Stereotypes about Catalonia - “I like Catalan ‘seny’, but where is the ‘rauxa’”?, says Teresa from New York

New York / Barcelona (ACN).- Teresa Parker calls herself a person in love with Catalonia. She is a gastronomic guide and specialises in organising tourist routes where food is the top priority. Her audience is Americans interested in getting to know other cultures in the world through cuisine. For business reasons, she has visited Catalonia many times. Her last Catalan discovery was quince, a jam that she prepared herself for her Catalan language classmates in New York. From her various visits to Catalonia, Teresa Parker stresses the Catalan word ‘seny’ that often goes together with the word ‘rauxa’. ‘Seny’ could be translated as a mix of prudence and common sense, while ‘rauxa’, on the contrary, is a mix of vitality and craziness. These too opposite concepts are said to be melded together in the Catalan mentality. However, Teresa claims to see the ‘seny’, but not so much the ‘rauxa’.

Teresa values the hospitable personality of Catalans, although at the beginning they may be quite cold, she says. “I became friends with Catalans slowly”, she explains. She “feels Catalan” when she thinsk about the constant seek for identity. “Catalonia always calls me back!”.

An Andalucian-born with Catalan roots defends the Catalan “rauxa”

Justo Molinero was born in 1949 in Villanueva de Córdoba, Andalucía. In 1967 he came to live in Barcelona, as many other people from Andalucía were doing in those times. Today he is a successful businessman, media star and founder of a radio and TV station. He is an example of adaptation and integration.

From his TV studios of Tele Taxi, Molinero tells CNA that he is in love with Catalonia and its people. He highly values the fact that Catalans are rooted to their land. He says that “Catalans are a serious people”, that he can trust. He also adds that this does not mean that Catalans “do not like to party or make jokes”.