Fiestas of Altea: Saturday
During the festival of Moros i Cristians (Moors and Christians) there are parades of both Moors and Christians. There's also a kind of play in the plaza. There are videos of the play and of some traditional Valencian dancing and music on my Youtube channel which you should also check out fairly regularly because I will be adding stuff to it! Sean's Youtube Channel
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| Begining of the "Moors parade" |
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| Spanish people love there walking bands! |
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| Some flag bearing Moors |
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| The church plaza, notice the castle erected for the play in the corner |
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| Everything's set for the play! Check out the Youtube channel if you'd like to watch some of it! Sorry for some of the blurriness in the videos but if a picture speaks a thousand words than a video can just tell the whole story. It also gives all of you a really neat opportunity to hear the Valencian language spoken because it's only spoken in about a 8,979 square mile area. Just for a frame of reference, Iowa's area is 56,272 square miles. |
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| A couple of shots of the view from the church plaza |
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| A cool sign in the church plaza |
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| Beginning the Christian's parade! |
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| A view from the street |
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| Some small knights in training |
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| There are lots of groups called "Peñas" that pay money to use a common space, be in functions such as this, and have access to property. The idea is a lot like a country club membership, however; peñas are much more exclusive and often have family ties. Each peña in the parade has they're own garb and music so here are some photos of a few. This kind of thing went on for around 3 hours. |
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| A random one with goats |
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| Caballerillo |
Thanks for reading! I really appreciate all your interest in what I'm doing over here. If you'd like to hear some of the kinds of music that the bands played during the parades here's a link to some Valencian Band music: Música Valenciana. Once again check out the Youtube channel.
Pax & Bonum,Sean
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