AUGUST is HERE !!! Yes it’s fiesta week in Hondon De Los Frailes (Costa Blanca South). It’s sure to be popular and usually has something for all tastes and ages groups… highlights are the Bands in the Plaza, Firework Fights (yes fights !!!), Water Fight, parades, community activities such as the mass bike ride and much more.
Full Programmes are available from the Frailes Council Offices and local bars or resturants… it’s gonna be busy but most of the evening stuff goes on very late – be warned !!
Here’s a translation of the Frailes Fiesta Programme – not sure how accurate it is (so subject to change) ?
Thursday 27th AUgust
6 – 8pm Masks of the World
10pm Community Supper (Havana Night) Bring your own Food and Enjoy !!
10.30pm Performance by “Costa Blanca Trio”
12pm Performane of Ballet of Inma Cortes
2am (yes 2am !) Chocolate free for all (by Chocolate Valor)
Friday 28th
8pm Music Band of Hondon de Los Frailes
8.30pm Offering of flowers to the Virgin
12.30am Open Air Dancing to “the King of the Sun”
Saturday 29th
10am Music Band through the streets
12noon Mass
7.30pm Music Bands (Pop, Jazz)
8.30pm Grand March through the town with the floats with prizes for the best accompanied by the musical bands
12.30am Open air dancing to “Pershing”
Sunday 30th
10.30am Grand Pageant with a marching band
12 noon Solem Mass for Virgin de Salud sung by Pinoso Choir
9pm Procession with the Image of the Patron Virgin followed by Fireworks
12.30pm Open Air Dancing to “Vendetta”
Monday 31st
11am – 2pm Entertainment for the children and a tourist train across Hondon de Los Frailes
2pm Giant Paella (buy tickets required from Town Hall)
4.30pm – 6pm Water Fight- Get Wet, Wetter, Wettest !! Great Fun !!
8pm Mass for the Deceased (I assume this a Church event !)
It’s party time in Hondon Valley. Like so many cities, towns and villages across Spain August is for partying. The Fiestas are usually quite amazing, even small villages set aside funds and resources that help get the community out into the Plazas, singing, dancing and involved in all manner of activities. Including locally…
Religious Festivals / Beauty pageants / Dancing & Live Music / Concerts / Theatre / Raves / Medieval Markets / Fireworks / Bull Runs… and they go on all night if you let them.
Don’t expect to get much work done during August – people have other priorities !!!
For such a small village Hondón knows how to party and has put on some truly fantastic fiestas. Some Fiestas are a ‘tour’ that do the rounds of villages in the area BUT MOSTLY Hondon people get truly involved in the Fietsa Spirit. My personal Favourite has been the Hondon Medieval Night / Correfocs … where the whole village is transformed into ‘olde world’ with street entertainers and stalls + a big firework finale. It takes place usually in July or August. It’s worth seeing !
Hondon has many annual festival (big ones over 2 weeks August), some honoring the Virgin of the Snows (religious icon). On August 5 on odd years, Hondón de las Nieves or Aspe organise this festival which has proven to have popular support by the locals of both Aspe and Hondon. People march from all the local village to be entertained with cultural events giving the first fortnight of August a real festivity of color, food, music and dance. We love it !!
You can usually get a program of festivals from the village town hall (Ayuntamiento).
There are also many Cultural Days, which show theater, music, dance, cuisine and sports in late spring or early summer. Hondón de las Nieves also has a Municipal Sports Center which has a public swimming pool, tennis courts, fronton, paddle courts, a soccer field and a restaurant. All this, plus recreation areas, scenic beauty and other holidays, provide visitors a wide range of possibilities for leisure.
As part of the Hondón Christmas Festival, a motley crew of willing Hondón Expats / volunteers formed a ‘choir’ to sing traditional English Christmas carols in the Nieves square at the weekend. The aim was to raise a little money for equipment for the local medical centre and of course bring some festive spirit to the village on a lovely sunny day.
Despite some dodgy sound system (kindly donated and set-up by the Nieves Ayuntimiento) and a range of singing keys, the carollers muddled through favourites such as We Wish You A Merry Xmas, Ding-Dong Merrily on High, Silent Night, etc.
Afterwards some wonderful people gave out free mince pies and mulled wine. Yum!! And yes people did give generously to the tin-rattlers. And a big thumbs up for Santa (Papa Noel) who mananged to find time in his busy schedule to visit the children in Nieves. He gave a jolly Ho-HO and sweets to them all. Well Done Guys!
