Valencia -- Part II

"Donde esta Las Fallas?" is my question at the information desk at the Valencia train station. His response, while probably trying to hold back a mixture of a laugh and frustration from how many times he had been asked the same question by touists, was to point behind me out the door. Luckily the train station was centrally located in the heart of the older part of town.

Even early during this spring day, you could feel the excitement and energy. As soon as you step out of the station, ninots or puppets could be seen. We had some time too kill before the 14:00 Mascletas. We began our own tour of the city. I was greeted by the scent of something fried.

I need you to picture in your head and feel like you are at something of a carnival, the 4th of July in the USA, and the beginning of spring. Got it? Okay, now you (by you I mean me) are walking by a food stand, a huge vat of oil is cooking dough. All kinds of fried donought type foods is what you smell. The architecture is also impressive. So now you are snapping off pictutures of the amazing buildings. At random points in the streets, sometimes at crossroads or just in the middle of a fenced area, huge ninots are visiable for your pleasure. These are amazing works of art, something that artists have spend lots of time and money on. They are only to be enjoyed, however, for one week. Las Fallas is the celebration of the start of spring. At the end of the week, among many other events that occur, these ninots will go up in a blaze of fire.

Speaking of fire, it is now 14:00 (2:00pm, for you all not accustom to Europe watches tell time). The Mascletas is about to start. You had been walking around with ease, not too many people about. However, within the last hour, people have been appearing at an alarming rate. It is very apparent where the celebration was to take place, where the huge crowds of people were congregating (see above picture).

It takes you about 20 minutes to walk the distance of a block in the waves of people. Giving up on trying to make it any further, you just decide to stand and watch from this place. The sound of a fire cracker reaches your ears. The sound has been common all day long, but several more follow. Then fireworks in the air. Mascletas has begun! For the next 15 minutes, you, and everyone else watch the fireworks fly in a blaze of spring glory. These are exploding not 40 yards away causing shock waves of sound to pass through your body and chest. The lights and noise are impressive, the feeling is intense. In a grand finale, explosions are resounding from the sky to the ground. At the end, music begins to play and people sing along, something similar to New Years Eve. Locals in traditional dress walk around, people, including you take pictures. Within the next 30 minutes, most of the crowd will be gone. It is Monday, I assume people have to go work. Street sweepers and people clean the streets to be very respectable.

Happy Las Fallas!

Now you wander over to a stadium...