It was a few minutes before seven in the evening, and about ten people were queuing outside number 4 Barquillo Street in Madrid, where one of the entrances to the Cervantes Institute is located. They waited impatiently, yet confidently, to enter the tribute in memory of the poet Joan Margarit, now five years after his death. In the room that hosted the event, only a few chairs reserved for the press remained empty. "Joan had an astonishing knack for cultivating friendships," said the master of ceremonies, journalist and family friend Pepa Fernández. This sentiment was echoed throughout the tribute by the other figures from the world of culture and literature who contributed their own words, beginning with the director of the Cervantes Institute, Luís García Montero.

The poet, critic, professor, and current director of the Cervantes Institute, Luis García Montero, has been awarded the twentieth Blanquerna Prize, the Catalan government announced Tuesday. This is an honorary recognition that the Generalitat (Generalitat) has revived after seven years without awarding it and that recognizes the careers of individuals or entities that have contributed to projecting Catalonia at the state level. For the government, it is an award that "helps forge ties between Catalonia and Spanish civil society in general and that of Madrid in particular." In fact, it will be presented by President Salvador Illa on November 18 at the Neptuno Palace in Madrid.