Travel
- 5 Things To Do At Las Fallas Festival In Valencia
With over 3 million people attending every year, Las Fallas Festival from Valencia is considered to be the biggest street party in Europe. Las Fallas is celebrated from the 1st to the 19th of March, though to be honest, the most important and more fun...
- A Last Glimpse Of Las Fallas Festival & What It Meant To Us
Spending the Las Fallas festival with Somi and Yeji, our two Korean friends we met at a wine tasting in Porto, meant a whole world of new experiences to us. We learned something about the world and a great deal about our...
- Amazing Light Displays At Las Fallas Festival From Valencia
Las Fallas or the Festival of Fire is held in Valencia, Spain every year from the 1st to the 19th of March. People hit the streets dressed up in traditional costumes, build a huge statue of Virgin Mary out of flowers and enormous fallas...
- Las Fallas In Short
Falla being installed in front of the Town Hall, Valencia 2010 Festivals are a great way to discover how the locals have fun and the traditions that form the core of a community. Las Fallas is very much such a festival, full of symbolism and with...
- The Incredible Las Fallas. A Festival Of Noise And Fire
Las Fallas Festival takes place every year between the 1st and the 19th of March (16th to 19th are the most important days though) in the city of Valencia (Spain) and the nearby towns. Las Fallas is a traditional celebration in praise of Saint Joseph,...
Travel
Las Fallas Festival, Valencia: Mascleta
Las Fallas or the Festival of Fire is held in Valencia, Spain every year from the 1st to the 19th of March. People hit the streets dressed up in traditional costumes, build a huge statue of Virgin Mary out of flowers and enormous fallas (cardbord and papier-mâché figures), enjoy mascletas, light displays and valencian food. I am in Valencia right now and I will keep you updated throughout 2011's Las Fallas Festival.
In a country known for its unique and odd fiestas, Las Fallas festival is undoubtedly one of the craziest. Every year the city of Valencia celebrates the revival of nature with mascletas, religious processions, bonfires and bullfights.
Valencia is the Mozart of fireworks and firecrackers worldwide and gunpowder is here a religion of some sorts, a form of artistic expression. Every mascleta is tuned to a different song and is organized by different professional pyrotechnic bands that compete to create the best melody. The best mascleta is meant to be on the 19th of March, the last day of Las Fallas festival. The crowds gather in front of the City Hall hours in advance and during the mascleta the nearby streets can get pretty cramped.
In the video above you can watch the first mascleta of 2011 (starting at 3:10). At the beginning the reporter (speaking in valenciano, the local language), talks about the initiative to include Las Fallas festival in the UNESCO World Heritage list. Then you can see la Fallera Mayor and Fallera Mayor Infantil of Valencia (the two young ladies dressed in the beautiful traditional costumes who represent the festival) giving the start of the mascleta from the City Hall balcony. Next to them, the lady in red, is the mayor of Valencia (she's been the mayor of the city for 20 years now). The mascletas usually last for 5 to 10 minutes during which more or less 160kg of gunpowder explode. Multiply that for 19 days and you will get a sense of how loud Las Fallas festival really is.
In a country known for its unique and odd fiestas, Las Fallas festival is undoubtedly one of the craziest. Every year the city of Valencia celebrates the revival of nature with mascletas, religious processions, bonfires and bullfights.
What are the mascletas?
A mascleta is an explosive display of the concussive effects of co-ordinated firecracker and fireworks barrages. Not so much visual, but very, very loud (over 110dB!), the firecrackers are synchronized like an orchestra and the result is a one of a kind symphony. The most important mascleta is held in front of the City Hall, at 2pm every day (except rainy days) from the 1st to the 19th of March. Smaller mascletas are held during Las Fallas festival around the city of Valencia and the neighbouring villages too.In the video above you can watch the first mascleta of 2011 (starting at 3:10). At the beginning the reporter (speaking in valenciano, the local language), talks about the initiative to include Las Fallas festival in the UNESCO World Heritage list. Then you can see la Fallera Mayor and Fallera Mayor Infantil of Valencia (the two young ladies dressed in the beautiful traditional costumes who represent the festival) giving the start of the mascleta from the City Hall balcony. Next to them, the lady in red, is the mayor of Valencia (she's been the mayor of the city for 20 years now). The mascletas usually last for 5 to 10 minutes during which more or less 160kg of gunpowder explode. Multiply that for 19 days and you will get a sense of how loud Las Fallas festival really is.
- 5 Things To Do At Las Fallas Festival In Valencia
With over 3 million people attending every year, Las Fallas Festival from Valencia is considered to be the biggest street party in Europe. Las Fallas is celebrated from the 1st to the 19th of March, though to be honest, the most important and more fun...
- A Last Glimpse Of Las Fallas Festival & What It Meant To Us
Spending the Las Fallas festival with Somi and Yeji, our two Korean friends we met at a wine tasting in Porto, meant a whole world of new experiences to us. We learned something about the world and a great deal about our...
- Amazing Light Displays At Las Fallas Festival From Valencia
Las Fallas or the Festival of Fire is held in Valencia, Spain every year from the 1st to the 19th of March. People hit the streets dressed up in traditional costumes, build a huge statue of Virgin Mary out of flowers and enormous fallas...
- Las Fallas In Short
Falla being installed in front of the Town Hall, Valencia 2010 Festivals are a great way to discover how the locals have fun and the traditions that form the core of a community. Las Fallas is very much such a festival, full of symbolism and with...
- The Incredible Las Fallas. A Festival Of Noise And Fire
Las Fallas Festival takes place every year between the 1st and the 19th of March (16th to 19th are the most important days though) in the city of Valencia (Spain) and the nearby towns. Las Fallas is a traditional celebration in praise of Saint Joseph,...