MALAGA FAIR (SPAIN) 15th - 22nd AUGUST

On the Friday of the third half of August, Malaga celebrates a fiesta to commemorate the towns conquest by the Catholic King and Queen.

The ‘Feria’ (Fair) is a popular celebration lasting 8  days involving the whole town, whatever age: children, young and not so young people participate, and even all the foreigners feel ‘at home’. The showy flamenco suits, the sound of "malagueñas" and "verdiales" (the folclore dances of this province) and Malaga’s cool wine flood the streets with bursting merriment during all these vibrating days of the so-called Fair of Southern Europe.

The Fair of Malaga link here starts with an impressing light and sound spectacle of 30 minutes’ fireworks that are synchronized with classical music and let the thousands of people who are waiting in the Central Park and the harbour know that the Fair is being inaugurated. The next day (Saturday) and the following nine days, Malaga – downtown is celebrating fiesta with shows on all its squares, fiestas and music in all its streets. You can see hundreds of people in their typically Andalusian outfit, brightening the streets with color and contributing to the spectacular sight to the visitor who will feel like being among friends and invited to actively join the ‘fiesta’.

You can also admire the horse parades where jockeys present spectacular Andalusian horses showing elegant steps. At night, an amply organised bus transport system takes you to the fair in the outskirts, called "El Real de la Feria".

In one of the more tha 200 ‘casetas’– dance halls you can have a glass of Malaga wine while you listen and watch a ‘Malagueña’ or ‘Sevillana’ folclore dance of this region, and if you are up to it join the dance. You can enjoy first class shows for free in the official town hall – ‘caseta oficial’, and later go on one of the numerous roundabouts in the ‘Devil’s Street’ (calle del diablo). During all these days you have two main points of entertainment: in the morning and during the day downtown, and at night on the Fair, both events where all visitors no matter whether from here or not is invited to wine and beautiful dances.

If you find some time to sleep, take the chance, for the fiesta is to be continued....