In this series of SPOTLIGHT we will turn the light on various towns of the Costa Blanca and further. For this first month the destination is Torrevieja and we intend to give a more in-depth look than is normal in other mediums. The town has an excellent web page.
www.torrevieja.com

SPOTLIGHT ON TORREVIEJA

Torrevieja has it all for everyone.

During December Torrevieja begins its annual patronal fiestas, which is a good lead-in to Christmas and onto the Three Kings in January. This article is mainly about Torrevieja fiestas but as many affect other towns there is some information on various aspects and history of these fiestas. We start with the beginning of the year and end up with the patronal fiestas.

The year begins with a fiesta – something that continues throughout the year. New Year’s Day starts with a bang when the bells and fireworks are key factors as people celebrate another new year, full of fresh hope and promises. It is a public holiday, so expect most places to be closed as people get over their celebrations.

The Kings

Ever since advertising campaigns last November children have been building up their expectations to the arrival of the Three Kings who will be arriving this year on a fishing boat. Then they will mount huge floats with thrones and parade through the town with an entourage of pages and other colourful characters.

The Three Kings bring illusion and hopes at the start of the year.

According to the Italian historian Franco Cardini, these were not kings, nor three in number, nor did they travel on camels. The only evangelist who mentioned these popular characters is Saint Matthew who says some ‘magos’ came from the Orient following a star, which signalled the birth of the king of the Jews. These were probably astrologists or Persian priests who professed Madeism, the religion of Zaratustra. The idea of there being three came from the interpretation that they brought three gifts - gold, frankincense and myrrh.
It was in the time of Tertullian that they became popularly known as ‘kings’, based on the Psalms of David where it is mentioned that some kings would visit the Messiah shortly after his birth. This interpretation of kings was more acceptable to the theologians of the day rather than magi, which was associated with witches and black magic. Saint Augustine was the one who brought in the idea of the dromedaries. One of the apocryphal epistles mentions that they travelled on camels and Saint Augustin knew that the dromedaries were of African origin and more swift than camels. So the magi travelled in 13 days from Asia to Bethlehem. The kings are seen as a symbol of all the pagans who converted to Christianity without passing through the Jewish traditions.
Whatever the true story it is still one which brightens up a dreary start to another year, filling children with illusions of dreams about to be realised, thanks to three wise men, and, of course, the love and sacrifice of their parents.
Most towns will hold a Cabalgata on the evening of the 5th January, with the wise men and their entourage of pages parading through the town, throwing sweets or small gifts to the waiting crowds as a symbol of sharing gifts. This is rather like the carnival, full of colour and excitement that soon follows on.

Winter Fires of San Anton - 16th January

San AntÛn is Spain’s patron of animals. He was born sometime in the 3rd or 4th century in Egypt. According to the legend he lived to 105 years of age. As a youth he gave away his money to the poor and retired as a hermit to the banks of the Nile. Many cures have been attributed to his intercession especially a skin condition which has a burning sensation and hence the name “the fires of San AntÛn”.

Burning Flesh - Cleansing Fires 16th January

This fiesta is a simple one in Torrevieja with an evening blessing ceremony of pets outside the Immaculate Conception church in the town square. But its origins go back to medieval times and have an interesting history. San Anton is one of those saints peculiar to Spain and is associated with a particularly medieval skin complaint that caused the flesh to be red hot.
The origin of this particular fiesta of San Anton may, perhaps, be traced to Villanueva de Alcolea where, according to legend, St. Antony also cured a pig of an infirmity and in statues he often has a pig at his feet. However, he not only cured animals but during the Middle Ages he also worked miracles curing people of the pestilence which burned the flesh with fever. This has led to the saint’s feast becoming a Fire Festival in this town and many other towns in Castellon Province held on the 16th January. People and animals parade around hogueras and a feast full of fear and happiness takes place. Some people, on gaily-decorated horses, ride through the labyrinth of streets leaping over fires. This represents the contemplative soul in ecstasy viewing Life as a dangerous game. Here, during the fiestas, beasts and people jump over the many fires in the town. This connection has led to fire becoming a symbol of this saint and fires or hogueras are burnt on his feast day, which is held with special devotion in the Valencian Communidad, CataluÒa and also in Mallorca.
As with many ancient festivities there is a touch of the pagan element - in this case, the winter fires. The fire acts as a purification rite and in some of the fiestas, such as those of Forcall, the ´devilsª leap over the fires to be purified. Often men on horseback leap over the flames in these rites. Many of these fiestas are a strong representation of the ever-present battle between Good and Evil, something that can be seen in many fiesta rites.

San Anton is against Cruelty to animals.

San Anton’s feast is a day for animals to be blessed and it may be appropriate to remember that in many Spanish fiestas animals are abused rather than blessed. Since the early part of 1999 and up to 2002, ANPBA, the AsociaciÛn Nacional para la protecciÛn y el Bienstar de los Animales has made nearly 800 administrative denuncios (complaints) relating to the ill-treatment of animals during local fiestas. Each year the number of official complaints has increased and gained more public support and more action taken by SEPRONA, the environmental body of the Guardia Civil. This has included complaints against some of those who fight in the bullring for irregularities in the legitimate regulations governing this art. The president of ANPBA said that more than 70,000 animals are used in Spanish fiestas throughout the year.

However, on the feast of San Anton pets are paraded with pride in many towns. Many local towns have pet services at churches where the animals are blessed and there is likely to be one near you. Orihuela, HondÛn de los Frailes, Torrevieja, San Miguel, Guardamar, Jijona, Jacarilla, Pego, Pilar de la Horadada and Javea, hold this type of event. Each year some of these blessings have farm animals, domestic pets, which may include newts or snakes.

