We celebrated the Moors and Christians Fiesta, In temperatures as high as 36 centigrade the towns people in my local town of Benamurel, paraded around the town wearing colorful and elaborate costumes and letting off 100's of fireworks.

Festivals and fiestas are a major part of Spanish life, Each fiesta is unique and has its own special blend of pageantry, parade, fireworks, costumes, dancing and feasting.

One of Spains Most attractive fiestas! This festival commemorates a famous battle held in Alcoy, (28km north of Alicante) in 1276 between the Christian ruler and the Moorish captain Al Athrak. The story goes that on the point of losing the city to the Moors, St. George appeared on a white charger and turned the Christians' fate around. The proceedings have changed little for 700 years, closely following the sequence of events recorded immediately after the battle: the Moors seize the castle in the morning and the Christians win it back again in the afternoon.

The parades are held daily over a period of six days with the climax on the 5^th day when a battle is enacted in the main street, starting with the leaders of the moors and christians meeting in single combat , then they are joined in a free for all battle that looks very real.

Although no effort is made to achieve strict historical accuracy in the clothes, plenty of attention is given to the details, and the costumes have to follow certain rules.

Some modern things are allowed, like Sunglasses and watches, and most of the soldiers, even non-smokers, chew on cigars.

These cigars are a tradition of the fiesta, although nobody seems to know exactly why "They're just part of the fun".

Moors and Christians truly is a spectacular fiesta, that shouldn't be missed.