Festival of the Patron Saint Jennifer Brinckmann - Amigos de La Cruz
April 24, 2012

Photo Credit to InsideMexico.com

Amigos de La Cruz to March in Opening Parade. Get ready to celebrate Festival!

La Santa Cruz, The Festival of the Patron Saint of La Cruz will commence Wednesday, April 25, with a 1st Annual Opening Celebration Parade at 7:00 pm. For this new part of the Festival, Amigos de La Cruz has been invited to participate and we will be there.

We would love for all members and supporters to participate as well. All you need to do is wear an Amigos t-shirt (if you don't have one yet, you can buy them at the Sunday Cooperativo Huanacaxtle Market at the Marina) and show up at 6:30 at the lateral in front of the El Profe grocery store at the corner of the highway and Piña (on the other side of the highway called Atun).

We will have the Amigos banner and placards with the names of our current projects in both English and Spanish, we'll have the Street Cleaning crew, the Work for Food crew and recycling bins and tambos in a pick up truck to show off... and a bunch of smiling, waving Amigos, including, hopefully, you.

This is the kickoff for 9 days of celebration in La Cruz, starting each morning with a procession to the church, repeated in the early evening, much fun in the plaza, and of course, bottle rockets and fireworks.

Here's what RivieraNayarit.Com has written about it:

La Santa Cruz is a tradition that defines Riviera Nayarit, a magical destination where natural wonders and culture are intertwined. The event will take place at La Cruz de Huanacaxtle on May 3rd.

Starting on April 25th, and extending for nine days, the whole town celebrates while the bells in the small church toll, and the streets are filled with stands that offer food and traditional games, and the sky is painted with the colors of fireworks.

However, the most anticipated event is a large religions celebration called La Santa Cruz, taking place on May 3rd. The town has embraced this celebration and made it its own, and as one popular saying states: "the name bears the penance," and they have named their town La Cruz de Huanacaxtle.

However, the original name of this town is not based on this religious celebration. Although the town's name is La Cruz de Huanacaxtle, the origins of this name remain unknown. There are several possibilities, like the abundance of this tree in the region, or even a legend that says that a peasant traveling in the area of the Bahia de Banderas valley towards Punta de Mita found this beautiful location and rested under the shade of a huanacaxtle tree.

The peasant liked the place so much that he decided to mark a cross in the tree before leaving, with the conviction that some day he would come back to this place, identify that tree which gave him a break from the sun and would build his home there, thus creating the name La Cruz de Huanacaxtle. The truth is that no one can verify this story, and at the entrance of town there is a huge cross, made out of wood and adorned with pink, purple and blue decorations during the festivity.

These three colors embellish the town on May 3rd. However, the most impressive feature is the passage of the local fishermen's boats on the water. These boats set sail early in the morning, decorated with these three colors and displaying the Santa Cruz (Holy Cross). Later in the day, they go back to church to attend mass.

This simple but beautiful celebration that is one of the many reasons that set Riviera Nayarit apart from other beach destinations.

And from Periódico Express (Nayarit):

La Cruz Delegado Angel Alberto Garcia de Haro said normally there are two candidates for the Festival Queen, the winner announced on the last day of the festival, May 3, and this time there are four participants, all high school students, aged from 16 to 18.

In the Charro-sector (horseman/women) it is candidate Miriam Torres Estrada, Fishermen nominated Gloria Gonzalez Romero, Sportsmen have nominated Veronica Aguayo Lizet Ramirez and Colonia El Mangal, Alma Bocanegra Asencia.

Finally, he mentioned that last week, the "Saturday of Glory," the traditional "burning of Judas" happened, followed by fireworks and then extensive dancing and a celebration capped off by the announcement of the four queen candidates.

And from InsideMexico.com:

Did you know that... At every construction site in the country, people celebrate Mason's Day on May third, which according to the Catholic calendar, is Holy Cross Day?

This day has become a special day for construction workers and for the village of La Cruz de Huanaxtle.

Traditionally, the construction workers decorate the buildings under construction by placing crosses made from coloured papers & flowers on buildings under construction. Picnics and fireworks follow celebrating this day dedicated to masons & builders.

This holiday is special for La Cruz because Santa Cruz (The holy cross) serves as the "patron saint" of La Cruz de Huanaxtle and thus we have the mason's special holiday (Dia de los albañiles) which is also the special holiday for La Cruz with flowers and fireworks serving both purposes.

Another reason to relax, have a good time and close the banks in Mexico.

  Learn about Amigos de La Cruz