Drum roll please! Every year on January 20, in honor of Saint Sebastian (the city’s patron saint), San Sebastian celebrates La Tamborrada, a traditional drum playing festival. We were very excited to witness this special event because the entire city comes out to participate and enjoy the festivities.
Starting at midnight and continuing for 24 hours, there is nearly non-stop drumming by various groups from the city’s numerous gastronomic societies. The groups play on stages located in central locations and march through the city to bring the party to everyone. The bands are dressed up either as military drummers from the Napoleonic period, cooks, or in traditional Basque feminine period dress. The soldiers play snare drums and the cooks/women play barrel/bucket style drums. There’s a horns section as well. The songs are marches and anthems celebrating the city’s history. The city is also decorated in blue and white, San Sebastian’s colors, which made it feel like a giant Hanukkah party to us.
We headed to Constitution Plaza, the city’s main square to see the city flag raised at midnight and to hear the inaugural playing of the San Sebastian March. Everyone in the plaza is packed in really tight – this is San Sebastian’s version of Times Square on New Year’s Eve. Many people have their own mini-drums to play along with the bands. And of course, most everyone is drinking. The music continues until midnight the following night when the flag is lowered.
Thankfully we live a bit outside the center of the city and we were able to go to sleep, and stay asleep, when we got back around 2 a.m. Those who live in the city center do not get much sleep.
During the day, the music continues and at noon, the children’s Tamborrada march begins. More than 5,000 kids from every school march through the city wearing the same types of costumes and playing their drums. It is adorable.
It truly is not an exaggeration to say the whole city gets really into it. Many store windows were decorated in clever ways in honor of the celebration, including the pastelerias (bakeries) who sell specially decorated pastries.
So, how and why did it all start? When the city was occupied by French forces during the Napoleonic wars, city residents started mocking the soldiers’ daily march through the town by banging on their water buckets in response to the military drums. This show of defiance grew and is now emblematic of the city’s pride in overcoming tragedy. Those dressed as cooks and wearing traditional dress represent the city’s citizens, and the culinary clubs that form the bands. It is not lost on us that hundreds of chefs marching through the streets is highly appropriate for the city that is considered the gastronomic capital of the world.
All in all, it was a very fun day and one of our favorites so far.
Shana & Jeff
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