Fiestas Aracelitanas

The Aracelitan Fiestas must always coincide with the first Sunday in May. They begin on Friday, with the Aracelitano Proclamation, and continue on Saturday, with the offering of flowers, in which the majority of the people of Lucena take part, and in which the Aracelitana Mayor and her ladies dressed in typical Lucena costume decorate the altar of the Virgin with the thousands of flowers collected for her. The fiesta continues on Sunday, when the Patron Saint is carried in procession through the streets of Lucena by santeros, an honour and a source of pride for them, as only thirty-six are chosen. As the Virgin moves forward, countless flower petals are thrown in her wake, while the people sing her hymn. Once the image approaches its temple, thousands of rockets and fireworks flood the sky with noise and colour.