Com cada any comença en aquestes dates la fira de santa Llúcia al costat de la Catedral, però en aquest any s’han modernitzat i, a més de reorganitzar la fira de diferent manera, han iniciat una web.

http://www.firadesantallucia.cat/

¡¡¡Fira de Santa Llúcia des de avui 28 de Novembre fins al 23 de Desembre!!!

A més de poder comprar un arbre de Nadal o figuretes nadalenques vàries, hi ha molt més… parades de tot tipus de coses que a vegades son difícils de trobar en les típiques tendes comercials. I si no vols comprar (cosa que és millor pels temps que corren…) doncs passejar per l’ambient de la fira és molt agradable i et recorda que anem cap a les festes de Nadal (cosa que no sembla perquè no fa encara molt fred).

Koki.

Surprise au Masters de Londres, les 2^ème, 3^ème, et 4^ème joueurs mondiaux n’ont pas résisté à la phase de poule. Alors qu’on attendait Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal et Andy Murray en demi-finale, c’est Nicolay Davydenko et Robin Söderling qui ont joué les outsiders avec brio.

La deuxième partie de la saison 2009 sera à oublier pour Rafael Nadal. Très décevant depuis sa blessure après son élimination de Rollang Garros, le Mallorquain a enchaîné les mauvaises performances. Au Masters, l’Espagnole pensait pouvoir rivaliser avec les grands mais c’était sans compter sur Robin Söderling qui récidivait son exploit réalisé aux Internationaux de Paris il y a quelques mois, puis Nikolay Davydenko qui éteignait les derniers espoirs de qualification.

Novak Djokovic était, sans aucun doute, le favori de ce Masters de Londres. Après un démarrage poussif face au Russe, Davydenko, le Serbe avait chuté face à Söderling avant d’aller chercher une deuxième victoire face à Rafael Nadal. Malheureusement, le set perdu face à Nikolay Davydenko lui coutait une élimination surprenante.

Eliminé par Davydenko à Bercy, Andy Murray se satisfaisait de ne pas retrouver le Russe dans son groupe. A la place, le premier mondial, Roger Federer, et l’Argentin, Juan-Martin Del Potro. Après un premier match réussi face à Del Potro, l’enfant du pays chutait contre Federer avant de remporter la partie devant Verdasco. Mais en encaissant au moins un set dans chaque rencontre, le Britannique voyait la qualification lui échappé.

Les deux surprises des demi-finales du Masters font encore figurent d’outsider. Cependant, Roger Federer devra de son côté être vigilent face à Nikolay Davydenko alors que Del Potro devra défier Robin Söderling. Cela nous promet de belles rencontres.

Baptiste Morin

SÁBADO 28 de NOVIEMBRE

ESPN SEMIFINAL 1 08:00 hrs

ESPN SEMIFINAL 2 14:30 hrs

SKY 518 / CABLEVISIÓN 508

La temporada de tenis llega a su fin con este torneo en el cual se juntan los mejores 8 jugadores del año, los cuales se dividen en 2 grupos de 4 y entre estos salen los mejores 2 de cada grupo para jugar las semifinales.

Este año después de una clasificación complicada llegan a las semifinales Roger Federer quien jugará contra Nikolay Davydenko en la primera semifinal, mientras que en la 2a Juan Martín del Potro lo hará contra Robin Soderling.

Por la manera en que se clasificaron será hacer una difícil hacer una buena predicción.

ROGER FEDERER vs NIKOLAY DAVYDENKO

Federer tiene una ventaja de 12 partidos ganados contra 0, pero Davydenko dió la sorpresa ganándole a Novak Djokovic, quien había tenido la mejor temporada en canchas techadas, dependerá de la manera en que Federer entre a la cancha y mantenga la consistencia en sus primeros servicios.

ROBIN SODERLING vs JUAN MARTÍN DEL POTRO

Esta semifinal en cuanto a números se ve mucho mas nivelada, ya que cada uno ha ganado un partido cuando se enfrentaron. Soderling llega con mucha confianza habiéndole  ganado a Nadal y Djokovic. Mientras que Del Potro le ganó a Federer pero fue muy inconsistente en sus demás encuentros.

Treure's cervell abans anar de compres

Eixelebrat prové del llatí excerebratus -sense cervell-. Comprar eixelebradament succeeix massa sovint a aquest moment de l’any. Tens cervell? Resisteix-t’hi. Perquè, malgrat no haver res dolent en comprar, és bo saber transcendir-hi. Anar-hi més enllà. Reduir aquest moment de l’any a comprar i consumir compulsivament, eixelebradament, és un símptoma de trista buidor. No cal resignar-s’hi. Pensa-hi.

