MANCHESTER enjoyed a distinctly Mediterranean flavour during a Bank Holiday festival that celebrated the arts, craft and food of Spain's Balearic Islands.
More than 200 performers, musicians and entertainers took part in a series of parades, performances and displays.
The four-day festival, which has been held previously in Madrid and Berlin, was designed to promote the islands of Majorca, Minorca, Ibiza and Formentera.
Wide-eyed youngsters and their parents watched performers in giant carnival costumes parade alomg Cross Street.
Giants
Riders from Minorca performed dressage shows in Albert Square and 'devils' took over the streets at night for daring fire displays.
Guests at the free festival also enjoyed fashion shows, music and craft displays and were able to sample tradition Balearic food.
Storytellers, stilt-walkers, acrobats and flamenco dancers also joined the celebrations.
The festival will now travel across the Channel to Paris.
Organiser Sy Badham said: "This was a great opportunity for people to experience the islands.
"We chose Manchester for our English visit because it's such a vibrant city - and also because it's so easy for people to get to the islands from here."
You need Flash player 8+ and JavaScript enabled to view this video.
Tweet
Showing comments 1 to 5 and replies | View All
Andy, Wythenshawe (04/05/2009 at 11:18)
Thomas The Tank, Rusholme (04/05/2009 at 12:20)
Phil Taylor, Bolton (04/05/2009 at 19:35)
It wasn't a City Council event, but a commercial venture promoting the Balearic Islands as a proper tourist destination, not somewhere for Brits to puke up kebabs and drink cheap beer and WKD.
I paid a visit on Sunday to watch the fireworks. Absolutely stunning, amazing to watch the 'devils' dancing with fire, spraying each other with sparks. Quite extraordinary when you consider that for Chinese New Year, the firecrackers are in a cage, set off by someone in a helmet, with ear defenders and goggles.
The Health and Safety police would have had a fit (wooops, do I hear the diversity police knocking on my door for saying that?
Nice to see something a 'bit' risky and edgy taking place without the Showsec Stasi keeping everyone 6 miles back.
Joan Davies (04/05/2009 at 22:40)
nigel Thompson (10/05/2009 at 14:00)
.........What an absolute honour it was for Manchester to host the Spanish/Balaeric contingent over the Bank holiday weekend and to be entertained by those wonderfully talented men and women on horseback. Free food, free wine and a reminder how classy and eloquent those continentals really are!
Imagine the horror in seeing our "best" offering - the Lady Mayoress complete with tattooed leg and half her hair dyed pink. What has the world (or at least Manchester) come to. The Spaniards must have left for home with a wry smile on their faces!
Who is this lady, whats her background, how did she get elected? I dont particularly like Sir Howard Bernstein but at least he looks the part and speaks the Queens english. Why couldn't he have been wheeled out for the occasion? He wasnt otherwise engaged getting his hair dyed was he?