Meskal

Meskal today celebrates the event of the Empress Helena’s finding of the cross in the 4th Century AD. People stack poles topped with Meskal daisies (see pic from outside my house) to form a pyramid around a cross. This is then burnt in a giant bonfire whilst the people dance around it three times.

We were told it started at 9am. Not wishing to miss anything, I met up with a Peace Corp friend and the new VSO volunteer (Ynke) at 8:30am. Took one or two pics from the roof of the Quora hotel where we had coffee. There didn’t seem to be the 100s of people that we had been warned to expect.


Jogging men
Our arrival at Piazza was fairly quiet so we got a good position and waited for the priests chant to stop and the ‘programme’ to begin. Over the next couple of hours, church groups from the outer areas gradually converged on the square in front of Fasilades Castle. A couple of hours later, the sun, crush and chants became too much and we decamped to a Hotel for lunch. Returning later, we fully expected to see the flames on the cross but it wasn’t to be. By this time, the square was packed, the chants still going and were now accompanied by a backdrop of young men excitedly jogging around in large chanting groups not much caring about who was in their way. We decided to go. So never got to see the flames.



Back to the neighbours house for the feast of Alichow (sheep stew – my favourite). Then home for a bit of peace and quiet punctuated by regular visitors of young men in what appeared to be dance groups. One carried a drum and the rest kind of sang and danced until money was handed over at which point they moved on.

At the end of the afternoon, I walked Ynke back to the line taxi passing groups of people celebrating over ‘tella’. A carefee kind of day that marks the end of the New Year Celebrations. Beleta tells me that’s it now until Christmas.