The Torrevieja carnival is over a three-week period centered on three parades. Each one is a fun parade with multi-coloured characters in vibrant groups or as individuals exhibiting a great deal of good humour. This is a key word as humour is possibly the most important aspect of the carnival, combined with a great sense of imagination. Prizes are awarded for various categories of costumes. The festivities are not contained in just a couple of parades, but the various groups get together in sponsoring bars for some rowdy fun. These take place during February, depending on weekends.
There is a Pre-Carnival Parade in which people dress up in costumes used in previous carnivals; this is just to get everyone in the right spirit to let their hair down and in the party mood. Then there is the official opening speech (pregon) of the carnival with a stage performance of la Murga; the election of the Carnival Queen and her entourage, and the appearance and approval of the latest designs.
After that there are two main parades: the first on Sunday afternoon from the plaza de AsunciÛn around 16.00 with over 1,500 people taking part. This wends its way to the town centre with a great deal of music, dancing and throwing confetti. For months groups have been planning and making their costumes and here you will see extravagant feathered beauties dancing to the rhythm of salsa music, clowns throwing confetti in your face or people in ordinary everyday clothes wearing a gaudy mask. It is possible to buy simple adult fancy dress costumes for around 20 euros.
Children have a large part to play in this parade and you can see them in groups and as individuals, suitably dressed up in imaginative costumes following the beat of the samba, salsa and merengue.
The other large parade is on the following Saturday night around 21.00, which is a more adult affair and begins in the town centre. The carnival is an explosion of imaginative colour, plus dance routines set to loud Latin music and it is possible that this year some of it will overspill into the urbanizations.
Should you miss it then during July some of the groups take part in the Summer Fiestas in La Mata.
The fun also spills into the schools where competitions are often held for the best in fancy dresses among the children. It is a sight to cheer up any bleak winter morning to see little ones dressed up as fairies, clowns, cartoon heroes or whatever, firmly clutching their proud mother’s arm on their way to school.

MARCH

Holy Week/ Semana Santa

Easter is a moveable festival dependent on the lunar calendar so it can fall in either March or April. This year the Semana Santa procession is in March as Easter Sunday is 23rd March, but the information equally applies for April, should Easter fall in that month.

Suffering and Joy in the Semana Santa Fiestas

After the riotous behaviour of celebrating Carnival with extravagant costumes that can hide the identity of the revellers we move on into Holy Week processions (Semana Santa). These processions take place the week prior to Easter, which is a movable date dependent on the lunar calendar and is usually in March or April. It falls in March in 2008.
These are equally flamboyant celebrations where once again the identity of those taking part is hidden, this time as ‘capirotes’ under penitential robes and a hood, the regalia of a variety of cofradias. Each cofradia has its own colours and usually its own style of lantern, which is a symbol of the guild’s devotion. Most cofradia groups will have a float with a statue representing their devotion, such as The Flagellation of Christ, which would be a figure of Jesus tied to a pillar and whipped.

Weight lifting costaleros

All of these floats are decorated with lights and flowers and are either carried on the shoulders of ‘costaleros’ or moved by a hidden cart underneath the folds of the cloths of the float. The costaleros carry the float with the statue on it and they can be dressed in the cofradia’s costume or in matching trousers and shirts. These are the ones who receive the most acclaim during the processions as each group, (from ten men (or women) up to just over a hundred), tends to play to the crowd, perhaps by lifting the whole float at arms-length above their heads, which is no mean feat as you are looking at over a ton in weight in some instances.

Origins of penance and flagellation in fiestas

In the Semana Santa processions you may see some of the incognito hooded figures walking barefoot. This is probably because they have made a promise in return for some specified request made to God, such as a cure for a loved one. This is about the only type of public penance you will see, although elsewhere and in other countries penance can go to extremes and is generally frowned upon by Church authorities.
Cuaresema is the Lenten period, a time of penitence and repentance and this is reflected in the processions by the hooded penitents who walk a long way in a symbolic sign of repentance; a repentance that is theirs alone and that is why they remain hidden in a hood to preserve their anonymity as only God knows who they are. Some people take it a stage further and walk barefooted, others, especially in the celebrations in Seville, flagellate themselves as a penance against sins of the flesh.
Possibly the best known Spanish celebrations are those held in Seville where some people flagellate themselves in penance. Although not quite in fashion today, this ritual came about in Perugia, Italy, during the 13th century when religious fanatics proclaimed the imminence of God’s wrath against corruption: this was based on the writings of Joachim de Fiore around 1260. The official church today frowns on flagellation as a penance.
As a form of penance the members of this movement undertook public self-inflicted flagellations. Mandred, the king of Naples and Sicily, tried to ban this sect but the idea spread throughout Europe. Some television programmes annually show similar gruesome penances in the Philippines.

The sweet side of Semana Santa

However, there is a fun side to all this for the spectators as one of the traditions of many Semana Santa processions is the giving away of sweets to the bystanders by the capirotes. The sweets are a reminder that one of the Christian virtues is almsgiving - “it is better to give than to receive”. Some of these sweets are in the shapes of the hooded penitents who walk in the processions. Other sought after sweets are the traditionally made “guirlache” sweets that are made of honey, almonds and sugar.