Resisteix el consumisme

Adreçat als neòfits a la poesia, bon regal per aquest Nadal a qui no es resigni a consumir eixelebradament, és aquest recull de mil anys de poesia europea. Adient per celebrar la nostra festa del Solstici d’Hivern, del triomf de la llum i renaixement de la vida, celebrant mil anys de sensibilitat i creativitat i identitat europea. Celebrant-ne el passat, present i, malgrat tot, futur.

Mil anys de poesia europea.

Malauradament no s’hi esmenta prou, com caldria, la poesia catalana, polonesa o portuguesa. En haver estat escrit aquest llibre per un erudit en poesia però, tanmateix, espanyol. Això n’esbiaixa potser l’antologia. Encara que, tanmateix, segueix sent un bon llibre. Molt adient enguany que alguns malden en reduir a la nul·litat, de fet a la seva personal nul·litat, la identitat i sensibilitat i creativitat europea. De qui la poesia, al decurs d’aquests darrers mil anys i esperem que també del proper mil·leni, n’és i en serà una bona expressió.

Nell’ ultimo match giocato contro Novak Djokovic al master finale di Londra,nuova sconfitta di Rafael Nadal che cede ancora in due set e questo  non ha contribuito a risollevarne il morale. 7-6, 6-3, infatti, è il risultato dei parziali a favore del serbo al termine di un match che, dal punto di visto del gioco, non ha certo regalato emozioni. Con un Nadal fuori forma così e un Djokovic stanco ,il mach sicuramente non è stato indimenticabile con ritmi lenti ed  errori frequenti.In attesa dell’ultimo mach, Djokovic spera ancora nel passaggio del turno quindi.

Nova recuperació d’un article del meu antic i estimat space. En aquest cas, es tracta simplement del resultat d’una juguesca, que implicava tornar a escriure una carta als Reis Mags tants anys després. Així doncs, i com no podia ser d’una altra manera, en comptes de fer sortir el nen que (suposo) habita a dins meu, vaig decidir enfocar-ho d’una forma diferent:

Queridos Reyes Magos de Oriente:

Sé que ya llevo varios años sin escribir, y que eso me va a quitar puntos en mi carnet de niño bueno, pero antes que nada quiero justificar el porqué de mi largo silencio. Y es que a eso de los diez años, mis padres me quisieron hacer dudar de vuestra existencia, y yo, que pobre de mi era demasiado crédulo, les creí. Así que decidí que no valia la pena enviar cartas a alguien que ni siquiera existe (aparentemente, claro, pues he vuelto a abrir los ojos). Pero hace poco vi la luz.

El ratoncito Pérez, un buen amigo mio (mis padres no saben de esta amistad), vino a pasar la tarde conmigo y me explicó toda la verdad. Se trata ni más ni menos que de un complot republicano a gran escala para destronaros e instalar la figura de los tres presis magos (“Montilla, ZP i Maragal”), impulsada por Cárod Rovira y sus secuaces, así como por ETA y demás independentistas vascuences (sospecho que judios y masones también estan implicados, Pedro J. y Federico me lo confirmaran en breve) . Quien me había de decir que los intentos, denunciados por la COPE (cadena de rádio de enorme calidad), de imponernos a toda costa una 3ª República también os acabarían salpicando…

Así pues, completamente arrepentido de mi inconsciente escarceo con tamaño complot, y demandando una vez más clemencia, procedo a hacer mis peticiones para este año. En primer lugar, me gustarian dos videojuegos para PS2 (Kingdom Hearts 2 y Naruto Ultimate Ninja). También me gustaría tener unas zapatillas del estilo de las Converse All Star y un juego de tres katanas (para protegerme como Dios manda de los nacionalistas que bien seguro intentaran imponerme su yugo). También el Metroid Prime Hunters y los cómics de Watchmen, una bufanda del Nástic (que aunque vistan de rojo no teneis nada que temer pues no tienen relación alguna con el comunismo), libros y por último, maquetas.

Ya sólo me queda rogaros una vez más clemencia y comprensión por mi situación y un buen viaje desde donde quiera que estéis (espero que a salvo de los antisistema y demás chusma republicana). Además, espero que sepais “recompensar” como dios manda a toda la gente que intenta usurparos el trono y tambien gratificar a Albert Rivera por el grandísimo trabajo en pos de la libertad que está haciendo en el Parlamento de Cataluña (espero que algún dia consigan llegar a la Generalidad).

Con cariño,

Caleglin – Ciutadà de bé

Not a happy day for Brits as their favorite player was not able to make the ATP final 4 at the O2 Arena in London when Juan Martin del Potro of Argentina beating Roger Federer 6-2, 6-7, 6-3. Del Potro moves onto the semi finals along with Federer and Soderling. If Del Potro had lost one more game against Federer, Murray and Federer would have advanced. Murray beat Fernando Verdasco 6-4, 6-7 , 7-6 but all for nought as he is out of the tournament which is based on a complicated ranking system. Rafael Nadal of Spain was eliminated after two consecutive losses. Davydenko and Soderling square off today’s matches along with Nadal vs Djokovic. Davydenko could make it with a big win today. Djokovic still has a chance to make it to the final. Djokovic has been playing much better of late with his new racket.

