Piornal, Extremadura: Spainā€™s Jarramplas Festival

Not quite Costa Blanca, but one of the more peculiar Spanish customs.

The USĀ press agency AP (Associated Press) runsĀ a story on the Jarramplas, with some nice pictures:

“Jarramplas is a character that wears a costume made from colorful strips of fabric, and a devil-like mask and beats a drum through the streets of Piornal while residents throw turnips as a punishment for stealing cattle.

The exact origin of the festival are not known, various theories exist from the mythological punishment of Caco by Hercules, to a cattle thief ridiculed and expelled by his neighbors. The Jarramplas Festival takes place every year from the 19th untilĀ the 20th of January on Saint Sebastian Day.”

Photographers and people interested in Spanish culture may want to enter theĀ dates into their diary, for 2016