June 4 Annual Potato Fiesta in La Puebla!

El Día de la Patata is a popular curtain raiser to the annual fiestas of La Puebla in Cartagena

One of the facets of life in Spain which never ceases to surprise visitors and residents from northern Europe is the number of quirky (and, some might say, surreal) fiestas which take place during the year, and a good example of this is taking place on Sunday June 4 in La Puebla. 

La Puebla is an outlying village in Cartagena between the city and the Mar Menor and the annual fiestas are held in late June in honour of the Sagrado Corazón de Jesús: However, the traditional curtain raiser is “Potato Day” (El Día de la Patata), which has established itself in the local calendar on the first Sunday of June.

Now reaching its 14^th edition, El Día de la Patata is a tradition which was started by local farmers keen to make the public aware of the quality of the potatoes they grow, and has quickly become a very popular event indeed. This year, as usual, everyone is invited to Potato Day, where there will be a special potato exhibition, potatoes on sale direct from the fields of the Campo de Cartagena, a competition to throw potatoes into the pot and of course various potato tasting sessions, which include omelettes as well as roast and boiled spuds.

The program of events during the day includes the following:

8.00: The sale of potatoes direct to the public begins.

10.00: An arts and crafts market opens.

11.00: The great potato exhibition opens, featuring all of the main varieties grown in the Campo de Cartagena.

12.00: Potato throwing competitions for adults and children.

13.30: For many people the highlight of the day, with the tasting of roast and boiled potatoes and, of course, potato omelettes.

For more upcoming events in the Region of Murcia go to the What's on section of Murcia Today.