Fiestas, Javea

Javea is at the most easterly tip of Spain and therefore is a wonderful place to be to catch the morning sun rising over the sea. The old historical town of  Javea has many picturesque whitewashed streets, offerings shops, art galleries, cafes, town hall and an indoor market to name but a few. It has a wonderfully kept museum where you can see what Javea was like up until recently and I strongly recommend a trip through the trap door to the roof, where you get a rooftop view of the town and the surrounding countryside.

 All streets lead to the Plaza Major, in the centre of which you will see the ancient church of  San Bartolome.  The church is almost 500 years old and is made from tosca,  a local stone excavated from under the sea and in caves nearby.  It gets its name from the patron Saint of Jalon (a nearby town in a valley- well worth a visit to its large bodega and if you visit in springtime will see one of the most spectacular displays of almond blossom in Spain) whose village people provided the fishing village of Javea wheat, without which they would have had a very difficult time finding a good diet. The church only just survived the civil war-it has many bullet marks on the exterior and the inside was burnt out.  A large hole was made in the floor in which to put the rubble, and supposedly an unexploded bomb! Surrounding the heart of the historic centre are a selection of bars and cafes offering local produce and tapas, the ‘nibbly bits’ traditionally severed with the beers.

 April;  The holy week is called Semana Santa and on Good Friday there is a holy parade where floats depicting the Virgin Mary and other characters pass through the streets- very striking for all who see it.  In contrast, on Easter Sunday there is a Feria de Artesanas (hand made crafts and local foods) in the streets which surround the church

 May:  On a specified Sunday in May is Corpus Christie day, when the boys and girls who are taking their first communion, make a procession round the streets up to the church.  The outfits are amazing and for the family it is a big an event as a wedding!

 End of April;  Preceeding the fiesta of the Dia de la Cruz, there is ‘bull running’ in the streets in the historic town.  Cages line the streets where people can spectate and bulls are let loose to run through the streets, and courageous Spaniards jump out of the cages and into their path (and jump back very quickly!) when the bull approaches.

May 3;  The celebration of the ‘Dia de la Cruz’, or ‘Day of the Cross’.  Doorways  and windows are adorned with crosses made from  flowers.  They are works of art with must time being sunk into the petals displays which are assembled one by one to enhance them.

June: For three days in June, you can find the International Festival.  Being such a cosmopolitan area this fair is very popular and each country has a stall selling their national foods and drinks.  Local schools put on spectaculars of dance and song, together with live groups performing on the stage.

June 12-24.  For a few days between these dates is the principal fiesta of Javea, called ‘Las hogueras de San Juan.  Again, the streets are closed for the bull running, there are parades with floats decorated with flowers, the local youth bands, the locals in traditional dress, and culminating at the evening of intense noisy (and very beautiful) fireworks and the burning of the huge handcrafted models in the streets.  The fire engines stand nearby and the air is warm-quite a spectacle!

July 14-18  This date sees the Moors and Christians Festival which commemorates the battles once fought over Javea.  It begins when boatloads of Moors arrive in the Port, and mock battles and gunfire ensue.  The costumes are wonderful and the battles realistic. The most haunting memory when the battle is over is of  the loud Moorish music pulsating through the night and wine and beer being handed out to all.

The Port of Javea is like another town in itself.  There are many bars and restaurants, specialising in fish dishes as well as the traditional and international choices.  Many of them are along the Esplanade so the children can play safely whist you take a drink.  All Spanish bars are child and animal friendly; at all times of night children are welcome which saves having the worry of finding a babysitter. The church La Virgin de Loreto was built in the 60’s and has a very modern feel.  The ceiling resembles the bottom of a boat.  There is another art gallery, many shops and a lovely walk along past the harbour and its interesting boats to another restaurant at the furthermost point of  Spain.

