Romans Invade Cartagena, Spain!

Cartagena, Spain..... lovely Spanish city on the Mediterranean coast blessed with countless days of sunshine, surrounded by thousands of acres of farmland, warm and friendly people, delicious cuisine that is always paired with refreshing wines or beers....and then the Romans invaded.

Yes, invaded, not just centuries ago but just 2 weeks ago!

The city of Cartagena every year re-enacts the arrival of the Romans, the marriage of Hannibal, the battle against the native Cartagineses and parades of victory.  I was lucky enough to have watched the parade, front row seats at a reserved table at a local Cervecerria Surena.  Friends and I had the best seats, watching the parade while sipping on either beers or wine.  It was unreal to be in 2015 but it could have been 209 BC!

The festivities go on for 10 days, various events taking place each day.  There are activities for children, performances by the local dance school, musicians filling the September air with wonderful melodies and the locals (from babies to grandparents) are in character: magnificent costumes from footwear to head gear, spears and whips, flowing capes and gowns and more.  Babies born during the year are "registered" in an elaborate ceremony where the baby is presented to the emperor as a new citizen of Rome.  The baby, carried by proud parents, accompanied by even more proud grandparents, is "thumbprinted" on a piece of parchment and then held high for the audience to see and the cheering  crowd welcomes its newest citizen.  Candy is then tossed into the audience - mind you, the children in the audience scramble for every piece!

Think how exciting it would be if one of the many cruise ships arrived to the port (right in town) and the passengers were able to experience this - it would be the best free shore excursion ever!!  Maybe next year, I'll see you there!

In the meantime, hard to imagine how elaborate this is, so here are a string of my videos and photos.

Camille