This February, I was looking for an European city-break. I had a short list of locations in hand, but I was hoping for a warm place after the Romanian cold winter. I needed a short escape after a very busy period at work, so I got over a good air fare promo for Valencia. I took the flights and booked the hotel for mid-March.
By the time of booking, I had no clue that during the chosen period, Las Falles will be ongoing. However, hotel’s representatives were really helpful and sent me an e-mail a few days before arrival. It was the first time I had heard about this festival which is not really well-known.
Las Fallas or Las Falles(as called by Valencians) is a traditional celebration in honor of Saint Joseph which takes place every March in Valencia, Spain. The term Las Fallas means torch. By this term, Valencians are referring to both the festival and the allegorical chariots.
The celebration has its origin in the Middle Ages, when artisans disposed of their broken artifacts and small pieces of woods by burning them to celebrate spring equinox.
Burning falla
Nowadays, it is a fiesta of collective creativity and art. Small groups of people, known as Casal faller, from each Valencian neighborhood are preparing their ninot(pupets) for the grand parade. The casal faller is responsible for raising the funds and building the falla(the whole assemble that supports the ninot) which will be burnt on the last day of festival.
A couple of awarded fallas models
The nights of the festival are a continuous street party. Each community comes out to the street in order to present their allegorical scene. Fireworks can be seen at every corner and many participants dress in medieval clothing.
Since November 2016, the festival was added to UNESCO’s list of intangible cultural heritage.
A family wearing medieval clothing during Las Falles festival
Medieval clothing for rent
In 2017, the festival was organized between March 1-19. The most important events took place during the week-ends.
St. Joseph - statue of flowers
Thank you for reading!