Torrevieja’s Semana Santa

Another religious event is the Via Crucis (Way of the Cross) when a procession carries the image of Christ Crucified from the main church to the plaza del Calvario, usually accompanied by local musicians and choirs. Last year the foreign costaleros group of Jesus in the Garden of Olives participated. The Way of the Cross is a popular devotion at this time and in the 1990’s the outdoor devotions became once again a feature of Torrevieja’s Lenten devotions. This devotion has fourteen ‘stations’, each denoting an aspect of Christ’s last journey to the Cross.
Many old towns have murals on the outside walls of some buildings that depict these stations and are used during the Lenten period for these religious processions. Torrevieja used to have these murals but they have disappeared with the huge construction in recent years.
The actual opening of the main processions begins with the Pregon (or announcement) given by a guest speaker; usually at this time the honour of being Capirote de Oro is announced. This personage is a leading figure in the processions of Torrevieja.
The origins of Semana Santa in Torrevieja go back to at least 1807 when Antonio Blasco y Viudes donated an image of la Soledad to the church and the statue was carried in procession through the streets. In 1846, for the first time in town hall records, there appear the costs of fiestas for Semana Santa and they continued every year afterwards. In 1912 the processions included the guardias carabineros wearing their splendid dress uniforms and by this time more images of Veronica, la Samaratina, San Juan, el Nazareno had been donated by citizens. Unfortunately these were destroyed during the Civil War with the consequence that there was a fall off in the processions until 1940. In passing it should be noted that nearly all Spain’s processions have a participation by local security forces and in the past they used to let off their guns in the air, which eventually led to the use of bangers and fireworks in their place. Even today in the Torrevieja Semana Santa processions you will find Guardia Civil, Local Police, navy and army elements including some Spanish Legionnaires, which all adds to the spectacular.
After many difficulties, especially in the 60¥s, a new initiative was undertaken in the 70¥s to resuscitate the processions which have gathered force ever since with the institution of the Junta Mayor de Cofradias in 1981 who took on the task of organizing the annual festival. Most of the images used in the processions can be seen throughout the year either in the town’s Semana Santa Museum or in the church of la Inmaculada in the town centre. The museum was opened on 3rd February 1990 in the Primavera district of Torrevieja but there are plans for a new museum on the Avenida Habaneras close to the police courts and the Guardia Civil police station.
Funds are raised by bingos, fashion parades, raffles, donations etc. For example a real estate company paid for the conversion work of the foreigner’s float, and another businessman paid for the huge cost of the new Last Supper with interests in real estate and other affiliated businesses. In 1982 the capirotes appeared in the processions, then later women bore the image of Maria Santisimas del Silencio. In 1986 His Majesty Don Juan Carlos accepted the position of Hermano Mayor Honorario de la Semana Santa, or an honorary member of the Torrevieja Holy Week fraternity. Music is an important part of all fiestas and in Semana Santa the pipes and drums, such as the schoolchildren’s musical group Cornetas y Tambores, introduced into the processions in 1989, note it. Then the foreigners were asked to take on the huge task of carrying the float of Jesus in the Garden of Olives (originally pushed about on wheels), which they have successfully done for the last few years. It is likely that this year their own specially written music as well as pipes and drums will accompany them. Last year another new float was added but because of bad weather was not paraded – Jesus and his Twelve Apostles around the table of the Last Supper.

Palm Sunday:

The first religious devotions of Holy Week start on the Friday before Palm Sunday. This day is dedicated to the Virgen Mary, the Dolorosa, who suffered so much for her son Jesus, and is easily identified with by mothers who often agonise for their own children.
The principal processions begin in Torrevieja on Palm Sunday, with a blessing of palms at the morning Mass followed by a procession from the Sagrada Corazon church to the main la Inmaculada Church. At midday the town centre streets are lined as the guild of Saint John the Evangelist escort the statue of Jesus riding on a donkey, representing his triumphant entry into Jerusalem. Then around ten o’clock the first evening procession takes place.
Each evening from Sunday through to Friday, different cofradias take part in the procession, all of which normally start around ten o’clock. One of the most popular cofradias in Torrevieja was that of the Roman legion whose soldiers escort Christ in his triumph and to his final destiny, but has lapsed into disuse because of local squabbling, although the equipment is still in storage. One tradition has it that Pontius Pilate was born in Tarraco (Tarragona) and when appointed as Governor of Palestine took an attachment of local Spanish mercenary soldiers with him and it was these who were in charge of Jesus during his last hours, whipping and mocking him, eventually escorting him to his death.
Every evening different groups take centre stage in the evening processions, each procession having its own distinctive differences; each year some new element, act or image is added.
One of the most impressive is held on Maundy Thursday, which is a solemn silent night in Torrevieja where the very silence itself seems to break the night’s air. This procession is held after the Mass of the Last Supper and announces the coming arrest, trial, suffering and death of Jesus. As in other towns’ processions this is an awesome event that can deeply affect the soul.
On Good Friday the longest procession held in Torrevieja takes place with some 2.500 people participating.
There are now 16 cofradias in the celebrations, including 600 costaleros and among these latter there are two of the cofradias that have women carrying or pushing the tronos over a long and trying distance. Many penitents are carrying out promises made to God for graces received.

