First organised in 2017, the Inicia’t Fair, which is all about boating and the related trades, began with twin aims. The first of these was to encourage young people to value the sea and think of it as a potential career, learning about the range of training on offer. Secondary schools were therefore approached to invite them to enjoy the sea and its wealth of opportunities. The second aspect was as trade fair and, above all, showcase for experiences to show boats for children, sailings schools, boating accessories and an entire and increasingly extensive range of boating artefacts to encourage people to get off their beach towels and actively experience the sea. Unlike many events and trade shows, the idea was to involve ordinary people. Inicia’t was created to fill this gap and as way of bringing people together to discover and consider the sea and boating from different points of view: a first try, a taster session, a first sailing qualification, a first day’s sailing, a first paddle in a kayak, etc. With the COVID-19 health crisis, the mass cancellation of activities affected the holding of the event in 2020 and reduced the 2021 fair to a virtual format. We are currently considering how to hold the 2022 fair, which will be the sixth. The Inicia’t Fair is held in April and May, a period of pre-registration for courses when young people need guidance on choosing their career path. It is also the beginning of the boating season.
EVENTS
BOATING AND
MARITIME TRADES FAIR
THE KETCH AS HOST
Many celebratory and cultural get-togethers are held by organisations involved with traditional sailing boats like the ketch Ciutat Badalona. Badalona Marina held the fifth of its meetings in June 2019, the 90th anniversary of the building of the ketch (1929-2019). Work is now going on together with the Association of Friends of the Ketch Ciutat Badalona to salvage the sixth event, due to be held in June 2022. The Badalona Meeting of Traditional Sailing Vessels is held during the first half of June, in coordination with other events of this type scheduled along the coast. It often serves as a staging post as these boats travel from North to South, following the calendar of events.
MUSIC WITH THE SEA
AS A BACKDROP
2022 will see the tenth summer festival with the sea as a backdrop and the port providing the stage set – an event now well established and greatly anticipated in the city. Always featuring music and dance, it began with the desire to show off different kinds of artistic creativity beside the Mediterranean. The programme includes concerts of havanera songs, traditional dance, international folk music, opera, flamenco and more. Many artists from Badalona and other guests have shared their talent at the three different venues we have used since the first event. Now, the ideal location has been found in Plaça de Capitania. There is one constant feature: during the last weekend we programme dancers trained in the city who are forging their professional careers around the world. This is the Jove Ballet Clàssic & Partners – one of the nights with the greatest audience response because of its originality and quality. The Nights at the Port Summer Festival is scheduled over two or three weekends in July, with galas held on Fridays and Saturdays. In the last couple of years, this rule has been altered to adapt as far as possible to the situation resulting from the pandemic, but the event has continued to be held every year.
MARITIME CULTURE
IN AUTUMN AND WINTER
Since 2016, Marina Badalona and the Escola del Mar have been jointly organising a series of talks under the name “Going to Sea” with the main aim of bringing the scientific community closer to the general public. The idea is to raise awareness of the sea from very different viewpoints with the aim of stimulating knowledge and debate in a city committed to promoting projects to open itself to the sea. It also seeks to bring everyone mentally and physically closer to the sea in autumn and winter to overcome the seasonal tendency for the use of the coast to be concentrated in the summer. So, people are encouraged to think about the sea at a time of year when it seems to disappear from our landscape and our lives. Traditionally, each year’s cycle consists of six talks on different subjects, always linked together by the sea, scheduled on Thursdays from October to April and held at the Escola del Mar and the Port Activity Centre. Preparations had been made for the sixth cycle in 2020 but the limitations due to the pandemic prevented it happening. The organisers are now considering how to take up the initiative again, possibly in a hybrid format now the possibilities of using digital resources have been discovered. The next cycle should begin in October 2022.
DONA I MAR
The 1st Woman and Sea meeting was born to bring all women closer to the sea, to environmental and emotional awareness through different sports activities, talks and debates that generate concerns, always with the sea and its values as references. We talk about health issues,the first laughs with the group after complex moments.
You can not miss it. of entrepreneurship, of sustainability and work, of well-being. We experience the first sunrise in paddle surfing.The first rowing. The first sailing baptism. The first dip in neoprene. The first SUP- yoga with the sea in the background.
The first time I heard about the Dragon Boat and breast cancer survivors.