<p>In Catalonia you can enjoy the most wonderful cakes - Catalan Pastis &ndash; some of which have a unique local character developed with proud traditions. History and politics are briefly commented.</p><p>Catalan Pastis is the third volume in our series&nbsp;<em>World of Cakes</em>.</p><p>In&nbsp;<em>Luxembourg &ndash; A Piece of Cake</em>&nbsp;we toured the incredible cake shop world in tiny Luxembourg. The variety far exceeds what you would expect in a country smaller than Rhode Island. The book was an unplanned accident.</p><p>In&nbsp;<em>Florida Cakes</em>&nbsp;we continued the habit of taking pictures of some of the cakes we purchased.&nbsp; Our life took us to the sunny beaches of Florida for a while. The cake designs in Florida are just incredible.</p><p>Now back in Europe we had business in Spain and especially in Catalonia, which we enjoyed during a number of months.</p><p>Again, we took advantage of its uniquely enjoyable cake shops &ndash;<em>&nbsp;bombonierie</em>&nbsp;&ndash; making the most wonderful cakes &ndash;&nbsp;<em>pastis</em>&nbsp;in Catalan - some which are not found elsewhere.</p><p>There must be at least one thousand cake shops and cafes in Barcelona alone serving these great specialities.</p><p>We will try to discover some of the secrets behind this formidable variety and quality of&nbsp;<em>Catalan pastis</em>&nbsp;&ndash; Catalan cakes.&nbsp; You will be surprised!</p><p>We very much hope you will enjoy the tour and will take the opportunity to visit Spain and Catalonia yourself one day!</p><p>Many thanks to Concha Marchante of the Servei de Pesca Continental in Barcelona and Professor Emili Emili Garcia-Berthou from the University of Girone for their kind assistance with very interesting information on the fish in the Tordera River.</p><p>Illustrated. Recipes.</p>