MUSIC FOR EASTER

Christianity is not merely a religion, but has been instrumental in encouraging art in all its disciplines, that has influenced and inspired so many artists, sculptors, giants of literature and musicians. Art comes in many forms - sculptures, drama, paintings, dance or, music. Many of these works of famous artist in all branches of the arts have been centred around the Passion, Death and Resurrection of Jesus.
Several famous pieces of music will be played and sung over the Easter celebrations. In its heyday the nobility and hierarchy were able to afford to commission works of art and for that we should be grateful that much of this has become our heritage.
One of the most popular Passion characters is that of the Virgin Mary under her title of la Dolorosa, depicted in statues with daggers piercing her sorrowful heart and a dolorous expression on her face. Mothers who can associate her suffering with their own when they see their children in trouble particularly love her.
A famous liturgical hymn used at this time of the year is the Latin words of “Stabat Mater” which is a reflection about the pain of Mary as she stands at the foot of the cross of her dying son. The medieval Franciscan poet, Jacopone da Todi, probably wrote the original words. The words have been set to music many times by composers of the calibre of Rossini, Pergolesi and Haydn. “Stabat Mater” was one of the first religious musical pieces of Joseph Haydn, written in 1767: a soul lifting work with pauses allowing reflection on the words of the poem. Another of his Easter works is “The Seven Last Words of Christ on the Cross”.
Throughout the Semana Santa processions local and visiting bands will also parade among the cofradias. Verdi’s work ‘Requiem’ is a popular piece played at this time and you will hear several renditions depending in which town you are in. Another emotive composition is the “Passion” by J.S. Bach.
Christ’s final Passion has been a constant source of inspiration for musicians. Georg Phillipe Telemann is perhaps one of the most prolific composers in history, having written forty four Passion compositions. After his death another work was staged (the Contemplation of the ninth hour of the day of the death of Jesus). German preacher Joachin Johann Daniel Zimmerman also approached the Passion with an oratorio about the rending of the Temple veil, the earthquake, the laying of Jesus in the sepulcher and the final resurrection. Possibly the best known piece of music is the triumphant “Messiah” of composer Handel which is also sung at Christmas.
Of singular musical interest is the tradition of the cornets and tambours where massed bands play. This is an impressive spectacle and an awesome sound that stirs up echoes of latent primitive instincts. Sometimes these groups are limited to just the drums booming out their message of time stopping still at the death of Jesus.
The Torrevieja group is made up of children between 12 and 18 years of age who come principally from the Acequion School (IES N_3) but also from others. They wear a uniform of blue trousers (boys) or blue skirts for girls, white shirt, blue tie and a red jersey. They play on other occasions such as Constitution Day (October), patronal fiestas (December), and also in other towns of the area such as the Children’s Palm Sunday procession of Crevillente.
A great deal of the music played in these Torrevieja processions have been composed locally and can be found on CDs.
However, possibly the most popular singular music heard during the Semana Santa processions of Spain is that of the saetas: hymns of praise sung direct from the heart by individuals who sing at specific stopping points along the way of processions. There are thousands of saetas and each year more are added to this form of devotion that has its roots in flamenco music. Generally these tend to be sung by individuals who prepare the verses beforehand. In a few cases they are paid for this either by the town hall or the cofradias, but in general the singer offers his or her services free considering it to be an honor to be chosen. Often this saeta is sung when the Encuentro takes place, that is during the processions when the image of Mary encounters the image of Jesus carrying His Cross.
In the Orihuela Silent Procession since 1940 the composition of El Canto de la PasiÛn de Orihuela is sung by two choirs - los Cantores de la PasiÛn and los Cantores de la Primitiva PasiÛn. D. Frederico Rogel Soriano, based on a codice of the 17th century, wrote this work in March 1880.

Liturgical Drama and Mystery Plays
Semana Santa processions are examples of how the liturgy of the Church can spill in to the street and theatre. Miracle plays and Mysteries developed amongst Christian nations in medieval times so that ordinary uneducated people could learn and come to terms with theological concepts. These have been called liturgical dramas and are notable in these processions. A Mystery play expresses something a bit different such as the famous Middle Ages one of Elche about the Assumption of the Virgen Mary into heaven on her death. In this play this dogma is expressed in a fashion that the ordinary people could understand with lots of music and songs that could be sung at other times. Originally priests took the various parts in these plays that were mostly used at high feasts such as Easter or Christmas, but gradually actors and ordinary people participated.
One of the most interesting medieval spectacular is held in Valencia city on the Feast of Corpus Christi when floats, some of them dating back to medieval times, are rolled out and other groups dress up as characters from the Bible such as Noah or Moses. This particular event represents the basic concept of Good and Evil and recounts many events in the bible but all centred on the coming of Jesus Christ and the Eucharist. This type of play was quite common in England as early as the tenth century, but there is little left of them today, although there is a revival as can be seen in Elche where there is a medieval festival with the participation of people and musicians from all over the world running parallel with the Mystery play there in August.
Music is an important ingredient as it is an art that can be easily understood by most people who can be moved by wonderful sounds and poignant words. Music is an important element in the Semana Santa processions and every float has its own musical group accompanying them; with an emphasis on drums and pipes.
The Miracle plays tend to be devoted to the intercession of Mary, the Mother of Jesus and there are at least forty-two examples of this style of drama in existence. In these the Virgin Mary saves or consoles through her intervention those who ask for her help, which is an interesting model as many people, especially women, can identify with her. People plead with her to intercede on their behalf working on the principle that a son (Jesus) cannot refuse a mother’s request.
The Mystery plays probably come from the Latin word “ministerium” meaning to act. In Spain we have the “autos” or acts, especially those at Holy Week in Seville probably being the best known one. These plays derived their ideas from dogmatic mysteries as their subject came from the mysteries of the Christian belief. The Tiristi at Christmas time is a good example as it looks at the birth of God made man in the form of the baby Jesus. Some, however, took their theme from non-religious events such as that of the Siege of Orleans in France. But for the main part the mystery plays come from sources of the Old and New Testaments and the lives of the saints, especially the Mother of Jesus. Obviously Passion plays fall into this category and the Oberammergau Passion Play dating from 1634 is one of the most famous. Incidentally tickets for the next play in 2010 go on sale in 2008. Many Vega Baja towns have groups of amateur actors who during the Lenten period tour the towns with their own version of the passion of Jesus, that is his last few hours leading up to his death. Just as Saint Patrick used the humble shamrock to express the idea of the Holy Trinity being three in one, so Mystery Plays are attempts at coming to terms with revealed truths that are of divine origin but pretty difficult for us to understand.

Passion Plays

More and more towns are organising Passion Plays. One of the most traditional with its own history is the group from Callosa del Segura.
Towns such as Torrevieja have amateur groups that offer Passion Plays during the six week Lenten period.
Pilar de la Hordada held its first “Auto de la PasiÛn” in 2001 and continues to enlarge the Semana Santa celebrations as a tourist attraction.
Palm Sunday is the first procession held in the morning with a group carrying the image of Jesus Triumphant. In the afternoon the procession of the Mantillas is held by the Cofradia de la Esperanza Macarena, with the black dressed ladies wearing their magnificent headgear. This statue is the work of Victor Garci· Villagordo, a local artist, and is carried by 70 people: this group actually has over 230 members. These women play a proud part in the procession of most towns.
Another religious act over the Semana Santa in Almoradi is an amateur play by the Hermandad ´El Prendimientoª which has been staged each year since 1995. The play entitled ´El MesÌasª has over a hundred actors playing out the life and death of Jesus of Nazareth making use of modern technology in light, sound and images. It is normally held at ten in the evening on a stage erected in the town¥s main square on the Saturday prior to Palm Sunday; but always check out fiesta times at your local tourist office.

