Posts tagged Traditional Costumes

The tourist who aims at gaining a deep insight into Nicaragua’s traditions and corresponding fiestas must first know the basic facts concerning the most significant celebrations of this country. Almost anyone will let you know that the festivals dedicated to the patron saints are an incentive for spectacular displays of traditional costumes, music and cuisine.

Whole families take part in the festivities by putting on vividly colored masks, attires, in the middle of processions marvelously blending both Christian and pagan ceremonies. There are many festivals restricted locally.

For instance, the capital of the country hosts the festival of Santo Domingo, the scenic Masaya is home to the festival of San Jeronimo. There are other fiestas extended nationwide: the celebrations dedicated to Jesus Christ and Virgin Mary, the New Year’s festivities, the fiestas in September – the month of the Independence.

Managua is home to the festival of Santo Domingo, a figure representing the patron saint of the Nicaraguan capital. The name of the saint is also the name of the old cathedral in Managua, badly damaged by the 1972 earthquake and currently closed to the public.

On the 1st of August, each year, the festivities begin with the so called descent of Saint Domingo (“Bajada del Santo” in Spanish), a ceremony during which the statue of the saint is taken from its place in the church of Las Sierritas so as to be transferred to the old church near the downtown.

After ten days the real festivities begin, when the so called ceremony of the rise of the saint (“Subida del Santo”) takes place and the statue is carried back to the Las Sierritas. Horse parades are a great opportunity to admire the talents of the horse breeders and of the horseback riders. Many of the thousands of people participating to the festival are dressed in traditional costumes and dance traditional dances on traditional music.

One folkloric attire which catches the eye is the “la vaquita” or the cow costume, which can be met in other parts of the country as well when dressed by professional dancers, but its first occurrence is registered during the festivities of Santo Domingo.

The costume strikes through a picture of a cow’s head attached in front of the waist with horns (some fake, some real) on top of the head. The dominant color of the costume is red, and the dancer moves in the rhythm of the songs sung by the so called “chicheros” (musical group) while other participants dressed as bulls accompany her.

The festival of San Jeronimo in Masaya is another traditional reason for extended, colorful celebrations. The same as in Managua, the festival of the picturesque Masaya begins with a “Bajada” of the statue of the saint from its altar in the church of San Jeronimo.

Ten days later, on the last day of the month of September, each year, it is carried in a procession throughout the small Masaya; on the 7th of October the statue is once again the object of a procession.

The celebrations of San Jeronimo take an impressive amount of time, since they end only on the first Sunday of the month of December. During the main festivities (the 7th of October and every last Friday of October) the tourist will have the chance to witness an impressive display of costumes, many of them illustrating characters from the legends and folk tales of Nicaragua.

These particular costumes, specific to the Masaya area and to the festival of San Jeronimo, are called “los agüizotes” and they represent characters such as the priest without head, la Mocuana (the ugly lady whose sight is said to drive people crazy), la Llorona (the sad, weeping lady), and witches and so on.

Noteworthy festivities also take place during the Holy Week, a period marked, curious enough if we think about the religious significance of this holiday, by numerous beach parties, especially in the San Juan del Sur area, where mainly young people gather and spend relaxing, sunny summer days on the beach.

During the day, numerous sport events and contests are organized – so as to mark the festivities – while during the night the small towns generously opens the doors of its bars and restaurants. These are celebrations marked by a distinctive urban touch. In other parts of the country, on river or lagoon shores, on the shores of the Lake Nicaragua, the Nicaraguans and the tourists spend their time in the same celebratory manner.

The New Year is another tradition celebrated on a large scale. Festivities for the partying tourists and locals are organized by bars, restaurants or discotheques; however, New Year is largely celebrated as a family tradition.

The burning of the old year is a custom practiced by many people in Nicaragua: a man-sized puppet is dressed up in worn out clothes and is filled with gun powder; when the New Year comes, the puppet is set on fire which creates quite a spectacle on the streets of the cities. Additionally, like anywhere lese in the world, impressive fireworks mark the coming of the New Year.

To what concerns Christmas, La Griteria (the shouting) is one of the most important festivities of the period. Every 7th of December, very early in the morning, a yell asking “who causes so much joy?” followed by an answer “Mary’s conception” can be heard in the churches throughout Nicaragua.

At that moment cities become incredibly noisy, because people start blowing up fireworks and firecrackers. The same noisy tradition is repeated in the middle of the night (of the same day). In the evening, traditional songs are sung by groups of people who go to altars and to houses to receive gifts for their songs from the hosts. Like all other Nicaraguan festivities, this is also full of music and of color.