LA CULTURA SHOCK AND AWE

Valencia’s Las Fallas festival set to go off with a bang

THE Valencia Fallas are gearing up towards next week's big finish with an almost nonstop sequence of parades and parties from March 16 culminating in a big finish three

With the final two days falling on a weekend, big crowds are expected to watch and join in the Children also have plenty to look forward to as

By Alex Trelinski

Valencia schools will be closed,between Wednesday and Friday next week.

On March 17 and 18, all the Fallas from the city districts make their individual processions towards the Plaza de la Virgen to celebrate the 15-metre-tall Virgen de los Desamparado statue which was first installed in 1987.

The event is the highlight of the year for roughly 400 neighbourhoods in the capital. Each of them spend all year holding fundraisers to pay for elaborate sculptures, later burnt in honour of Saint Joseph. The burning takes place on March 19 from 10pm.

Burn

The event has its origin with carpenters – patronised by Saint Joseph – who would burn disused furniture as a sort of spring clean. While the festival is celebrated across the Valencian Community, the largest sculptures are to be found in the capital. The ninots – as the sculptures are known – are typically a satire of current affairs. The falleros, as participants in the neighbourhood associations are known, are also sticklers of traditional Valenciano culture. The event ends around an hour after the burning with a spectacular firework display in the Plaza del Ayuntamiento.

Fourth time lucky

CABO ROIG'S famous St.Patrick's Day parade will be hoping nothing will stand in its way as it celebrates its 10th anniversary. The last parade was held in 2019 before the Covid pandemic forced the cancellation for the next two years.

Everything was geared up for a spectacular return last year with former world boxing champion, Steve Collins, lined up as the star guest to lead the parade.

Organisers were forced to pull the plug the day before due to a bad weather forecast.

With fingers crossed, former Gaelic footballer Anthony Molloy, who lifted the All Ireland trophy for Donegal in 1992, will be doing the honours next week.

The event, which this year falls on a Friday, will see the parade start at 3pm.

It's the biggest St.Patrick's Day celebration in Spain and one of the largest of its kind in Europe.

For those who don’t want to travel too far, St Patrick’s Day is celebrated all along the Costa Blanca, with thousands descending particularly on Benidorm’s new town. The streets are awash with green for parties throughout the district.