Fiestas de San Isidro

You’ve probably never heard of San Isidro, and even translating his name into English – Saint Isidore – probably won’t help. Nevertheless, he is the patron saint of Madrid, and provides the “excuse” for one of the city's biggest annual festivities. His feast day, May 15^th, and the days before and after, are celebrated in grand Spanish style by enjoying tons of food and alcohol, as well as concerts, fireworks and other performances in parks and gardens throughout the city.

The largest event takes place in the Pradera de San Isidro, a park which houses the shrine of the saint

San Isidro, whose full name is San Isidro Labrador, or Saint Isidore the Laborer, was a farmworker to whom various acts of piety and miracles have been attributed, including making water spring forth from the ground and saving children from wells. The fact that he is not only the patron saint of the city, but also of farm laborers and brick layers, is a good reminder of Madrid’s rural and humble beginnings as a tiny, backwater village. Nevertheless, he has remained the patron saint throughout the ages, and is still venerated on his feast day with in a handful of religious celebrations in addition to the more hedonistic festivities described above.

A picture of San Isidro praying in the field

There are also some tasty treats that are made specifically for the saint's holiday called rosquillas del santo. They are generally round and crunchy and covered in sugar, but each small village near Madrid has developed their own unique style of rosquilla throughout the centuries, so now you can find several varieties. My favorites were the Santa Claras, which were covered with a sort of meringue!

A picture from Google, but it looks just like the rosquillas on sale at the park!

I went to the festival with a British girl who I had met through the two hiking trips I've done. She and her roommates were already planning on going and she invited me to join in. It was one of the first times I've hung out with a new person in a long time, and I really enjoyed it! We get along quite well, and the best is that we have a very similar sense of humor. It's been nice to finally meet someone whom I feel like I "click" with, and it's made me hopeful for more similar experiences soon!

My new friend Kylia!

A fairground that was part of the festivities - we rode the ride at the bottom!