Nos Haro

Nos Haro

A guide to Spain's quirkier festivals

Spanish seem rarely needed a reason for a fiesta or festival of some kind and that can guarantee more or less wherever you are in Spain there will be some celebration going on somewhere in honor of a patron saint - I decided to look at some the quirkier of Spain, slightly less known festivals and enlighten readers as to some of the stranger practices which take place several times across the country.

Our journey begins in the east in the town of Buñol in the region of Valencia, where a one-week long festival honoring the town's patron saint, San Luis Bertran, ends in the famous "Tomatina, a tomato fight two hours where the trucks bring 120,000 kg of tomatoes for the locals to pelt each other. Everything is a bit of freedom for all and usually girls pitted against boys for two hours of madness from 11am-1pm. Participants can expect to get very messy and it advisable to wear something old, and preferably red, if you do not want the stains that appear. Despite the "Tomatina" in clear relief, there are many other facets of the feast to be enjoyed throughout the week with fireworks, parades and a paella cook-off among the most notable.

Not far in the city of Valencia villagers enjoy a week in the festivities of "Las Fallas", one of the most unique festivals in Spain. The raucous celebration takes weeks in March and is also known as "Las Fallas" which are huge papier-mache figures of up to 60 feet tall. Built in the streets, the figures are often a satirical edge, Tony Blair and George Bush effigies graced last year's festival. The culmination of the festivities is the "Night of Fire", where all 700 of "Las Fallas" are carbonized to convert many of the city streets in large bonfires. No doubt local fire services busiest evening years and certainly can not miss one for visitors to the region.

Next stop is Catalonia and the city of Valls located approximately 100 kilometers southwest Barcelona, where every year city residents gather for the legendary "calçotada." A celebration of food and in particular the "calçot" (Like a green onion) with piles of coal for BBQ grill side street of one of them by the locals to eat. There is even a hug from sauce pan on hand to spice things a bit. The main event is the eating competition as burly local champions from throughout the region line to see how many onion can save in 45 minutes apparently is not uncommon for the victor to eat in excess of 300! After a winner has been decided the city to great local cafes Decamps, where for a reasonable price "Calçots are served in plentiful numbers alongside grilled meat and washed down with red wine you can drink as much. It is certainly off the beaten track a little and for that reason you will not see many tourists, but expect a warm welcome from the locals who will undoubtedly be in good humor.

June 29 day of San Pedro and we are deeply in wine production heart Spain, La Rioja, where for one day each year, the medieval town of Haro is host to the famous "Battle of Wine" (literally "Wine Battle"). Apparently, the battle of the roots in an ancient dispute between Haro and its neighbors. Today the fight is very kind to thousands of liters of wine being released around the battlefield (a hill overlooking Haro). Like the Tomatina, this will be a messy and I suggest you come prepared with some ammunition of their own, the locals have been doing this for years so expect to have a few drinks from the beginning.

About the Author

Mike McDougall works for Babylon Idiomas, a Spanish language institute with schools in Spain [Barcelona, Madrid, Sevilla, Valencia], Argentina [Buenos Aires] and Costa Rica. Click here to learn more about Spanish courses.