find out how the efforts of local people could save this rare animal from extinction. This week's Catalan phrase is "Venir a tomb", meaning that something is appropriate or right in a given situation. The word "tomb" means twist or turn, and can also be used to describe a short walk, such as the three laps of the village typical of the Tres Tombs parades.