Laredo is located on the northern coast of Spain between Santander and Bilbao. The city is small, with a population of 13,000, and is best known for the Battle of the Flowers. During the festival, the population of the city goes way up, and the bars and cafes are overflowing with people.
The festival began in the beginning of the 20th century and was popularized by tourists who had come to catch some waves at the coast from neighboring Bilbao or all the way from Madrid. It started out as a simple ritual of parading around with flowers to ensure good luck for fishing for this port city. Now it has developed into something much more extensive.
Why a battle? Well, this ritual has gone competitive. Now on the last Friday of August, the streets are filled with a parade of floats covered with flowers. At 5:30 p.m. they gather in the main square of Laredo to be judged based on aesthetic merit by a panel of independent judges. A winner is announced before the night's festivities commence.
It is thought that the first parade with flowers in Laredo was carried out in August of 1908. The tourist website of Laredo shows black-and-white pictures of early versions of the festival, where black-mustached men solemnly stand in front of the flowers. The flowers used in the festival have remained the same and are mostly roses, chrysanthemums and hortensias.
The flower parade may dominate the day, but the night of the Battle of Flowers has its own rituals.The townspeople usually march around town first with a massive facsimile of a sardine, before marching it down to the beach for its "burial." The townspeople burn the sardine for good luck in fishing for the coming year. Then they stay and have a party on the beach while there is a fireworks display.
