Patrycja Iwaniuk, The Netherlands
The Old Spanish Days in Santa Barbara is a week of celebrating the traditions, history, heritage, and culture that has been in Santa Barbara for hundreds of years. Since the beginning of the week, the first preparations can be seen. Music can be heard on every corner of the street. The first Fiesta eggs can be bought and smashed to color the streets with colorful confetti and even the people dress up in beautiful and traditional costumes. They proudly walk through State Street giving it wonderful ambiance.
Also, here at the EF school and in the Santa Catalina residence the feeling of Fiesta is in the air. More and more decorations are being hung up in the school and even some teachers can be seen wearing some great colorful outfits. Wednesday was Tamale Day and some students had the opportunity to make some beautiful Fiesta eggs, which are by the way strictly forbidden to use in the residence. Luckily for us, there is enough space outside to break these eggs and throw some confetti on our friends. As Wednesday night was the grand opening at the Mission, Thursday morning the decorations were even greater. In the afternoon students were welcome to enjoy some chips with salsa and delicious churros. To add to that, in what way can you end the day better than having people break a piñata in the middle of the schoolyard?
The big days, however, were without hesitation Friday and Saturday. Before the big parade, everyone started to get out their chairs and blankets to save the best spot for the whole family. After a very long wait in the sun, the parade had begun. Dozens of beautiful horses gaited through State Street and the music played by the musicians completed the picture. It was really a new experience for me as a foreigner, since I have never seen or been to this kind of a parade. Over the past couple of days, I have really seen that the people of Santa Barbara cherish this week of joy and a lot of tourists who walk down the streets with the biggest smile when someone throws confetti to them. We can still savor the moment for a few weeks until the confetti disappears and then the first eggs can be eaten as a preparation for next year. As for me, this was my first time and hopefully not the last… VIVA LA FIESTA!
efsantabarbaranews.com 
I really like this article because I come from Spain and it’s very interesting for me that in the USA celebrate our parties. Thanks for this article to inform me more about this parties and show me what they do.
Laia Caballe Curto.
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To be in Santa Barbara during the Fiesta Days was a fortune for every of the students. We could feel the vibes and the excitement of local people about celebrating their origins. It’s beautiful to see how the Spanish and Mexican cultures are still alive here.
Barbara
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Hi friend, I really like this article because it’s written in very good English and it shows that the person who made it really put in a lot of effort. The images are really nice too, it makes the article much more interesting to the reader! Patrycja could be a very good blogger and you can notice that in how she writes! Jelly
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Hi there, you’re item about the ‘Old Spanish days’ is very interesting. Because of this, now I know what it is about and why people are celebrating it. The only thing I don’t know yet is why there are confetti eggs. I get that there is confetti and stuff but why do people put the confetti in the eggs? I wish I were here in Santa Barbara a week ago to also participate in throwing confetti eggs and celebrate the fiesta.
Kind regards,
Bernou
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It is nice to read the article, so you know what is happening in SB. I missed fiesta. I want to come back to America to see it. Fiesta looks and sounds really nice.
Esther
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Lucky me, I was able to join fiesta this year too, and as you wrote they were all dressed up in beautiful costumes, even the horses. I especially love your article because of the lovely pictures of the horses. They just look so impressive and noble with their Spanish harness.
Kathi
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