Hogueras and the People: Life on the Streets. SJ-0!

Happy San Juan day everyone!!! Tonight's the night! Tonight it all goes up in flames!!! :o)

I know, I know... I haven't showed you practically any of the monuments yet! Sorry 'bout that... but I've discovered that if you spend hours out and about photographing them... it doesn't leave you with any time (or energy) to actually go through the pics, select some, edit them and then write a post! :s  So I'm going to do what I did last year, and prolong Hogueras on the blog by showing you the monuments over the course of the next week or so, by categories. I've got 30 Hogueras to go through so to do them justice (and to avoid an overdose) you definitely don't want them all in one sitting!

Plus there are still other aspects of Hogueras to discuss, like its people!!! The heart and will behind it all. That which breathes life into this party (and which drives some people out of town to avoid all the noise involved, lol!). I'm going to do this in two times, to show you a bit of action on the streets, and then the clothes. Since the street action involves music, that means video!!! Just a few short clips, straight from my cell phone 'cause I'm afraid after last night's fiesta I don't have the energy to do any editing!

So like I said, music. The Hogueras just wouldn't be the same without these guys:

Every Hoguera has a marching band. They're there to accompany the members of the Hoguera in the various parades/processions they participate in (an element I haven't been able to write about this year), or to provide music for the jaunts around the Hoguera's associated neighbourhood. Here's a group (from the Hoguera Seneca-Autobuses) with their Bellea Infantil just returning to their Hoguera:

I'm afraid I only caught the tail end of that... I thought they were going to continue but they disbanded which is when I took the photo above of the musicians "relaxing").

This group (from Hoguera Altozano Sur) I caught yesterday just as they were about to head out:

And towards the end of the day (on my way back to the car in fact) I ran into the most lively group yet, (from Hoguera Foguerer Carolinas):

Now these guys have definitely got rythm! ;o)

Even the participants in the small Hoguera in my sleepy neighbourhood have been seen wandering the streets around here! Yesterday morning they were out and about in a relaxed get-up:

while just a couple of hours ago I caught sight of them (in more formal/official outfits) through the back window within my compound! I was hoping their trajectory would bring them 'round the front end but I guess not this year. :o(

You'll have noticed from those videos/pics a couple of different dress options for the members of these Hogueras. More formal/official:

Belleas and other members of the Hoguera Seneca-Autobuses

and more relaxed:

Members of the Hoguera Florida Portazgo

The second is kind of the "party uniform". You know, the one you're not worried about getting dirty. Basically everyone's wearing the same t-shirts. I'll give you a closer look at the nicer clothes in another post since this year for the first time I lucked out and was able to catch a bunch of people on film!