Puerto de la Cruz burns the sardine to close carnival

The Sardine Funeral is undoubtedly one of the most bizarre traditions in the Canary Islands. Click the 'NEXT IMAGE >' button to continue... The oversized fish is on display during the day and attracts hundreds of visitors. A look inside the pumpkin next to the sardine reveals that it is all made of papier-mâché. The sardine stands on a metal frame that looks like wood. This is important, but more on that later... In the evening, the sardine is paraded through the whole town. The mourners behind it weep loudly (in theory - some visitors actually find it funny). The procession winds its way through the whole town. At first it's quiet, but later on there's music. When the train reaches the port of Puerto de la Cruz in the north of Tenerife, things get serious... The sardines are placed on four metal barrels. Then the sardine, which is partly filled with fireworks, is set alight - and that can get quite loud, as our video shows. The effects thrill the spectators and ensure... ...that the sardine goes up completely in flames. And so it burns brightly before the eyes of the large congregation of mourners - led by the Carnival Queen of Puerto de la Cruz. For the grand finale there are fireworks over the harbour. All that remains of the Sardine is its skeleton - and the metal frame, which is also non-flammable. Whilst the harbour is being tidied up, the onlookers move over to the nearby Plaza del Charco. And there people party with loud music and dancing until the early morning. Sehen Sie jetzt: Photos: This is the carnival queen of Puerto de la Cruz Beerdigung der Sardine - skurrile Tradition im Canary Islands-Karneval An overview of all carnival dates can also be found here.