Fiesta de San Sebastián Yátor

Another fiesta,  another round of fireworks,  music and late nights.  (I heard a car creep past at 4am on Sunday morning,  and one of the many Marie-Carmens told me she was dancing till 5am on Sunday - she looked fine on Sunday lunchtime though).   Friday evening is usually quite low-key although we think something different happened this year,  someone mentioned 'theatre' but  conversations wander and we never did find out what it was.

Saturday morning we heard the band playing,  heard rockets and saw puffs of smoke in the sky,  again at about 2pm more rockets were set off - probably the end of the church service and to let you know lunch is served.  Just as the sun was setting there were the start of evening rockets,  the puffs of smoke now pink tinged.

We went down on Sunday,  first to the bar for a glass of wine and to watch the procession as it went past,  the statue of San Sebastián was carried up to the chapel,  la ermita de San Sebastián,   where it stays.   Another huge volley of fireworks was set off from close to the ermita,  before everyone made their way back down to the square.

Lunch was being cooked in an enormous pan outside the salon,  food and drinks laid out inside.  Take one pan about 5 foot diameter, and add 160 kilos of pork,  herbs,  spices etc and   yes, I asked and double checked I'd heard right.

Lunch eaten,  another drink or two - note the 0% beer for the duty driver, me this year although I did manage to have a glass or two of red wine as well.  1 euro a drink,  helps keep things simple especially on a busy day like yesterday.  A can of beer is around 25 cents in the shops,  but you don't get a glass and tapas with it there!

Lots of - for want of a better word -  stalls - selling things again,  cakes and pastries, mostly covered with chocolate and some had chocolate in the middle too,  (yes we bought a large cone shaped, chocolate covered pastry and found it full of sticky chocolate and I was so busy eating mine that I forgot a photo)  also  turrón and sticky sweet things (photo on a blog post in January on Ugijar market day)   more toy stalls than there were children,  plus a bouncy castle.

And then it was time for the horse racing.  As last year,  a string was strung across the road with curled ribbons attached to it.  As the horse and rider trot underneath they have to try and catch the loop that the ribbon is attached too,  they seem to use a small stick to do this and it doesn't appear to be easy!

One of the highlights amongst the horses was this little one,  the horse bends its  knees and sits down on the road so the little boy can get on and off.  The string of ribbons was pulled down low so he had a chance of winning a ribbon too.