Poor old Rafa doesn’t seem to be on form at the end of 2009 like he was at the beginning.  I know the feeling, it has been a bit of a s*** year for me too.  Yesterday he lost in straight sets to Nicolai Davydenko, who I’m afraid I do not find nearly so nice to watch as Nadal.  However, here are a couple of pictures to make anyone who happens to like Rafa and who is reading this blog feel better.

El Nadal: guia de lectura

Recull de documents relacionats amb el Nadal, que podeu trobar a la Biblioteca Pública de Salt.

<< accès al document >>

Els documents estan agrupats en aquests apartats:

• Què celebrem per Nadal?
  • El Nadal al món
• Les nadales, les poesies i … els pastorets!
• Contes
  • El nostre Nadal
  • Els Reis
  • El tió
  • L’arbre de Nadal
  • El Pare Noel
  • Altres contes de Nadal
• Manualitats de Nadal
• Películ·les
• El Nadal a la xarxa: selecció de webs

Habrá cuarta temporada de Sin Tetas no hay paraíso

Detenido por marihuana

Unión de la prensa catalana en defensa del Estatut

Nadal se despide de la Copa de Maestros

Vuelve Farmacia de Guardia

De La Peña podría retirarse

Ça devait arriver. L’ami Rafa est arrivé au point de rupture. Depuis sa blessure aux genoux et son arrêt forcé de plusieurs mois cette année, Rafael Nadal n’apparaît plus comme un surhomme des courts.

Au Masters, il vient de se faire écrabouiller deux fois en deux jours. Sans la condition physique (il a maigri pour alléger ses rotules) qui faisait de lui un superman, il redevient un simple mortel, incapable même de mettre à mal un Davydenko qui jouait, hier, sur une jambe.

Je n’ai rien contre Nadal. Mais quelle contraste entre lui et Roger Federer. Le Suisse, relâché dans tous ses coups, allonge bien sûr sa durée de vie sur les courts pendant que l’Espagnol sollicite à cent pour cent tous les muscles de son corps depuis des années. Observez n’importe quelle photo de Nadal en action, c’est à chaque fois un homme torturé par l’effort et qui semble crier grâce. Roger semble quant à lui, sur chaque cliché, évoluer en toute décontraction, sans la moindre marque de tension corporelle.

J’ai la désagréable ‘impression que le Majorquin, à seulement 23 ans, a déjà grillé une grosse partie de son capital physique. Et que nous n’aurons plus beaucoup l’occasion d’admirer les fabuleux duels entre les deux phénomènes, comme à Wimbledon en 2008. Quel dommage.

Nel mach serale di mercoledi delle finali ATP di Londra , nuova sconfitta di Rafael Nadal che perde in soli due set dal russo Davydenko finalista dello scorsa edizione. 6-1 7-6 lo score.Lo spagnolo si complica ancora la vita perdendo probabilmente in maniera quasi decisiva la possibilità di andare in semifinale.

Talk Tennis is the name of a comprehensive online tennis forum. It is, in my opinion, the best tennis forum on the internet. If you are a fan of tennis, I highly recommend that you visit the forums. They are really interesting! This is the website:

http://tt.tennis-warehouse.com/

Enjoy!

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The day started well enough. In fact, the whole tournament started splendidly.

A highly successful first Sunday with plenty of top players in action (Andy Murray’s and Roger Federer’s wins being the notable highlights).

On Monday, a day session with enough upset (Soderling beating Nadal in straight sets in a repeat of this year’s French Open fourth round) satisfied tennis fans, neutrals and journalists. A session that ended with time aplenty to grab a bite to eat and settle down for a doubles-singles match duo in the evening.

But then the trouble started to mount. We heard rumblings from the Media Centre about the previous evening’s exploits and the horror that Roger Federer’s press conference would commence at midnight. Oh well, fans thought. Journalists have to do their (very privileged) job. What does it matter to them that they have to share taxis, instead of ride the tube, to get home?

However, on Monday night, journalists’ worries extended to the mass crowd. After a slightly late-running doubles match, the hotly anticipated singles match between Novak Djokovic and Nikolay Davydenko (a rematch of last year’s final) started at around 9pm. Both counter-punchers clearly wanted to win, and how; in 30 minutes, a period in which a set can often be complete, the Serb and Russian had only played four games.

For many spectators, their travel arrangements only extended until midnight—and, given the tenacity and endurance of the two players, a long night was predicted.