Feliz Navidad ! Christmas time is coming, the goose is getting fat. Please put a Euro in the collecting tin of the man in a funny red hat !!
OK, Nieves council has just released the timetable for Christmas festivities 2008. You can get a copy at the Nieves Town Hall. Highlights include:
Carol Singing in the square with a navity
Food tasting in Canalosa (with a great Nativity Play by the locals)
Gran Chocolate and Christmas Story competition for children
The Christmas Procession on C/Eve (starring Papa Noel)
Musical Concerts workshops
Winter Games for the bigger kids
New Years Eve in the Square (12 grapes and champers!!)
The Three Kings parade (6th Jan)
And for a small village they are surprisingly good and the locals put so much effort in. Go support them, it’s really nice to see families enjoying themselves. Recommended !
Fiesta Time Again !!! What a great summer this is turning out to be. If you look you shall find many local festivals in or near the Hondon Valley.
Nit de L’Alba
One of the biggest festivals nearby is the Nit de L’Alba in Elche, near Alicante, Costa Blanca. Elche (city of the palms) is a lovely place to visit anyway. But go to this AWESOME FIREWORK DISPLAY (which has some historical and religious significance).
WOW! It was an unbelievable and relentless display with 100′000’s of aerial fireworks and FREE !!! All part of their Fiesta calendar. The whole city was buzzing (and banging ! ) … must have cost a fortune.
It’s impossible to describe the experience really SEE THE VIDEO HERE – but this is no ordinary firework night, more a war-zone, , hell on earth, exciting, scary! You cowered at the sheer volume of bangs and noise, the power and spectacle of this event is jaw-dropping.
You had to be there to understand … and it was still going strong into the early hours!
But forget Health and Safety, You’ll see things that would NEVER happen in the UK, kids as young as 5 have mini-crackers and bangers, dads who should know better acting like teenagers. Afterwards the Fire Fight starts known as “Guerrilla Carretillas” who have ‘organised’ firework combat (they even have the gear) !!!!
Well recommended for next year. I’ll be there hopefully !
The Fiesta season carries on regardless… in the sweltering heat – a popular July and August ‘treat’ in Spanish Culture is the Bull Run – often seen in small local towns and villages. A sort of poor man’s Bull Fighting without the fighting and finery (and no killing).
This spectacle seems to travel from town to town in the Hondón Valley region, including Pinoso and La Romana.
What is the Bull Run?
It consists of a make-shift ‘bull-ring’ of laddered walls (see pictures) these protect the viewing public but also serve as an escape route for the brave souls (or foolhardy) that enter the ring to be chased by or taunt the bull(s). It’s entertaining enough for a while, but the poor bulls are teased and prodded to make then more angry. Still it;s their custom and at least I’ve seen it.
The great thing is though that it’s a BIG family day for the Spanish (as are all Fiestas) and they bring food, wine and music to make a BIG PARTY !! The one I visited had a Spanish Brass band, market , bar and later a rock pop band on stage.
You have to say that the Spanish know how to do parties even in the remotest of places or small villages. More power to ‘em.
One of the biggest summer festival highlights in recent years is the Medieval Festival in Hondon de las Nieves (usually July/August). It’s 2 days of themed markets, crafts, food, events, shows and general firework mayhem to finish off with at Midnight! It seems the whole village and more attends – great fun, great atmosphere and not to be missed. The fireworks are ‘performed’ by Correfocs which roam the villages streets, lights are off and ponding music to accompany the party. Luv it!
It’s still Fiesta Time in Hondón de las Nieves in July / August this year… events left include the Paella Contest + “Kasi Clásica” musical evening at the Sports Centre + Medieval Market (well worth a visit) in the Main Plaza and surrounding Streets usually with an impressive Firework Display at Midnight. If you are in the Hondón area please come along + program of events are available from the Town Hall or local establishments.
As part of the Hondón Christmas Festival, a motley crew of willing Hondón Expats / volunteers formed a ‘choir’ to sing traditional English Christmas carols in the Nieves square at the weekend. The aim was to raise a little money for equipment for the local medical centre and of course bring some festive spirit to the village on a lovely sunny day.
Feliz Navidad ! Christmas time is coming, the goose is getting fat. Please put a Euro in the collecting tin of the man in a funny red hat !!
