Living Barra de Navidad: St. Patrick's Day in Melaque

Friday, 18 March 2011

St. Patrick's Day in Melaque

St. Patrick festivity in Melaque

Prehispanic dances, Mexican banda music and crazy "castillos" and ''toritos" fireworks, religious services is what the people of the town of San Patricio Melaque do to honor St. Patrick an Irish Saint.

baby dressed as St. Patrick during a pilgrimage in Melaque

9 days last the fiestas that villages of San Patricio, Villa Obregon and Melaque dedicate to their patron saint St. Patrick where the biggest party is on March 17th.

Prehispanic "Danzas" to honor St. Patrick in the church of Melaque

During these 9 days people celebrate with lots of fun their patron Saint with religious services and "cuetes" fireworks as early as 5 a.m. In the evening there are pilgrimages and a parade with floats and at night traditional banda music in the quiosco of the main square, Mexican "antojitos", "Loteria Mexicana" Mexican bingo and the traditional Mexican style fireworks: "castillos" and "toritos".

Setting up the "castillo" fireworks - St. Patrick's Day in Melaque

To close the celebration every night the most expected event are the fireworks. A tower with fireworks call a castle "castillo" displaying colorful figures and shooting rockets into the audience is lighted up. Children and young people get closer to the tower expecting to chase the rockets fired from the "castillo". After that, a person dressed up as a little bull "torito" which shoots out rockets into the crowd chases everybody around the square making people running everywhere with fear and delight.