WEDNESDAY 23RD JUNE 2010.
Notche de San Juan – A Magical Night.
Andalucians just love a good party; one of the most remarkable is Noche de San Juan – the Night of St John, on the heels of the longest night of the year. The beaches all along the coast play host to hundreds of thousands of people, like so many other festivities in Spain the history is shrouded in religion and rooted in beliefs held long ago. It’s a celebration of an old Pagan event and marks the beginning of summer; the fire of the bonfires purifies, and the water of the sea cleanses and rejuvenates!
According to tradition, if people jump over the bonfire three times on the night their body and sole will be purified and they will find that their problems have been burned away. At midnight hundreds of people rush into the sea and wash their feet and face three times and you are granted three wishes and have a happy year- some say that it symbolizes the baptisms by John the Baptist !
One of the great spectacles is the burning at midnight of the of the effigies specially prepared for the occasion; it was believed that they represented Judas Iscariot although the religious interpretation has taken a back seat, as you can see in the pictures! There is always plenty of entertainment and also a very large firework display normally but this year the cuts may have taken place, so we will see! Watch this space for the full report and some pictures.
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