Corpus Christi is a smaller affair in San Jose (Breña Baja) than in Mazo, but it’s still beautiful. San Jose always celebrates Corpus Christi on the Sunday after Mazo’s celebration. Since the whole thing takes out on a flat, tarmaced street, the tradition is to make carpets of coloured salt, with the altars being much more modest. In recent years, many of the carpets are made from seeds and petals,…
Oops. Corpus Christi is this weekend, and the archways and carpets are already on display in Mazo. Do go and see it. It’s spectacular. Here are a few photos from this year. For an explanation of all this, see Corpus Christi in Mazo Tomorrow there will be salt carpets in San Jose.
Wednesday is Canary Day. It’s a big thing here. On Tuesday, most schools will have a party for the second half of the morning. They’ll serve traditional food (probably lots of gofio) and play traditional folk music. Some will have Canarian sports, like the Shepherd’s Leap. Schools and most shops will be shut on Wednesday. There’s a good chance that you’ll be able to catch a folk group performing somewhere.
Here are some photos of the sardine’s funeral at El Llanito. As you can see, the sardine itself is much smaller than the one in Los Sauces, but I love those bee-stung lips! Unlike most places, the bier was carried by the sardine’s widows. Like most places, the widows were very tall and muscular. There’s a long tradition of political protest at carnival. This placard is in support of the…
Santa Cruz de La Palma’s funeral for the sardine is a comparatively quiet affair (note “comparatively” – I think more people went to the costume dance on Saturday). It was still fun. The procession started with two of the sardine’s widows (posh-looking transvestites) followed by the Batuka (serious percussion) and jugglers, a fire eaters and a man on stilts. Next came the sardine itself, hand-carried by about ten men in…
Tuesday 17th is the fiesta of San Antonio Abad (St. Anthony the Abbot) in Fuencaliente, and at midday the priest holds a special, traditional service to bless the animals in the church square. I went a couple of years ago, out of curiosity. I didn’t know whether to expect pets or farm animals, but there was a charnming selection of both. At twelve promptly, the priest came out, gave a…