La Mona picnics

The two Mondays following Easter Sunday are local holidays and many people take picnic baskets of food to the dunes of La Mata or Guardamar. Often groups stay camping over the weekend and there are many other social events organized. Traditionally la mona is eaten, which is a type of cake sometimes with a boiled egg inside, representing the stone placed over the tomb of Jesus and which was rolled back.
The second Monday is a local holiday in Valencia region as it is dedicated to a Valencian saint, Vicente Ferrer, who ceaselessly travelled throughout the Valencian and Murcian regions preaching the gospel of Jesus and, en route, performing many miracles; he is patron saint of the Valencian Communidad. Schools start on the Tuesday and this saint is honoured for the education programmes he started in poor districts.

FERIA DEL MAYO

One of the biggest and most popular events in Torrevieja is the Feria del Mayo that has been in existence for about twenty years. This year it will be held in the Antonio Soria Park. This annual May Fair starts in the evening with the official lighting of the thousands of coloured electric lights. Around 60 casetas are set up, brightly bedecked with an Andalucian ambience; wide streets separating them, so that the crowds can mingle freely and, at certain times, the horses and carriages parade. People stroll around the casetas, stopping to visit and chat, have a drink and watch impromptu dancing en route. Sherry is the traditional tipple, but anything goes. All the prices are fixed throughout the casetas for food and drink.
It is a celebration based on the famous April Seville Feria that dates back to the 19th century. These Torrevieja ones last for six days and started as a street party in 1987 in calle Seville, which was so successful it was repeated the following year. It attracted crowds of people from the Vega Baja towns and on the third year it was decided to make it a more official feria.
It is an opportunity for the ladies to dress up in colourful Sevillana dresses and the menfolk to don traditional riding costume with broad Cordoban sombreros, white frilly shirts, dark Eton jackets, and spurred half boots. Inside the casetas people, eat, drink, sing, play the guitar and dance the wild sevilliana dance and in recent the years many foreigners have actively taken part in the celebrations (many taking dance lessons
Then during the day there are other events held. An important feature of these days is the parades of horses and horse drawn carriages, with events such as a romeria and various equestrian events and competitions in dressage.
It is a very colourful event and the area is dominated by a large stage, which is used for professional and amateur sevillana dancing competitions and typical Andalusian entertainment. If you are a visitor then this is an added treat for your holiday - don’t forget your camera.

European Festival

The 9th May is the Day of Europe,which has been celebrated in Torrevieja for many years, and in recent years has included a week-long wonderful mix of local music and dance underlining the integration by the foreign community. Most of the concerts feature local bands, choirs, dance groups, individual artists who offer their services free to raise funds for local charitable causes.
It includes a month long art exhibition in the Los Aljibes exhibition centre in the park of the nations, which is the venue for the annual Petanca Competition between thirteen nations. Another annual event in literature, a short story competition in English in two categories – those stories about Torrevieja and the others at the discretion of the author and must not have been previously printed. More information from the Office for European Residents in the Tourist Office of Torrevieja in the main square.

Colourful Pilgrimage

On third weekend of May the romeria of La Virgen del Rocio takes place in Torrevieja. This pilgrimage has been going since the early 1990’s and grows larger each year as women, wearing gaily-coloured, flouncy Andalucian style dresses, carry the small statue of the Virgen through the streets. Horse riders dressed in Cordoban suits accompany them. A small sanctuary dedicated to the Virgen del Rocio is almost constructed in the Parque de Europa in the Calas Blancas area and is likely to be dedicated in 2008.

24th June - Street bonfires

Hogueras are the main attraction this month in Alicante where over 150 bonfires with their competing artwork of statues are placed in crossroads throughout the city: a custom since 1928. The principal tourist fiestas of this month are those of Saint John the Baptist on whose birth, according to a tradition, strange mystic fires were burnt. This night of the 24th June is the Midsummer and the summer solstice, and the purifying pagan fire rites have been adapted to celebrate the corresponding Christian feast of St. John the Baptist.
Fire plays an important part of many fiestas throughout the year and during the days that lead up to his fiesta on 24th June, many towns build bonfires known as Hogueras that are ceremoniously burned on the saint’s feast day. Other towns, which celebrate Hogueras, include Benidorm, San Juan, Denia, Teulada, Pinoso, Calpe and Torrevieja. In some towns the beaches have small Hogueras and there are even some people who have white magic rituals on the beach with fire and water.
The figures of the Hogueras are set-up in the various points of the city around about the 20th, only to be burned on the night of the saint’s day of the 24th June. In these figures you can see the pointed humour of the citizens as each one has its own lesson to impart before its final demise in the fires of ‘la crema’. Normally a plaque with a rhyme or poem satirizes the content of the Hogueras, which is often relevant to local or national politics. On the night of the 20th the “planta” is celebrated in the various barracas of each hoguera as each one is set in place. As in so many fiestas food has its place and on ths night the coca is eaten along with ripe figs. As in most parts of Spain the Hogueras celebrations ceased during the hostilities of the Civil War. In 1939 only one Hogueras was built in front of the Mercado Central, but by 1940 there were 21 Hogueras and today around 150.

