Today for Spanish children is the equivalent of Christmas Day for British children; the day that the presents magically arrive overnight. So yesterday evening all the children were out on the kerbs awaiting the arrival of the Three Kings, bearing gifts.
Their procession was due to set off from the street close to our home at 5.00pm, led by the town band. The town band duly arrived at about 5.25, stood around chatting for a while and then formed up into some kind of order. Satisfied that things were about ready to start the member of the Policía Local, donned his crash hat, mounted his bike and roared off to make sure the way was clear. The band struck up and the procession went on its way along all the main streets of the village until it reached the plaza in front of the church, where to the accompaniment of fireworks, the Kings dispensed small presents to each of the children present ( the big presents arrived at home during the night whilst the children slept).
This is not really camel country, so the Kings travelled on mules. Why the plastic bag? you may be asking. Well on the mules are large panniers filled with boiled sweets, and the sweets are hurled into the crowds along the route, scooped up by the children into their plastic bags. A van travels just ahead of the mules, its rear door open so that helpers can grab fresh packs of sweets to refill the panniers en route, so an industrious child can head for home weighed down with a whole bag full of free sweets. I don't know if it's sponsored by the local dentists, but perhaps it should be.
Anyway, this brings Christmas to a close for another year.
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