Almost every town around here, regardless of size, has an annual summer festival. This usually involves a parade. My favorite part is "Los Gigantes" (or giants). Many villages have gigantes made in traditional costumes and themes. Most villages have just one male and female figure. Kings and queens are the most popular but you can see a wide variety here. The gigantes are carried by teams from each village who take turns dancing the figures down the street. You can tell who's on the team by the cumberbunds they wear and how much they're smoking and sweating. The gigantes are also accompanied by a band playing the traditional song of the village. In recent years, however, other songs have crept in as you will hear in the video. Please go to the Youtube video to get the full effect. If you watch closely, you will see Catalunya in microcosm through faces and activities of the people in the parade. We were impressed by the number of young people and their obvious enthusiasm.