July 16th in the Port is the day of ‘Nuestra Señora del Carmen’, when all the local fishermen and sailors take a model of the Virgin, surrounded by wreathes of flowers out to sea.  The bedecked boat leaves the port surrounded by a flotilla of boats and they sail round to the Cabo de la Nao (the second lighthouse in Javea) and blessings are made for all those who go to sea.

August; The Port Fiesta.  This is a very traditional Spanish Fiesta with much singing and dancing.  Streets are painted and decorated overhead.  A spectacular of this fiesta is a 10x10m square live chessboard which is painted on the floor and 32 local children are dresses as chess pieces and the game is played!  There is a grandstand erected for those who want to watch the bull running, where locals try to taunt the bulls to fall into the sea- they are unfortunate enough to fall the boats guide them back to shore.  There is a giant paella cooked in the street in a pan 10 feet in diameter and then handed out to anyone who cares to sample it.  There are parades of girls in traditional costumes and much singing and professional groups performing.  It all ends with a spectacular firework display.

There are numerous smaller and more local fiestas throughout November and December (and indeed, throughout the year).  The Spanish celebrate ‘Three Kings Day’ on January 6th more than our Christmas day. Saying that, there is a beautiful crib scene which is erected outside the church in the old town, with models depicting the story of the birth of Jesus.  It is will worth a visit. The 5th January is the eve of the 3 kings day and the evening sees another spectacle.  About 5.30 in the afternoon the three kings arrive by boat in the Port.  They greet children, give out presents, accompanied by bands and dancing and a lot of people in disguise.  The procession makes its way the historic town of Javea where the floats preceeding the Kings throw out sweets at the excited children and eventually invite them up for presents on specially constructed stage.

Other Places to Visit in addition to the Fiesta areas

Bays and Beaches and Watersports

The main sandy tourist beach at the Arenal, is where you will find a multitude of bars and restaurants of all nationalities from traditional Spanish, Greek, Italian, Indian, Chinese, Mexican and of course the trusty English!  If you fancy getting away from the masse, there are three small local bays at Portichol, Ambolo and Granadella which you can visit.  All have pebble beaches and wonderful views. In addition is the larger bay of Cala Blanca which is in walking distance of the Arenal but away from the crowds and with plenty of places to picnic and caves to explore. Given that Javea is at the most easterly tip of Spain, the towns of Denia and Moriara  which adjoin it also offer a host of beaches and tourist attraction and are only a 15 drive away.

You can find just about every kind of watersport imaginable in Javea, from the pedalos on the beach at the Arenal to the hiring of jetskis and boats.  If this is a bit daunting for you there are boat rides round the coastline, windsurf hire and of course snorkling- especially rewarding at Cala Blanca and Granadella.  The coastline is so impressive with its steep slopes inland and caves into which you can sail and see the sea bed with its variety of pretty fishes.

The Mongo

The Montgo is the huge mountain which separates Javea and Denia.  Looking from the Javea side it profiles an elephant’s face, with its eye and its trunk which stretches out to sea.  The ‘eye’ is actually a large cave where human cave dwellers have lived since Neolithic times.  Traces of their lives and how they lived can be seen in the museum in the historic town. The Montgo is now a National Park and you can get to it from the road which leaves Javea in the historic town towards Denia.  At the top along La Plana you can leave you car and climb to the top of the Montgo, it peak being 753m above sea level.  Along the way you will find over 600 species of plants and herbs, some being rare, but allow 3-4 hours for a round trip and take pleanty of water! When you reach the peak it overlooks Ifach at Calpe, Cumbre de Sol, much of the Valencian peninsula, and on a clear day, Ibiza.

Los Molins

On the opposite side when you reach La Plana on the road out of Javea to Denia, you will find signposts to an old monastry and Los Molins.  In Valenciano (the loacal language), ‘Molins’ means ‘windmills’. Again, they have a wonderful view over the Port of Javea and The Arenal and a little further along the road ends with the lighthouse of San Antonio.