LA CULTURA

Upcoming Fiestas For Your Diary

● Santa Ana in Cañar – 24 - 26 July

A shining example of a village fiesta that hasn’t been commer- cialised. It might be a small town, but they sure know how to party!

● ‘Noche Vieja in Agosto’ in Berchules – August 5

Hints And Tips

● Book accommodation well in advance if you’re planning an overnighter on a budget.

● Take enough cold water, or an empty bottle to fill at the fountain, if your fiesta is in a small village without shops.

● Park legally, and not where you can get blocked by later-arriving vehicles.

● Take a flower to adorn your hair.

● Wear sensible shoes, not your killer heels. Ouch!

Thanks to a power failure on New Year’s Eve 1994, the town started holding their festive event in August. It’s amazing to see Papa Noel and other Christmas characters in the height of sum- mer.

● ‘Virgin de Las Nieves’, Trevelez - August 5

This is a famous ‘romeria’ to Mulhacen to celebrate the snow virgin. Although another procession takes place to the peak of Veleta, departing from Monachil, many seasoned horsemen choose to ascend from Trevelez. There are reports of some be- ing worse for wear!

● Soportujar’s ‘Feria Embrujado’ (haunting fair) - August 7 to 13

The biggest attraction is the ‘Night of the Haunting’ on the 10th, with witches parading through town.

● Orgiva feria – last weekend of September

One of the area’s biggest fiestas, this features a fairground, mu- nicipal tent, horse cintas race and migas bake-off on the Sunday.

The performers include horses and riders, dressed to the nines, a comedy policeman and his compadre whacking passers-by with a fur-covered pole (be warned: it hurts your bottom!), and orators dressed in Moorish garb.

The fiesta also features a procession with San Antonio and the Virgen del Carmen and a horsemanship contest, to grab ribbons from an overhead wire (called cintas).

If you attend the next fiesta in Trevelez, Virgin de las Nieves on August 5, be sure to take your own water supply and a sun hat. The town is built on a steep slope (thirsty work, if you walk uphill), and its supermarkets close for siesta.

The madness of San Juan in Lanjaron Lanjaron, a spa town known as ‘gateway to the Alpujarra’, is famous throughout Spain for its fiesta of San Juan. Unfortunately, you have just missed it, but the Olive Press went along to get a taste of the action.

Annually, on the night of June 23, it hosts a mass water fight. Attracting revellers from far afield, the ‘water race’ starts at the stroke of midnight and ends at exactly 1am.

The municipal firehoses soak anybody running through the town’s main street – many wearing crazy outfits, or swimsuits, and carrying floats. It’s advisable to take a towel, a change of clothes, and don’t slip over!

The Lanjaron fiesta is also renowned for ‘La Publica’ (carnival parade), which always takes place on the Saturday evening. Groups of residents work for months, making intricate costumes for the lengthy procession throughout town. Although the participants look fresh as daisies at 6pm, by the time they reach the plaza, several hours later, many ‘tinto de veranos’ and mojitos have been consumed. There’s a real party vibe, which continues into the early hours.

The fiesta also features a water-throwing contest, a traditional ‘romeria’, accompanied by religious sermon and paella, a ‘Dia de la Bicicleta’, and a contest to climb a greasy pole to dislodge (and win) a ‘jamon serrano’.

What more could you want from a town event?

● Get a drink drive fine.

● Stand directly beside horses’ hind legs at the romeria.

● Assume that feria food stalls will be open all day.

● Get heatstroke.

● Start a fight with the locals over who saw the parking space first/the last table at the bar/ who spilt the drink.

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