Santa Eulalia 1st May Fiesta

Ibiza	Fiestas

 

Known as the Flower Festival

Anem a maig

The Santa Eulalia fiesta celebrating the first Sunday in May

The first Sunday in May may seem a fairly loose date for a fiesta, in terms of dates and diaries, but this is perhaps a clue as to how far back into antiquity this fiesta dates. It is not only one of the oldest, but also one of the quaintest of the island celebrations. One of the highlights is the procession featuring beautifully preserved and with flowers decorated horse drawn carts. That's where the name Flower Festival comes from.

Nobody knows how old the tradition is, but it certainly pre-dates the town's current fortress church. Tradition has it that originally there was a small chapel atop the cliff to the north side of the bay of Santa Eulalia , which was perfectly adequate for the settlements smaller population of the day. However, one Sunday (very likely the first Sunday in May) almost immediately after the service and the departure of the worshippers, there was a loud rumble and the little church slid down the face of the cliff and into the sea. As nobody was hurt the incident was proclaimed a miracle by the hugely religious population and word of this miracle spread swiftly around the island. This prompted people from all over the island to travel to tiny Santa Eulalia each first Sunday in May to celebrate the miraculous salvation of the local worshippers and the holy place.

Bear in mind that the vast majority of the island's population travelled by horse and cart until only a few decades ago which largely accounts for the negative attitude of locals to travelling great distances, of more than a few miles, even today. Long-term residents soon seem to absorb this attitude too. Then consider that there weren't any roads to speak of - even today's roughest camino would look like a motorway to our ancient horse and cart.

But they made the effort to trek over to this fiesta on their carts and thus this Santa Eulalia celebration became the island's annual cart exhibition.

Cart processions can actually be more entertaining than one might expect. This year marks the tenth anniversary of the 'día del trueno' meaning the 'day of thunder'. It has long been a tradition to crown a fiesta with a spectacular firework display long after the sun has set - and they are indeed spectacular. However, as any proficient pyrotechnist will tell you, it is vital to test one firework from the installation long before unleashing the barrage that marks the end of the fiesta. Unfortunately on this occasion, probably due to a wiring fault (in the best of local tradition) the afternoon test firing unleashed the entire display as the horse and cart procession made its way down the main street. The noise somewhat alarmed the horses who took off in complete panic with carts and occupants in tow. Unfortunately the full effects of the firework display were invisible on such a sunny afternoon.

This misfortune was only to be bettered the following year when the town hall decided that distributing the traditional sweets from a low flying aircraft would be a novel idea. Once again fifty or more horses fled up the side streets of the village in terror.

To end on a more positive note - tradition has it that the submerged bell of the sunken church still tolls on dark and stormy nights to warn passing ships of the shallow waters near to the cliff. In recent memory this seems to have worked? Anyway, let's look forward to an eventful day out with the rest of the island - see you on the first Sunday of May.

May Day Photos