A Catalan Log That Poops Nougats At Christmas
Catalan holiday tradition involves a log that's fed scraps of food for several weeks leading up to Christmas. Then, it's beaten with a stick and implored to poop out a Spanish nougat called turrón.
The first time I heard about Caga Tió, or Tió de Nadal, my family was getting settled into our life abroad in Barcelona this fall. A new friend's teenage daughter was telling us about the Catalan traditions she celebrates in school.
"During Christmas, there's a log that you feed scraps of food, and then he poops presents when you hit him with a stick and sing a song!"
Then she sang:
Caga tió, (Poop log) tió de Nadal, (Log of Christmas)no caguis arengades (Don't poop salted herring)que són massa salads (They are too salty) caga torrons (Poopque són més bons! (They are much better!)
