What ’ s On
San Juan Bautista
Having recovered from the San Isidro celebrations last month , it ’ s time to draw breath and prepare for the year ’ s next great annual party , San Juan Bautista , on the night of June 23 . It marks the feast day of St John the Baptist and the event is celebrated throughout many parts of the Spanish and Latin- American world . It ’ s a night filled with magic and mystery , marking the beginning of summer .
The well-known Saint at the heart of the traditions is an important part of Biblical heritage : the man who baptised Jesus Christ in the River Jordan but was later arrested , and , at the request of Salomé who had captivated Governor Herod , was beheaded . An almost exact contemporary of Christ , he is believed to have been born on June 24 , which is now his feast day .
It is Jesus ’ baptism which has led to the day ’ s associations with water and cleansing and , as usual , at midnight on the evening of 23 June , hundreds of people along the south coast of Andalucía will join thousands around the world by wading into the sea , river or swimming pool to submerge themselves . According to tradition , at this hour , the waters are blessed and hold special powers to cure illnesses , enhance beauty , grant wealth , promote fertility among animals , increase crop yield , and keep the sea at bay . Long ago in Nerja and other towns , sea bathing was prohibited until this night of the year .
The custom has its variations at home and abroad . In Galicia , it is traditional for women who want to be fertile to bathe in the sea until they are washed by nine waves , while in San Juan , capital of Puerto Rico , luck is said to be enhanced by walking backwards into the sea . Some Caribbeans repeat the action 12 times , once for each number on the clock face and each month of the year , while others believe that seven is more than adequate and just as lucky . At Las Palmas on the island of Gran Canaria , the sea is adorned with fruit and flowers .
The other element which plays an even more important part of the night ’ s celebrations is fire , also seen as a purifying element . Bonfires will be built on Spanish beaches in the days leading up to the event , which is often referred to as the fiesta del fuego . After they ’ re lit , some brave souls will choose to jump over the flames , a custom which was widespread in ancient Rome , believing that it will purify them and protect them from illness .
In Icod de los Vinos on Tenerife , enormous balls of fire are brought down from high up in the mountains , while in some places near the Pyrenees of Lérida , fallas ( Pyrenean bonfires ) are lit with dried fir wood which has been brought from the hills by the region ’ s young men . The “ passing of fire ” in San Pedro Manrique , Soria , is actually dedicated to the Virgen de la Peña , not St John . Here , the men walk barefoot over a layer of burning embers , sometimes carrying a passenger piggyback , without suffering any injury .
Alicante ’ s celebrations , Las Hogueras de San Juan ( The Bonfires of St John ) are considered to be of international tourist interest and see the streets filled with ninots , large sculptured satires on well-known characters from politics and social life , which will be burnt on the bonfires lit on June 24 in a magic ritual known as the Cremà . On the island of Minorca , Ciutadella holds the most spectacular of the Balearic fiestas at San Juan , with horses in the leading role , demonstrating their caprioles – vertical leaps , with a backward kick of the hind legs at the height of the jump . The mastery of the caixers ( riders ) who open up a passage through the admiring crowd is toasted with the favourite drink of Minorcan gin and lemonade .
Around the same time in Alosno , Huelva , there is a dance of bell ringers inside the church , while in Frías , Burgos , the Captain ’ s Dance is held on the Sunday closest to June 24 . Another tradition says that women of the house should prepare perfumed or scented water with seven plants including roses , rosemary and laurel , then take a bath or wash their faces with this water . It ’ s another method of purification .
Beaches all along the coast of Andalucía will gradually take on the appearance of a shanty town during June 23 as groups stake their place on the sands , gather a mountain of wood for a bonfire which will burn till sunrise , and begin to settle down for two days of partying . There will be dozens of elaborate shelters made of scaffolding poles and sheets of material to house cooking and living quarters , often with a generator supplying power for the music system , plus La moraga cooking enough household furniture to make it a 48 hour home from home . There are camp fires everywhere cooking la moraga , slow roasted sardines , while noise dominates and fun is the order of the night .
All beaches are good for those who want to sanjuanear – a verb used in Nerja to express this special kind of fiesta – although the majority prefer Burriana Beach because it ’ s where Nerja Town Hall traditionally provides entertainment . The town ’ s celebrations date from the end of the 16th century and began amongst the town ’ s homeless under a pine tree in the district known as Los Chozas ( The Huts ) where calle San Juan is now . The practice died out in the 1930s but was revived in the late 1970s .
But the old traditions of the night are still upheld . If you suffer from an ailment , wash your eyes then rub the leaves of a plant on the problem area to cure it . Burn ten objects which symbolise things you ’ d like to see out of your life , then wish for ten things to enter it . Jump over the bonfire three times for luck , and then , at midnight and again at dawn , run into the sea . Wash your head and feet three times , and you ’ ll be granted three wishes .
Also at midnight , the main bonfire on Burriana Beach is lit , like many others along the coast . Traditionally , these would burn juás , effigies of Judas Iscariot , in a tradition similar to the British custom of burning a representation of Guy Fawkes each November 5 . However , the religious significance has now been lost and in some places a representation of a currently famous or infamous celebrity sits on top of the bonfire instead , ready to be reduced to ashes .
29