Tomorrow (29 June) is the Feast of Saint Peter, so here in my Catalan hometown of Sant Pere de Ribes it’s time for our annual festival. The sun is shining and the atmosphere on the streets is a lesson in conviviality.

The festivities were formally inaugurated a couple of hours ago in the town square. Each year is the same. At 1 p.m. the toll of the church bells is followed by the explosive sound of a series of mortars. Boom, boom, boom. And then the fun really starts. Here’s a photo of the town square just before it all kicked off:

 

Strung between lamp-posts and trees, tens upon tens of fireworks, small sticks of dynamite linked in one long fuse.

You have to give the Catalans their due. They don’t let health and safety get in the way of a good street party. Well, OK, they did put up a flimsy plastic tape to keep the public out of the arena!

Anyway, the video below should give you a taster of what happened next.

For now, and in the spirit of these festivities, I raise my glass to you all, and wish you Salut – especially if your name so happens to be Peter or Pere or Pierre.