Sagunto kicks off patron saint festival with chupinazo and xopà
Sagunto launched its patron saint festival on Saturday in honour of Saints Abdon and Senen with the traditional chupinazo (firework launch) and xopà (water celebration) outside the town hall, opening nearly two weeks of activities running until 30 July.
On Saturday, Sagunto's town hall saw the chupinazo and the xopà, the acts that open the festival honouring the city's patron saints, Abdon and Senen, every year. The opening rocket gave way to the traditional water-splashing, as the square filled with residents, visitors and peña members (festival associations) who kicked off fifteen days of festivities running until 30 July. Leading the ceremony were Mayor Darío Moreno and festivities councillor Patricia Sánchez; Ricardo Meliá heads the Asociación Cultural Penyes de Festes Patronals de Sagunt, present alongside the Falleras Mayores representing the Federació Junta Fallera de Sagunt (local Fallas association). Bullfighting events, live bands, discos, food contests, parades and children's shows round out a programme backed this year by a reinforced security operation. The devotion to these saints has agricultural roots: in Catalonia and the Valencian Community they are considered protectors of farmers, and popular tradition also calls them "the Saints of the Stone" for their reputation as defenders against hailstorms. The closing day arrives on the 30th, the feast day of both saints and one of the busiest dates on Sagunto's festive calendar. According to El Periódico de Aquí, with background from Wikipedia on Abdon and Senen.