Les falles

There are several extremely interesting traditions celebrated in the Catalan speaking areas. One in particular is an Easter custom that takes place in late March, called the Falles. The Falles are a celebration of Saint Joseph that takes place annually in Valencia, the city for which he is the patron saint. Each neighborhood within the city designates a group of people known as the Casal Faller that spends a year creating a falla (for which the celebration is named) that will get burnt during the festivities. The falles have several different themes that depict aspects of popular culture and every-day life represented in a satiric tone with a ninot (the Valencian word for doll) that is a central point of each falla. Each day of the week long festival has a different event, which range from multitudes of historical and religious processions (where people wear traditional costumes) to humorous and satirical parades and parties. Each day begins early with the despertà, with bands parading down the street playing loud music and the fallers setting off firecrackers. Fireworks are set off on the nights leading up to the ultimate night, the La Nit del Foc ("the night of fire"). On March 19th, all of the falles are burnt as bonfires in an act known as la cremà, which concludes the festivities. The main purpose of the festival, apart from the celebration of Saint Joseph is to mock the celebrants themselves (the fallers).

Here is an example of the burning of a falla.

MEGAN ROGERS