A crowd gathers since late afternoon this Thursday in the Plaza Varela de Pocitos (Montevideo) to celebrate the Saint John festivity. There are bonfires, queimadas, activities and there are stands with special menus to welcome winter.
The meeting point in the capital is at Avenida Brasil and Bulevar Artigas. The wood fire turned on at 19:00. As is tradition, people throw into the fire something they want to forget, or a wish they seek to fulfill.
This year the organization added a food Fair; became a new offer for the public that came this June 23, 2022. In addition, there are shows of live music.
Leonardo Carreno
Celebration of the feast of San Juan, in Pocitos (Montevideo)
The celebration in 2022 takes place two years after the last edition, as a consequence of the coronavirus pandemic.
This typical celebration of the Iberian Peninsula, particularly in Catalonia (Spain), also reached the Uruguayan lands. Being a celebration of the northern hemisphere, it is a celebration of sun worship to receive the summer solstice. In Uruguay, on the other hand, it coincides with the arrival of winter. It is also celebrated by Christians around the birth of Saint John the Baptist on June 24.
Leonardo Carreno
Celebration of the feast of San Juan, in Pocitos (Montevideo)
The Feast of San Juan has a close link with the harvest season, so it promotes good wishes for the times to come. In Spain, the tradition includes making a wish while jumping over the fire of bonfires made on the beach. Celebrants also often jump the waves at midnight.
