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Besides the various pilgrimages, the picturesque ranchos dos Reis or groups who travel over the parishes singing Christmas carols, and the lively Carnival dances, the Festivals of the Holy Ghost are the events that best express the feelings of the people of Terceira.

Holy Ghost Festivals - all over the island

Linked to Franciscan mysticism and the charitable spirit of Queen St. Elizabeth of Portugal (16th c.), the Festivals of the Holy Ghost came to the Azores with the first settlers. The invocation of the Holy Ghost at the time of the natural catastrophes that struck the archipelago and the fame of the consequent miracles, together with the hard life and isolation of the islands, all contributed to making the devotion sink deep roots and persist in the Azores although it has disappeared in Portugal with rare exceptions. Moreover, Azorean emigrants carried the devotion to Brazil, America and Africa, where the old ceremonies are now repeated in all their traditional splendour. The Holy Ghost Festivals are also held in Hawaii, where there is a large Azorean community.

Of a charitable nature, the festivals are aimed at distributing food to the needy. Everything starts on Trinity Sunday with the drawing of the names among the "brothers" to determine who will be the mordomos or stewards of the festival in the following year.

The first to be chosen keeps the insignia of the Holy Ghost (crown and sceptre on a silver plate) in his house until Low Sunday, when the festivities begin with balhos or dances accompanied by guitars and singing while the "throne" of the Holy Ghost is set up and profusely decorated in the "stateroom", the main apartment of the house. The "coronation" ceremony is then held in the parish church, the crown is placed on the head of a child or adult - the "emperor" - who carries in procession the symbols of his dignity to the house of another steward - a ceremony called "disposing of the crown" - who keeps them for a week. Afterwards, on every Sunday, the crown, sceptre and plate are passed on to the houses of the other stewards until the feast day itself, when they are displayed in the império (literally, empire) or chapel.

On that day the beef, offered in fulfilment of promises, is made into the typical "Holy Ghost soups" and the fragrant alcatra and, accompanied by various types of bread, massa sovada (biscuits made from kneaded dough) and the aromatic wine called vinho de cheiro, is consumed by all the inhabitants of the parish and its visitors, in an atmosphere of great rejoicing. The festivals are never lacking in foliões or jesters, who are entrusted with the task of announcing, directing and animating the ceremonies with singing accompanied by music on a drum and cymbals, called testos by the people. In rural parishes the festival ends with a lively and colourful "bullfight on a rope". The Festivals of the Holy Ghost extend from Whitsun to the end of the summer, spreading joy all over the island.

The St. John's Festivals or "City's Festival"

Connected with the traditions of the so-called Popular Saints - St. Anthony, St. John and St. Peter - with the passage of the years these festivals have been turned into bullfighting events, with lively "bullfights on ropes", the setting loose of bulls in the streets and performances by toreadores, on horse and on foot, in the arena. The St. John's Festivals usually include an ethnographic procession with old farm implements, folk costumes and the typical vehicles called carros de toldo. The festivals last for several days around St. John's Day, 24th June. They are held in Angra do Heroismo City.

Bullfighting on a rope - all over the island

The bullfighting tradition on Terceira goes back to the 16th century, due to the abundance of cattle at that time over 100,000 head, say the chroniclers - the fact that the first settlers came from provinces where bullfighting was deep-rooted and the later Castilian presence. This is why bullfighting has been practised for centuries in Terceira, the only island where bullfights are now held. It is also why a unique technique has been developed there, one that is perfectly adapted to the local conditions, the skill of the bullfighters and the tastes of the population. We are referring to the always merry and lively "bullfighting on a rope", in which the movements of the bull are conditioned by a rope held by a group of men, formerly called mascarados da corda (masked men of the rope), The bull, bred on the pastures in the central region of line island and chosen for his ability to follow figures and be cunning, has his horns padded and is then let loose in the streets of the parish, the windows and balconies of which are crowded with people on that day. Fireworks are discharged and men and bull immediately start running about, with steps that are sometimes luckier than others.
"Parasol lucky" is the colourful name that has been given to one of the manoeuvres that have been devised: it consists in putting the parasol up suddenly in front of the bull and trying to avoid his horns in the subsequent charge, while the men on the rope moderate its momentum…when they themselves are not dragged along or deliberately give the bull a little more freedom to liven up the show. "Bullfighting on a rope" has evolved with the passing of time, and one of its most recent forms - although even it is already at least forty years old - is that of bullfights by the sea, on beaches and shallows where boats are run upon for repairs. In it, everyone, including the bull, takes repeated bathes in salt water in the midst of the laughs, shouts and hisses of the spectators.

You are certain to catch a bullfight every day somewhere in Terceira between May 1st and September 30th.

Copyright Pierre LaVelly Sousa Lima