Mijas celebrated May Day with a free sardine cook-up in La Cala

Mijas Town Hall cooked and served 700 kilos of sardines to the numerous visitors who came to this annual May Day event on the beach.

Although the weather threatened rain in the early hours of the morning, Mijas once again celebrated the First of May with the traditional ‘Sardinada’.  The event was a great success, as from before midday the atmosphere in the Plaza del Torreón and on the promenade of La Cala was lively.

Mijas Town Hall started to celebrate the ‘Sardinada’ more than 40 years ago on the occasion of Workers’ Day. Every year residents from all corners of the town, as well as from other parts of the region and even from abroad, join in this event.

“This day, the First of May, is celebrated with this sardinada, to entertain all those people, the tourists who come to visit us, but also those of us who are from here and want to spend this Workers’ Day festivity with our family and friends”, said the Mayor of Mijas, Ana Mata.

700 kilos of sardines

During the day, 20 workers from the Operational Services and Fiestas departments of the Town Hall were in charge of preparing and distributing the 700 kilos of sardines. “We have been doing this for almost 40 years, I have been doing it myself for 23 years, but colleagues who have retired have been doing it for almost 50 years.”, said one of the municipal workers, Juan Moreno.

From before midday until late in the afternoon, there was a great atmosphere in the square and on the Torreón beach. The municipal workers were looking after every detail so that everyone could enjoy their plate of sardines.

“We spend every year here and I love the festivities here, there is always a great atmosphere,” one of the visitors, Sabine Loeks, from Belgium told Mijas Comunicación,