letter from Spain
In the middle of November each year, the streets of Benidorm on Spain’s Costa Blanca are transformed by two very different fiestas. Benidorm loves a good fiesta.
Firstly, the Spanish enjoy a five day fiesta which is a strange mixture of the weird, wacky and wonderful. Each morning at 8am fireworks are set off in order ‘to awaken the sleeping spirits’. There are various cultural events but also rather sombre parades of statues of the Virgin Mary, accompanied by throngs of elegantly dressed young people and myriads of flowers. It is hard not to be moved by the solemnity of it all yet to feel, as Paul did in Athens, that this is nothing short of religious ignorance – certainly far removed from the liberating gospel of Christ.
Then, by total contrast, the next day the British take over. For twelve hours there is a raucous atmosphere on Benidorm’s famous 'Strip'. One Thursday each year a 12 hour extravaganza kicks off - the largest fancy dress party in all of Europe. Up to 25,000 visitors descend on Benidorm’s streets, thronging the passage ways and packing out the bars and cafes.
