ST. PATRICK’S CELEBRATIONS

All roads lead to the pretty village of Daya Nueva on Sunday March 13th, where the annual St Patricks Celebrations will take place.

Although the feastday is actually March 17th, in Daya Nueva it is traditionally held on the Sunday nearest the 17th to allow the locals to celebrate with the large number of visitors whose numbers are growing each year.

This year's special guests include the honorary Irish consul Mr Rory Byrne and Marisun Prieto Candella who is the councillor for international relations and women's affairs in the Alicante government. Also in attendance will be the Mayors of Daya Nueva, Daya Viega, Rojales and Benijofar .The celebrations begin with the blessing of a newly commissioned banner of St Patrick followed by mass with the parish choir at Midday. This will be followed at 1300-hrs by a parade through the streets of the village to the town hall where a flag raising ceremony and playing of the anthems will take place. The parade will be led by the Club Torrevieja Classics and Specialists Cars along with other classic car owners plus the Pipes and Drums from Torrevieja followed by the Paseo of St. Patrick.

The new banner and the statue of St Patrick on the ‘trono' will be paraded accompanied by representatives from all the associations of the surrounding areas. The local Band of Union Musica San Miguel Arcangel will accompany the parade which this year will also include the members of Protection Civil from Rojales. After the ceremonies at the Town Hall the local bars and restaurants will serve both Spanish and Irish Cuisine. At 1530hrs in the afternoon a free public concert will take place in the square beside the church. On stage will be the traditional Irish group Bardoi who will be joined by The Pipes and Drums and dancers from Torrevieja as well as local singing group New Alliance. The concert will be presented by the world famous Andy Ramage who has retired to live in Daya Nueva.

Any groups who wish to participate in the day of fun will be very welcome. Wear something green and enjoy Spain's finest St Patricks Day celebration. For further information please contact brendan.kelly@terra.es and for any owners of classic or specialist cars that would like to join in the parade, please contact Ron on 622 381 242.