24th - Street bonfires

Hogueras are the main attraction this month in Alicante where over 150 bonfires with their competing artwork of statues are placed in crossroads throughout the city: a custom since 1928. Torrevieja has only three or four sites but still a spectacle that climaxes when the figures are burnt. The principal tourist fiestas of this month are those of Saint John the Baptist on whose birth, according to a tradition, strange mystic fires were burnt. This night of the 24th June is the Midsummer and the summer solstice, and the purifying pagan fire rites have been adapted to celebrate the corresponding Christian feast of St. John the Baptist.
Fire plays an important part of many fiestas throughout the year and during the days that lead up to his fiesta on 24th June, many towns build bonfires known as Hogueras that are ceremoniously burned on the saint’s feast day. Other towns, which celebrate Hogueras, include Benidorm, San Juan, Denia, Teulada, Pinoso and Calpe. In some towns the beaches, including Torrevieja, have small Hogueras and there are even some people who hold white magic rituals on the beach with fire and water. The Torrevieja beach party is great fun especially for youngsters and it is the only time when fires are permitted on the beach…on condition that the remains are cleared away as there are heft fines for those who fail this local ordinance.
The figures of the Hogueras are set-up in the various points of the city around about the 20th, only to be burned on the night of the saint’s day of the 24th June. In these figures you can see the pointed humour of the citizens as each one has its own lesson to impart before its final demise in the fires of ‘la crema’. Normally a plaque with a rhyme or poem satirizes the content of the Hogueras, which is often relevant to local or national politics. On the night of the 20th the “planta” is celebrated in the various barracas of each hoguera as each one is set in place. As in so many fiestas food has its place and on ths night the coca is eaten along with ripe figs. As in most parts of Spain the Hogueras celebrations ceased during the hostilities of the Civil War.

Corpus Christi

Corpus Christi is a feast celebrated in June in almost every town in Spain with a procession, including Torrevieja. It is one of those moveable feasts dependent on Easter but this procession is likely to fall on 18th or 25th June. This procession usually includes white robed children, who have recently made their First Holy Communion, scattering flowers and herbs in front of the Holy Eucharist carried by the local priest.
However in Valencia it is a totally different event of medieval plays and dances depicting the continuous struggle between Good and Evil, Heaven and Hell.
Corpus Christi means ‘The Body of Christ’ and this festival celebrates the Last Supper of Jesus and his apostles when he commanded them to follow his example and instituted the sacrament of the Holy Eucharist.

Torrevieja Fishermen, the origins of Virgen del Carmen and the Habaneras Festival

As in most coastal towns Torrevieja fishermen and sailors celebrate the feast of their patroness Our Lady of Mount Carmel which falls on 16th July each year. The origins of this title of the Virgin Mary, according to a Carmelite tradition, go back to the Old Testament when the prophet Elijah had a vision of a lady, carrying a child; he knew that this was to be the mother of the long awaited Redeemer of the Jewish people whom she held in her arms. When the vision ended there was a steady downpour of rain ending a long drought that he interpreted as a promise of salvation. He retired to a cave in Mount Carmel near Jerusalem as an hermit and was soon joined by other like minded souls seeking God in solitude. With the arrival of Christianity gradually these hermits took on the shape of a monastic order that led to the founding of the brown clad Carmelites. Over the centuries the Virgin Mary has made thousands of appearances to mankind, some ratified by the hierarchial Church, others simply acclaimed by the laity. One of these is that of Englishman, Simon Stock, who travelled to Rome and became a Carmelite.
On 16th July, 1251, at Aylesford in England, he had a vision of the virgin, once again carrying the child Jesus, dressed in a brown habit holding a brown scapular in her hand. She made various promises that whoever devoutly wore this scapular would have many special graces. Since then millions of devotees have worn the scapular. At the last apparition at Fatima in Portugal on October 1917, the visionaries there saw the Virgin under her title of Virgen del Carmen. From 1961 - 1965 children in the town of Garabandal near San Sebastian had many visions of the Virgin Mary and once again she offered the scapular as a means of graces to those who devoutly wore it and complied with the instructions of prayer and penance.
In the late 19th century the Virgen del Carmen was adopted in Spain as the patroness of fishermen and each year on the 16th July her fiesta is celebrated by them. In Torrevieja there is a procession of boats around the harbour carrying the statue and flowers are thrown into the water in memory of those lost at sea.
In the la Inmaculada church there is a side chapel to the right of the main altar dedicated to the Virgen del Carmen with a beautiful statue of her flanked by two famous Carmelite saints - St. Teresa of Avila and St. John of the Cross. At the base of this altar are two copies of lifebelts with the words of the “Fishermen of Torrevieja” linking her with their work and the safety of their very lives in their arduous harvesting of the seas. The small chapel at the playa de los Locos is dedicated to the Virgen del Carmen on land that previously belonged to the family of Don Mariano Ruiz C·novas who founded a sanatorium there until it was destroyed as a result of the Civil War. He donated a statue of the Virgen del Carmen to the hermitage that was there before the present utility building was constructed in the 1990’s and each year on the 16th July the sanatorium opened its doors to everyone for a special celebration of the Virgen del Carmen.

Habaneras

Once again the annual Torrevieja competition, the Internacional Certamen de Habaneras, will take place in the Eras de la Sal.
Torrevieja holds these competitions and concerts at the end of July. There is a free open-air habaneras concert held on the Playa del Cura. Local choirs and musicians put on free cocnerts along the avenida de Juan Aparacio on the waterfront. Throughout July and August there are series of concerts - Latin American, jazz, pop and rock.
The Habaneras musical competitions started in a small way in 1955 and now are of international fame, broadcast by Spanish Televison. One recent offshoot of the Habaneras is that some of the choirs sing at some of the Masses in the la Inmaculada Church, adding a new dimension to these Eucharistic celebrations; sometimes bringing a flavour of their own country such as the Creole Mass of the winning choir from MorÛn, Argentina. In addition local musical groups hold free concerts on the seaside dikes where alternative artificial swimming pools have been made.
Open all year is a museum dedicated to Ricardo lafuente who was largely responsible for the organiastion and inspiration of the early habaneras competitions. There is a museum dedicated to him in the RENFE station area.