In fact, many spectators had to leave at 11:30pm in order to secure transport home. Some were even forced to leave at 9:45pm to ensure getting home safely. Many ended up being stranded in East London after staying on to applaud Djokovic’s victory over Davydenko, with tubes into Central London stopping at midnight.

Not good, especially when a session only comprises one doubles and one singles match, the latter being the most favoured for the majority.

Clearly, this isn’t good for the audience—and nor for the players, who must dislike playing in front of a half-capacity crowd at such an important event.

Can anything be done? Well, somehow, London transport authorities must know that such events, with effectively late-night conclusion certainty, are due to take place. Can connections from the O2 Arena and North Greenwich be improved for such occasions?

Television schedules, too, could bring some common sense to proceedings.  Tennis approaching midnight in the UK, while being advantageous for those in North America, is not necessarily what the public wants to watch on a weekday night when they have to get up for work early the next morning.

Of course, the obvious answer is to commence the evening session a little earlier. Even a 30 minute advance in scheduling could make the difference between worry and enjoyment for the crowd, players and even sponsors.

For this event to continue in the utterly successful manner in which it started, surely such an improvement must be made for future years.

(Published on Bleacher Report; November 24th, 2009)

Well, the Barclay’s ATP World Tour Finals got underway in London. And what a spectacle!

This is an event in the truest sense of the word.  London’s architecturally stunning O2 arena has been transformed into a gladiatorial tennis arena—a setting to inspire, or perhaps intimidate, the world’s best tennis stars. The spotlight is on the players, a one-on-one, week-long fight for the title—let’s hope they shine the entire week.

The view from the bleachers is just as spectacular as the court itself. Each of the 17,000 seats have a brilliant view of the court, in an atmospheric, theatre-like environment. The cheers and electricity emanating from the many thousands of fans to the players on court is addictive. Tennis in Great Britain is alive and well.

What a first day it was. The event kicked off in style with practically a full house observing the first match between No. 1 in doubles, Daniel Nestor and Nenad Zimonjic, and No. 8 seeds Mariusz Fyrstenberg and Marcin Matkowski.  To spice up the proceedings, an upset was duly served, with the eighth-ranked Poles beating the seasoned veterans.

The atmosphere only grew when No. 1 Brit in singles, Andy Murray, took to the stage against 2009 U.S. Open champion Juan Martin Del Potro. Predictions expected the match would be tight—the world Nos. 4 and 5, a Slam Champion and potential future Slam Champion, battling on their favourite surface.

For the passionate home crowd, Murray did not disappoint. The match, full of blinding rallies, fast serves and awe-inspiring talent, culminated in a Murray victory that sent the crowd into a frenzy.

The conclusion of the day session gave the many fans a chance to relax, recharge and get ready for an eventful evening. The alleyways around the arena became full of chatter and excitement, the electricity overflowing from the tennis court.

There are plenty of food and drinks outlets to satisfy every taste. But beware of the horrendous queues.

Being such an open, important and publicity-packed event, people-spotting is a great activity to make the time fly by. From ex-players, to umpires, to commentators, to journalists, all variety of tennis enthusiasts mingle with the crowds. It’s a true tennis fan heaven under one roof.

More capacity-crowd doubles commenced during the evening session. This time, it was an expected win from No. 3 seeds Mark Knowles and Mahesh Bhupathi.

At 8:45 p.m., however, the “real” match started—Roger Federer against Fernando Verdasco.

The tension mounted until the two greats made their way to the court—a tension that was so greatly exacerbated by dramatic music, emotive video montages and player interviews being broadcast on the big screens.

This event certainly is epic in all its elements.

When Federer arrived, the applause was thunderous, the atmosphere intense. We all knew we were in for a good show.

The Spaniard started on a blinder, pummeling every shot and serve. Federer seemed unnerved at times, yet remained calm, knowing that his chance would come. And it did.

While Verdasco continued his successful shot-making, with a little encouragement from the audience Roger found his groove and started to retaliate. Cross-court forehands, volleys and drop shots all found their mark and soon, Roger was well in control in the third set.

Not even a few scoreboard glitches—Federer became Spanish for three minutes and the big screen went partially black for a significant part of the third set—could dampen the fresh, exciting mood of the first evening singles match to be held in London.

At 11:05 p.m., a thoroughly energised, but hoarse, collection of tennis fans emerged from the O2 arena fully satisfied—the home favourite was triumphant, as was the sentimental favourite. But given the success and enjoyment of the day, the thousands of people swarming about the arena appeared to be craving another dose of high-quality, high-drama tennis on the best, brightest stage.

ATP, we salute you. After an only semi-successful Shanghai venture, we worried if the over-commercialised, over-publicised and over-sponsored season-ending finale in London would be a media and fan nightmare.

But all fears were in vain. You chose the city, you chose the venue and we cannot thank you enough.

Let the Battles Commence.

(Published on Bleacher Report; November 24th, 2009)