Ronald McDonald: Patron Saint of El Molar

This weekend I headed out to El Molar to check out their "fiestas". This weekend was their celebration of "la Virgen del Remolino" (their patron saint). According to tradition, the Virgin appeared to some shepherds who made the journey along the river Jarama. There was a tornado of dust, and from the dust emerged the Virgin carrying a child in her arms. You can see the image year-round in the chapel built by the molareños six kilometers from the town, on the site of the supposed appearance. The prelude to the festival begins on Easter Sunday and after forty days, the Ascension Day High Mass is celebrated in the morning and in the evening there is a procession, which is the centerpiece of the festivities and celebrated with fireworks.

The following day (the day I attended) continues with bullfighting, musical performances, activities, etc, and ends the following Sunday with the now famous "Pilgrimage of Taral". This includes a procession in which the image of the patron saint is returned to her shrine, dismissing her with a picnic, contests, snacks and dancing at the foot of the sanctuary.

My uncle was kind enough to drive me  out there on the way to a business meeting. El Molar is situated about half an hour's drive out of Madrid. 

When we came into the town it was still asleep. Evidence of a big party the night before was strewed across the street. Plastic cups, straws, silly string and not to mention the "young-folk" still in their party gear leaving various bars. We parked and walked towards the center of town and asked a local where the activities would take place. 

After a carajillo coffee and cognac (it was 8:30 am) we made our way towards the plaza. We walked past the trailer where they were holding the bulls and you would think there was a T-rex inside! You couldn't see anything but the trailer was rocking back and forth as the bulls would throw themselves against the metal siding.

We then found a spot to watch the crazies run with the bulls. Mind you, the typical weight of a bull is 1000 lbs. And you're standing nose to nose with it. I climbed as high up on the railings as I could. The first rocket boomed to let us know that the the spectators were ready and then a minute later the second boom sounded to let us know that the bull had been released.

Unfortunately I had to ask my uncle to video it because I doubted my "cat-like" skills in clinging for dear life AND operating a camera.... so this is what I ended up with.

After the 3rd bull was released we made our way to the bullfighting ring or plaza to watch the last bull enter.

After the last bull enters the ring and is safely in their holding pen, they release a "vacita" or a young bull so that it can chase around all the crazy dudes that have something to prove. I must admit. It was highly entertaining. You'd see a guy puff up his chest and wave his jacket in front of it's face and then run and climb the railing to escape it when it starts to charge them. 

When I'd seen enough of the craziness, I made my way into town. I think a lot of people were still sleeping off the festivities of the previous night because the town square was eerily quiet. I was all alone except for mylar balloon vendors, ready for the flood of small children to appear. That should have been my warning...

Disappointed.

There was one perk. As I was waiting, a girl in a flamenco dress came up and practiced her twirls. She reminded me of Ally. :) I made my way further into town and happened into a lively little area. It seemed to be all the locals doing a sort of carnival. There were tables set up for competitions to happen at and trophies lined up along the bar. I weaved my way into the group and found out that they were having a olive pit spitting contest. Yes! "These are my kind of people!" I thought. The concept was much like shuffleboard. You have 5 olive pits (hopefully you ate around them yourself... I saw one guy who was handed some pits ask if he could eat around them himself, as those were not his....) and you have sawdust sprinkled across two folding tables. You put your chin on the table and have to spit the pit as far as you can without going over the end of the table. This was quite the spectator sport. After that they moved on to arm-wrestling (no joke) and then.... potato sack races. No fancy lights, no computer equipment, just plain, simple, pueblo games. 

Then they started giving out free queso manchego and jamón serrano. A dozen locals were walking in and out of the bar area with large trays and every time this one guy emerged with a fresh supply, he would stop by where I was standing and make me load up.

I jokingly asked him to bring me a drink next time around... and he did.

Twice. 

As if this was not enough fun and entertainment (and free food) for one day, as I left I came upon a Flamenco exhibition. They started with the younger girls and worked their way up. It was special to see the whole community come out to support each other. Everyone was having a grand old time. I know I did.