Last weekend we went hiking in the mountains in La Alpujarra and to the beach of Salobreña. My next post will be all about our excursions, and I'll post a bunch of my pictures! But for now, I'm going to talk about some of Spain's culture.
Lately in class, we have been learning about the different fiestas that happen in Spain. Some of them are really awesome, so I decided I'd share them with you! We had to do presentations over the fiestas as our oral exam. I hope you enjoy all of this as much as Spain does!! I have added videos of each fiesta. I tried to keep each video pretty short. Some of them are really crazy to watch!
The first fiesta is La Fiesta del Charco. It takes place in Gran Canaries on September 10, and lasts for an entire week. During one of the days, there is a pool full of water and fish. When a firework is lit off, it signifies the begin of the fiesta and all the people run into the pool. In the past, this fiesta was celebrated completely nude.
La Tomatina is in Buñol, and takes place on the last Wednesday in August. This fiesta is not religious at all. Basically, it's a festival where people throw tomatoes. There are millions of tomatoes that are grown for this event each year. You can't eat the tomatoes because they're only for the fiesta. After the fiesta, the streets are sprayed with water to get rid of all the tomatoes, it's crazy because they act as a disinfectant on the streets, so the streets are very clean afterward.
Las Fiestas de San Fermín aka El Hombre Contra El Toro (The man against the bull) is a very dangerous festival. Twelve bulls are released on the streets and people run with them. They hold rolled up newspapers in their hands to guide/hit the bulls. Even though this is so dangerous, young people thing it's a challenge for their bodies, but there are many injuries and even some deaths. The run goes toward La Plaza de Toros.
The next fiesta is La Fiesta de Moros y Cristianos de Alcoi. This fiesta takes place in Valencia on April 21-24. It represents the fight between the Christians and Muslims. April 18-20 are their religious days for this festival, and the dinner for it consists of many fish dishes. They now have a parade for this fiesta. I couldn't find any amazing videos, but this one gives you a little taste of what it would be like.
La Fiesta de la Vendimia (aka Fuente del Vino) happens in September in Cataluña. There is a collection of grapes throughout the year and wine being made. During this fiesta, there is wine put in the fountains instead of water.
My favorite fiesta that we've studied is Torres Humanas (Human Tower). Like the previous one, this happens in northern Spain. It takes place during the summer. The first fiesta was in 1770. During this fiesta, people construct a tower out of people, it's absolutely incredible. The person on the top is always a child, no worries, he/she wears a helmet, but it's still very dangerous. I would recommend watching this whole video (it's only about 2 minutes long), just because it's so awesome!
La Noche de San Juan happens on the longest day of the year, summer solstice, in Soria. The fiesta is very long. A few days before the fiesta begins, they make a huge fire with wood, paper, and anything else they can find. I believe for those that participate, this is a "path" into their manhood. I would recommend watching part of this video then skipping to about 3/4 way through it to see what actually happens during the fiesta.
Las Falles occur in Valencia, this actually happened just a few weeks ago in Spain. Throughout the year, people make huuuugeeee paper mache sculptures and during Las Falles, they set them on fire and watch them go up into flames. A guy in my class went and said it was really, really cool! The fiesta starts during the day with small fireworks, but at night is when everything really gets going!
I thought you would find all these different fiestas interesting, and give you a little taste of Spain!
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