Festival of San Sebastian- Diriamba

This morning I woke to the single ping of my palm pilot’s alarm, signalling 7am

 With my pain level much improved over yesterday, I ate a quick breakfast then headed out to catch the bus to Jinotepe.

 Arriving there shortly after 9:30 I didn’t have to wait too long for my next connection. An “interlocale” [local mini-bus] had me into Diriamba in time to hear the church bells peeling out the call for a 10am service. In front of the church a couple of dozen vendors were starting to cook up food for lunch while others were selling various sweets and some large and very crispy pieces of pork crackling.

 Today, Jan 20^th marks the Festival of San Sebastian. According to local tradition, the icons of San Sebastian, San Marcos and San Santiago travelled together from Spain and as such there is a special bond between them. They are brought together from their respective villages- Diriamba, San Marcos and Jinotepe during a processional on January 19^th. A night of dancing fireworks and partying ensues and the icons are installed at the front of the church in Diriamba to await the Dia del Santo.

  I entered the church just as the Mass was starting and managed a couple of photos of the tres amigos! Squeezing out through the crush of people entering the church, I spent the next 2 hours waiting for the festivities to begin. By noon the crowd in the square had grown to several thousand. Adding to that, groups of performers began to arrive.

 Dressed in tall hats of peacock feathers and wearing masks and very colourful costumes they began to do a variety of dances that have their origins as far back as the original Spanish occupation. Other groups wearing less outlandish costumes performed more contemporary dances to the sound of drums, tambourine and marimba.

  With the clock rolling well past 12, the mass was showing no signs of ending. At the back and sides of the church, a significant police presence was starting to make itself visible. Approaching one of their number I was waived back and told to get away from the church fence. It was then that I noticed that the entire building was ringed with two strings of blasting cord, attached to which was a small wad of explosive every 2 feet.

  Barely a minute later the Church bells began to peel as if the Second Coming had been announced. Rushing back to the front of the church, I squeezed my way up to the top of the stairs in time to see the icon of San Marcos being carried out of the church on a wooden litter. Once the icon bearers had lowered the satue to the ground the crowd broke into applause and many rushed forward to touch or kiss the statue. Several minutes later the procedure was repeated and San Santiago appeared to the crowd.

 With confetti drifting all over the church entrance and helium balloons filling the sky, San Sebastian made his exit from the church. More touching, praying and photo ops. followed as this rather effeminate statue was placed between his two associates. At some unknown signal the bearers picked up the icons and carried them to the roadway in front of the church. Ahead of them, the variously costumed dancers had already commenced travelling along the processional route. Hardly had the Saints travelled twenty feet when the explosions began. For close to 5 minutes the area around the church sounded like the final scene from Butch Cassidy. Smoke filled the air and you could, literally, taste the explosives.

  I followed the procession for a block or two, by which time many of the costumed performers were beginning to drift off the parade route to visit with friends and family or maybe grab a cold beer or a bite to eat. A local resident informed me that things would die off for a few hours but would pick up again as dusk approached. Thanking him for the information, I opted for a trip back to Granada rather than run the risk of being stuck in Diriamba, where I was sure that all the hotels were already full.