15th August a national holiday

The Assumption, body and soul, of Mary the Virgin Mother of Jesus is a national holiday in Spain and nearly every small village and large town will have some form of festival and entertainment programme.

September Fiestas

This month sees more fiestas in honour of the Virgen de Loreto and the Virgen del Rosario, with many local fiestas in the Vega Baja area.

Valencian Day

All the Valencian towns celebrate the ‘Dia de Valencia’ on the 9th October, which is a local public holiday in the Region with most shops closed and people take the opportunity to drive to Murcia city for a shopping spree; often one meets people one hasn’t seen for ages on this day in Murcia.
In Alicante a medieval market is held on the Esplanade, mainly aimed at entertaining children with jesters and street entertainers. Several towns, especially the capital Valencia, have several local events and most shops are closed. This date is a reference point in the history of Valencia when King Jaime I triumphantly entered the city of Valencia in 1238 having ousted the Moors.

Pilar Puente

The 12th October is a national public holiday celebrating the feast of the Virgen del Pilar. Often these two dates happily coincide with a weekend, so many people take a long ‘puente’ bridging break.
According to tradition St. James (the Elder) the Apostle, spent seven years preaching in Spain around 40 AD before returning to Israel, where he was eventually beheaded in the persecutions against the Christians in Jerusalem. He is supposed to have built a temple to the holy virgin Mary in Zaragoza, as she had appeared to him above a marble pillar. This led to the devotion of the Virgen del Pilar and today thousands of Spanish girls are named Pilar.
Under this title the Virgin Mary is regarded as the patroness of Spain and also of the Guardia Civil; there are normally speeches, parades and a flag raising ceremony in front of town halls. It is also a day when links with other Spanish speaking nations are remembered and is known as ‘el dia de Hispanidad’.

La Mata celebrates

Most of the fiestas during October are related to the angels or to the Virgin of the Holy Rosary. During the first week of October celebrations are held at la Mata where the church is dedicated to the Holy Rosary: this was the original parish before Torrevieja itself was considered to be a parish. There is a small wine industry in La Mata and each year the harvest is celebrated. It is always advisable to check dates and times of events locally as often these are not fixed until almost the last moment.

The Flower Day for the Dead

Hallow’een has recently become popular in Spain thanks to the many horror films pushed out by Hollywoood and now by several Spanish film dirctors.
Hallow’en is celebrated on the 31st October, the holy evening of the feast of All Saints. November the 1st is a public holiday in the whole of Spain. This festival of the 1st November is a bit different from all the others as it is not normally a time for feasting as people remember the dead members of their family. For some it is a feast when some people do not mourn, but celebrate the life of a loved one and this concept of rejoicing about a person’s life and what they have achieved is coming more and more to the front of Christian thinking. A life to celebrate and rejoice in what a person has achieved and endured.
There is little doubt that the feast of All Saints is a day par excellence for flower power. Florists stock up for the seasonal rush of flower buying, as people remember those who have died and hopefully gone on to better pastures. This is a time of sincere emotions and honest memories. It is a time to think about just why are we here? It is a time to remember good and bad periods in our life. It is a time to remember love. It is a time of religious and spiritual reflection: “From where did I come? Why am I here? Where am I going?”
Each person will have to find his own answer to these basic questions. Religion offers some answers and comfort as can be seen in some of the inscriptions one reads on the gravestones. Hope of a better future shared with those we love is what November 1st is all about. Among the grief is the hope that by being faithful and loving we will share in a better future. It is a reaffirmation of just what we do in our everyday actions as we journey towards an inevitable end. One tradition among the Cisterian monks is that they dig their own grave as a reminder that the certainty of death awaits them. But this cessation of life is only a step on in an eternal spiritual journey, and, for the Christian, the reward of a faithful and loving life helping others, will be the vision of God.

On the 2nd November there is the Feast of the Holy Souls which is dedicated to deceased relatives. The Torrevieja town hall put on special free buses from the Plaza de la Constitucion to the cemetery for people wishing to lay flowers at the graves of their departed loved ones. Flowers have been put on tombs since time immemorial and it seems that as far back as the Neanderthal man flowers were used, not only as an ornament, but to help overcome the smell of decaying corpses and attract good spirits. Recent excavations have shown that in Scotland and Denmark garlands of flowers were used in burial rites between 2,500 and 3,000 years ago.

November is renowned as a time to remember and commemorate the lives of those who have died. On the 11th November or the Sunday nearest it, many Europeans will take time out of their lives to think and pray for those who gave their lives for their countries during the two World Wars and other conflicts. In Alicante cementary groups from various countries gather to celebrate the anniversary of the termination of the first war. One such group is the UFACRE/CEAC with representatives from Germany, Australia, Belgium, Canada, Spain, France, Britain, Luxembourg. Several Consuls also attend this remembrance ceremony. Another group is the UniÛn Francesa de Antiguos Combatientes Residentes en EspaÒa and again consuls will be representated.
Along the Costa Blanca another British and Allied group hold remembrance services to honour those who have died in conflicts. This is the British Legion, an international group that has raised funds since 1918 to help those who have been injured in active service or who have run into difficulties since their military service. These services are definitely not to honour war, but rather to honour ordinary men and women who have died in the service of others trying to make this world a safer and better place for their children and grandchildren.

Saint Cecilia paron saint of music. 22nd November is one of the important musical festival dates as it is the feast of the patron saint of music, Santa Cecilia. Every town’s bands and choirs will be holding concerts for a couple of weeks, so watch out for them.

