All I had heard ever since I came here was how Navalmoral hosted one of the best Carnavales in Spain. I found that a little hard to believe considering the town’s size…but I was definitely proved wrong.
The week before Carnaval, I had made various trips to the costume stores. After a nasty run-in with a store owner about a returned detective costume, by the time Friday came, I felt prepared for the party. Maria and Whitney came in on Friday afternoon (the language assistants from last year here) and after settling in a bit, they met up with Mamen and me to the “Chupinazo.” As I understood it, the Chupinazo was supposed to be one huge firecracker that is set off to signify the start of Carnaval. We got to the plaza about 10 minutes before it was supposed to start, but after waiting almost 20 minutes, we decided we had missed it. Too bad. Carnaval had officially begun and we didn’t even know it.
So at that point, we parted ways and suited up for the night. I was Super Rachel, best super heroine ever. About nine of us went to dinner that night at a delicious place called Casa Candy. We were a group of sailors, a super heroine, two brides (boys), a doll, Minnie Mouse, a Scot, and more…a pretty typical group. After dinner, we hit up Benito (our go-to cheap bar) and spent a few hours meeting up with more friends and having some drinks.
We then migrated to the casetas. Casetas are huge tents sponsored by bars and different companies. Each caseta plays different music, has a bar, and a ton of people inside. I went to sleep a little after 6:00am that morning…early compared to most people.
On Saturday, once we all rested a bit, we went out for round two. Meeting up for cañas, aka beers, then getting lunch, and then more cañas, we spent the afternoon moving around the town and hanging out on the main street with all of people who had come in to see Navalmoral’s Carnaval.
The highlight of the day was when all of us went to the fair and rode the bumper cars. I hadn’t been in a bumper car in at least 10 years and I have no idea why not…they’re so fun! This fair was set up right across the street from my apartment and while convenient, that meant I had to hear the same playlist playing over and over for days and days. Once excited to hear it and do the dance, “Ai se te pego” became a thing of nightmares for me…
We rested for a little while, and then put on our costumes for the night. Over twenty of us had bought the same firefighter costume, so it was easy to find our friends that night. We ate dinner at a Chinese restaurant, and then went back to Benito. Benito was four times more crowded that night than the night before, but just as fun. Once again, after hanging around for a while, we went to the casetas, and once again, had a very late night.
Sunday was the big parade day. I slept in, ate a lunch at home, and then went to watch the parade. It was great! Some groups were definitely better than others, but overall I really liked it (even though it was two hours long). My favorite group was a Planet of the Apes one who danced to “The Lazy Song.” Wonderful.
Later, we ate some food and dressed up to go out to the casetas (I just worse a dress with the mask I bought in Venice). We danced like fools and the owner of one of our favorite bars gave us a free bottle of champagne. Great night…though an early night in…2:00am.
Monday was my last day in Navalmoral for Carnaval (wait for the next post to see why). A small group of us met up for a few more cañas, then got a bit of food for lunch, before saying our goodbyes. That afternoon, I went home and packed my suitcase. Around 7:00pm I took the train into Madrid because the next morning I was taking a trip to…(you’ve got to wait!)
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