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Fallas in Valencia
Between March 12 and March 19, the worldwide capital of the paella, Valencia, becomes for a few days in the fire town of all the Mediterranean because it celebrates the famous Fallas.
Everybody knows that this party was originated by the craftsmen of this zone, specially carpenters. Its origin is relatively simple, it was just the burning of the remains of the carpenter's workshops. Thanks to the Valencian people inventiveness these remains were agglutinated year after year acquiring human features till the point of representing popular neighborhood characters, so that the famous falleros artists were born.
The big sculptures made of paper and cardboard on a wooden framework are called "fallas" the construction of these sculptures doesn't have limits and nowadays there are several models , for example the ninots, very realist animals, cartoons, abstract figures, futuristic themes, etc. More than 300 sculptures which are built along all over the year in order to fill the streets of this city with a strange and gigantic coloring.
During the festive days it is practically impossible to drive a car or walk in the city because all the celebration is on the streets that are in the center of the city; On these days are also celebrated other holydays, for example bullfightings and a beautiful floral offering to the "Virgen de los Desamparados", patron saint of Valencia. The last day of these holidays at the midnight, it means the March 19, it is celebrated the "cremá", it is a tradition of fireworks, explosions, gunpowder and enormous sudden blazes in which the beautiful sculptures get reduced to ashes.
This day, March 19, it is celebrated the Saint Joseph's day, day in which is also celebrate the Father's Day in Spain because if you remember Joseph was the foster father of Jesus. The "fallas" has become an important tourist attraction inside the Spanish folklore for Spaniards people as well as for foreigners.
Fallas of Valencia
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The Cremā in Valencia
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Falleras of Valencia
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A Mascletā in Valencia
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