Last weekend, Natalie and I went back to Alcalá de Henares for a festival that was allegedly supposed to be celebrating the baptism of Cervantes who, as I mentioned in my earlier post, grew up in this small town just outside Madrid.
There may have indeed been a few Don Quixote-themed events, but we didn't manage to find hardly any of them. Instead, the festival consisted mostly of an ENORMOUS street market that radiated out from the central plaza for blocks and blocks.
It was a lot like a somewhat classier version of the Renaissance festivals I've been to in the U.S. Most of the people working the stalls were dressed in old-fashioned garb, and the town was decorated with lots of festive banners and statues.
There were donkey rides through the main plaza
And every now and then men would come around wielding strange animals
...or instruments
Stalls were set up selling all kinds of things...
Bread cooked in a wood-fired oven
Some of the loaves were bigger than our heads!
So many artisanal cheeses
Giant stuffed olives
Sacks of spices, which smelled truly divine
Beautiful plates and ceramics
And aaallll the different sweets, treats and desserts imaginable!
In spite of the lack of Don Quixote-themed activities, we still had a great time! The festival was bustling all day and we enjoyed being a part of the energy and excitement. As always, it was also nice to get out of Madrid for a bit and into a smaller town, where the buildings are not so high, the pace is not quite so quick, and the air is not quite so polluted. All-in-all, it was a great day trip and a fun experience!
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