Parking: 4,000 colons ($8). Bathrooms: 200 colons (40 cents). Entrance to the dance club: 2,000 colons ($4). Bringing your own beer: a good idea.
Or at least that’s what most of the spectators seemed to think at the horse parade in Palmares Thursday afternoon. The street was full with people laughing, dancing and — drinking beer. The crowd on the sidewalk was so thick it was hard for anyone to move, much less get a view of the parade. Some even started the celebration with drinks on the bus ride to the festival. Many parade spectators had set up their own tents complete with lawn chairs and coolers full of Imperial and Rock Ice.
The horse riders themselves were not to be left out. The men and women in cowboy hats sipped on cans and plastic cups. Many of them were mounted on their horses, but not moving an inch. Instead they joked with people in the crowd, toasted with beers, and laughed with their fellow riders. One intoxicated man in the crowd actually managed to boost himself onto the back of a woman’s horse against her many protests.
“The tope is the day with the most accidents,” said Nancy Cruz Ramírez, Cruz Roja chief of first aid at the Fiestas Cívicas de Palmares. In the first 24-hour period of the festival about 100 persons needed assistance from medics, said Ms. Ramírez. The majority of cases were mishaps, she said. The chief said so far this year is comparable to last year and that the bull fighting days would most likely be busy times as well. “But we are well prepared,” said Ms. Ramírez. There are about 65 Cruz Roja workers stationed at the festival, she said.
The drinking and yells from the Tope were away from the amusement area where most of the children congregated. Tickets are 500 colons each ($1) and the number required vary depending on the ride. Children were all laughs and smiles as they waited in fairly short lines for the carousel and bumper-cars Thursday.
Foods like chop suey, Salvadorian pupusas, and chicharrone can all be found at the festival. There is also fried chicken, candied apples and the franchised Taco Bell and Pizza Hut stands. Appetizers start at around 1,500 colons ($3), and one can buy two small slices of pizza or three cans of beer for the same price.
Aside from the rides and games, there are reggaeton dance clubs or “mega-bares,” bands playing outside, gambling games, and smaller
And the horse had dancing lessons
The obligatory midway rides.
bars, some complete with cumbia dancing. Many of the “mega-bares” feature their own concerts and entertainment. Descriptions are available on the festival’s website, fiestaspalmares.com. Big concerts, bull fighting and a ranchero festival will be held this week and next. The festival runs through Jan. 28.
If people wish to avoid the hassle and cost of parking, buses to Palmares, west of the metropolitan area, are available for 605 colons ($1.20), 6 a.m. to 2 a.m. near the Coca Cola station in San José. Police are stationed along the highway pulling over drunk drivers and speeders, so traffic can take much longer than usual. It’s best to estimate at least two hours to get to the festival from San José and perhaps longer to get back, depending on the time of day.
Traffic was a mess Thursday evening because the Policia de Tránsito were pulling over drivers randomly to check for alcohol near Juan Santamaría airport.