At the end of November the patronal fiestas of Torrevieja begin on a low key note acting as a lead in to Christmas. Torrevieja holds its patronal fiestas leading up to the 8th December, the feast of la Inmaculada. Each day, at mid-day and at five o’clock in the afternoon, the traditional BigHeads hold the children in suspense with their antics and distribution of sweets. Every night a barraca popular is held with pop concerts, dances and other forms of entertainment supplied: during some of the days special programmes are put on for children. On the 4th December the Floral Offering procession is held about 5.30 pm at la Inmaculada church with individuals and groups making up a stupendous floral display in honour of the town’s patroness. This is followed by a sung Mass. The 6th December is the Day of the Spanish Constitution and is a public holiday. The 8th December is the actual feast day of la Inmaculada (public holiday) and most of the events are of a religious nature with an evening procession followed by a firework display.

Virgin Mother, Baby Kings, Innocents and Eastern Kings.

December is a month full of illusion and fun. The 6th December is a national holiday celebrating the anniversary of the current Spanish Constitution which marks the advent of real democracy in Spain and really heralded the influx of so many foreigners who have decided to live in Spain since then.
The 8th is also a national holiday in honour of the Immaculate Conception of Mary and as the dates are so close together, if they should fall on weekdays with a weekend holiday, then most people take a short break.
Obviously Christmas Day on the 25th December is a public holiday.

28th Dec is the traditional fiesta de los Locos, Spain’s equivalent to April Fool’s Day.
The 28th December is known as the Day of the Innocents (when Herod slaughtered the children of Bethlehem) and in Spain is treated rather like April First.

Immaculate Conception in Torrevieja

During the week prior to 8th December Torrevieja celebrates the patronal feast of la Inmaculada. The streets of the town centre set the scene of festivities with gaily coloured fairy lights lighting up the night as people scuttle around choosing and buying presents for two of the most important feast days - Christmas 25th December and January 6th - the Three Kings.
There are many social and religious events held during the week prior to the 8th. The Town Hall supply the ingredients for a paella competition, so that everyone has a fair crack at the whip, but the cooking utensils and fires are the responsibility of the cooks. Twice a day at the end of school hours, Lily and her Bigheads entertain the schoolchildren in the main square. These figures date back to the miiddle of the 20th century when the film with Leslie Caron became a hit and Torrevejenses adopted their Bighead as Lyly, the title of the film.
The Church also has a series of lectures devoted to some aspect of Marian theology. One of the most impressive processions in this period is the Ofrenda or flower offering. In recent years groups have tended to make up the procesion carrying bouquets and baskets of beautiful flowers to lay them at the feet of the image of the la Inmaculada just outside the main church door. Over 80 groups take part, including bands of the town and co-incidentally pipe bands from Asturias who have come to join the large Asturian community who live in Torrevieja for the fiestas. This procession starts from the Plaza Oriente and wends its way towards the main plaza.
After the 8th December, there is a novena of nine Masses, each one for a different intention. Among these is one for the foreigners of the town and ministers of other denominations take part in a massive representation of the foreign community. At each Mass people bring non perishable goods or toys for the poorer mebers of the town.
The Torrevieja Casino has a winter programme of cultural events including the Serenatas Competition. This takes place in the Casino, the concerts linked in with the patronal feasts of the town. Here there are some of the best soloists, duos, trios and small groups who sing and play their hearts out with a wide range of habaneras, boleros, South American music and other types of music to serenade any romantic heart.

Most churches have crib scenes and many towns, including San Javier and Torrevieja, have large nativity displays in the town square showing not only the birth of Christ but a large part of his life with flowing water and windmills among other mobile parts. Also in Torrevieja in a side room of the church of the Sagrada Corazon in the Plaza Oriente, there is a large crib scene with many working models made by the local club of Belenistas, dedicated to making figurines associated with the life of Christ.
In the Alicante Province an association of Belenists was founded in 1959 and it is largely due to their work that the Christmas scene has become so popular locally.
In Murcia there is the Museo Salzillo where there are some beautiful figures related to Christmas. These were commissioned by Jesualdo Riquelme y Fonte and are the work of Francisco de Salzillo y Alcaraz (1707-1783). The Belen figures of Salzillo were influenced by Italian models and consist of 556 figures, 195 of them human and the rest made up of animals. These represent the principal biblical scenes against a framing background of models of both classical architecture and the typical buildings of Murcia. Salzillo used clay, wood, glass, canvas, bright polychrome paints and sumptuous fabrics. In the crib scenes, the sculptor has created a panorama of Murcia as it was in his day, showing the customs of the rural world around him. Among the characters, therefore, are butchers, hunters, spinners, muleteers and peasants. His story takes you from the angel of the Annunciation to the Flight into Egypt. Some figures wear clothing typical of Murcia. After the death of Salzillo in 1783, the crib was enlarged by one of his pupils, Roque LÛpez Hern·ndez, who finished off some of the figures asked for by the Marques.

Cagon figure

Nowadays many people have crib scenes in their homes and update the Christmas theme by including spacemen and rockets, Santa Claus, Batman and other heroes. However, one figure which is found only in Spanish cribs is the “cagon” whose origins are found in the Catalan word caganer. Most cagon figures are of a person squatting and doing what comes naturally. In CataluÒa there are even museums dedicate to this figure who has been personified as an angel, demon, monk and even as a guardia civil. He represents the unbeliever who was so busy doing his own thing that he missed the message of Christmas and, therefore, the opportunity to follow Christ

Obviously this is a good lead up to the Christmas season when several towns, including Torrevieja, hold villancicos or carol concerts and competitions. Several towns also have open-air crib scenes in the main plazas. The Torrevieja one is set up in the plaza ConstitucÌon showing the main events surrounding the birth of Jesus from the annoncement of the angel Gabriel to the Flight into Egypt. Many symbolic elements of the town are included in this crib scene, such as the windmill, the tower, the quay. The shops are decorated for the season and the local commercial association hold a competition open to everyone who purchses from one of their associates.