Last
night at midnight Seville has officially opened the April Fair 2014 and
together with our visiting friends, Hamish and Jen, we were there to witness
the big event.
We
had fried fish for dinner as the tradition dictates (cena de pescaitos), then
headed over to the Feria grounds. There was a certain tension in the air, like
the whole city is waiting.
The red/white or green/white stripy Feria tents, the casetas were already filling up and everybody headed for the entrance gate.
La
Portada. This huge gate is set up to mark the main entrance to the Feria and
its design is different every year. It stunned us with its sheer size. On its
surface there were thousands of light bulbs waiting to be lit.
We
got there a bit early and decided to acquire some provisions before the main
event. On a side street we managed to score huge plastic cups of rebujito, the
official drink of the Feria. This is a mixture of strong white wine and 7UP.
We
found a good spot and watched as the whole city was waiting, cameras at the ready. Finally
at midnight they turned on the electricity and the La Portada lit up section by
section.
After
the main event we walked around a bit amongst the casetas and watched people
dancing Sevillana, this flamenco dance style that is the pride and joy of the
people of Seville, the sevillanos.
It
seemed like the whole city was there to enjoy the first night of the Feria de
Abril.
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