January17th is the day when people flock from all over Ibiza to see the blessing of the animals in San Antonio. In a traditional ceremony unchanged for many, many years the Bishop of Ibiza or one of the local holy men celebrates a Mass in honour of San Antonio's patron saint in the church and then presides over a procession of animals which are blessed with holy water.
Take That!
Nowadays the blessing is held in front of the new town hall and this year the sun shone brightly on the righteous. Unlike days of yore when the odd goat or sheep used to turn up our 21st century pets are much more exotic; snakes, rabbits, birds, cats and about a thousand dogs of all shapes and sizes were in attendance.
The end of the ceremony was marked by the release of thousands of racing pigeons from the end of the port but the fiesta still continues over the next few days.
19th 21.30 – Guateque – Spanish music from the 60's and 70's (Marquee)
20th 10.30 – All day country fair at the Agricultural Cooperative
20th 20.00 – Concert of Film and Show music by the municipal band (Marquee)
27th 11.00 – Kite flying festival (near the Cafe del Mar)
