Sao Joao, which is the feast of St John the Baptist, is celebrated in Goa with great fanfare. Villages especially come alive as everyone is dressed in colourful attire, sporting crowns of flowers called ‘kopel’, singing hymns, songs and mandos while gathering next to a well. While celebrations have moved from village wells to resort swimming pools,
the spirit of Sao Joao stays the same. Goans have added their own twists to the way festivals are celebrated in Goa and the trend now extends to Goans living abroad too.
The second annual Sao Joao Pool Splash Party 2019 was held in Dubai yesterday, June 21, 2019. Organised by Buzz Global, the festivities included water sprinklers, slides, castles, floaters and water guns with live music by Lynx, flying in especially from Goa, supported by Dubai’s leading local band -The Chorizos.
Nalini Elvino De Souza, the co-founder of the NGO Communicare, has seen the celebrations of three monsoon feasts – the feasts of St Anthony, Sao Joao and St Peter – in a different light in Goa and Portugal. She has been directing television episodes for RTPi, a Portuguese channel and her 90th episode is on these celebrations. The series is called ‘Hora dos Portugueses’ and is directed and anchored by Nalini.
For this episode, I was talking to David Miguel Baiao Franjoso, a travel organiser from Portugal about his experience of the feasts in Portugal and showcasing our festivals in Goa. The episode will air on June 30, 2019,” says Nalini about the 8-minute episode. Namita Nair, Project Manager Communicare
Trust assisted Nalini for the episode. The video was shot at Miramar for St Anthony, Siolim for Sao Joao and Candolim for Sao Pedru. The introduction was at the renowned well in Fontainhas. David comes from a village Evora in Portugal. He loved his experience in Goa and finds it more charming in this season compared to the high tourist
season. “In Portugal, St Anthony is considered the patron saint of newlywed couples. On the feast day, many couples get together and get married. There it is the beginning of summer, that’s why everything is decorated and people are enjoying the wedding season. Sao Joao is different because we don’t have wells to take a leap in. Thousands of people come to the streets like how you have carnival parades here in Goa, different wards in Lisbon come together and each one brings their own song and dance. We jump over a bonfire and eat the fruit that is grown and
available during this season, such as chestnuts, which you don’t find in Goa, and grill sardines, which are eaten with bread. You can see it everywhere on the streets,” says David. He adds, “Just like Sao Joao, the feast of São
Pedro Apóstolo is also celebrated as ‘O dia do Papa’ because Sao Pedro was the first pope of the Catholic Church. The streets are decorated with colourful flags and there is a parade just like in Sao João with floats.”
