BajaNomad

San Javier Festival Dec 1 and 2, 2012

willyAirstream - 12-8-2012 at 11:42 AM

San Javier Festival

We arrived Sat. about noon and herded into a "camping" area for 200 for the car and another 200 for the tent, per night. That was the negotiated price.



You are given a 12 x 20 spot, but it is not a hard rule. Take more room if you can find it, was the attitude. We were only 20 ft from the "strip" and heard the fruit vendors recorded sales pitch over and over and over, as well as the festia generater.





The town is not recognizable as there are vendors everywhere selling carnaval junk, great food, candies and cold beer.






There were bands and musicians everywhere. Sat. night entertainment started about 8pm featuring 2 hours of lip sync and karaoke style
entertainment [?]. The huge live band started about 1 am but only played till 3 am when they shut the elec down. They were great, getting everyone on their feet to dance.





Not much to do except wait for the Sunday Parade of the horses on their way to ride to Constitution.



















Hiking around the town is breath taking





If you don't mind shoulder to shoulder crowds and constant loud noise, it is a fun event. I would go again, but only as a short day trip, as you can see everything in an hour. A 2 star event. On the other hand, visiting the town with out the festival is fantastic. You Do get to see local crafts, meet some warm people and see some beautiful sights.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/San_Javier,_Baja_California_Sur

map
http://goo.gl/maps/fMErf

[Edited on 12-8-2012 by willyAirstream]

BajaOkie - 12-8-2012 at 05:40 PM

Willy,

Thanks for the report and pictures

BajaBlanca - 12-8-2012 at 07:14 PM

great report and great pics - thanks for sharing.

David K - 12-8-2012 at 09:27 PM

Thank you!

weebray - 12-10-2012 at 09:08 AM

We also attended the festivities. Our experience was a bit different tho. We were able to find a nice spot about 1/4 mile west of the church. 200 pesos for two nights camping and lots of room around our campsite. It was a very cool non gringo event so we just layed low. The vendors were the same as any Mexican "event". You have to look hard to find something worth droping a dime on but there always IS something. In our case we found a sweet hand carved wood planter and some interesting wine and olives from nearby ranches. If you are planning a visit remember the operative word here is "cowboy".

Paula - 12-10-2012 at 04:11 PM

Weebray, you were shopping at the new San Javier cultural center! This is a permanent store and information source whose goal is to help maintain the unique ranch culture up in the mountains above Loreto. Everything sold in the shop is locally produced, both food products and craft items. You can learn more about this exciting venture here:

http://www.livingrootsbaja.org/index.html

If you take some time to look around the website you'll find information about the products and the people who make them, as well as ranch life and tradition.

The opening of the shop during the festival was a big success, and the staff, all local ranch folks, will be there when you visit San Javier. Be sure to go in and meet these exceptional people!

David K - 12-10-2012 at 04:21 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by Paula
Weebray, you were shopping at the new San Javier cultural center! This is a permanent store and information source whose goal is to help maintain the unique ranch culture up in the mountains above Loreto. Everything sold in the shop is locally produced, both food products and craft items. You can learn more about this exciting venture here:

http://www.livingrootsbaja.org/index.html

If you take some time to look around the website you'll find information about the products and the people who make them, as well as ranch life and tradition.

The opening of the shop during the festival was a big success, and the staff, all local ranch folks, will be there when you visit San Javier. Be sure to go in and meet these exceptional people!


Thank you for that!