Our Spanish left much to be desired but we figured out that this was a parade made up of 400 "Diablos" (devils) and 21 "Dracs" (dragons). The paper used terms like "Usan ropa no inflamable" and "La Pirotecnica," which set my mind to thinking of a parade with fire breathing dragons and devils using fireworks in the traditional American sense that people would be watching from the street as the parade marched on. Were we in for a surprise!
We went to the square by the Cathedral about 5 p.m. Saturday to see the "Dracs" on display prior to the parade. This is in the "Bari Gothic" or old quarter of Barcelona. The Dracs were paper mache figures in various sizes (I'd estimate 5 to 20 feet long, and 6 to 10 feet tall) and made up of various animal forms, most were dragons, but there were boars and even a turtle, all very stylized and almost comical in appearance. Some were on wheels, others were worn by the Diablos who made up the "Las Colles" sponsored by the local neighborhoods.