Bonfires to mark summer solstice.
On Thursday and Friday this week Monaco celebrates the birth of John the Baptist with bonfires and dancing. It's an ancient tradition marking the summer solstice and is kept alive in the Principality, where celebrations are organized by the Mairie and the Saint Jean Club.
The Catholic Church fixed 24th June as the birth of John the Baptist, a prophet who announced the coming of Jesus, whom he later baptized. John met a nasty end after Salome asked for his head and her father Herod obliged by chopping it off.
Gruesomeness aside, Monegasques celebrate St John's birth with a festival lasting 2 days and with partying in 2 districts. On the eve of St John, 23rd June, people gather in Monaco Ville with local folk groups who sing, dance and play musical instruments. In the Palace Chapel, which is dedicated to St John the Baptist, the Prince and his family attend a mass, after which a bonfire is lit in the Place du Palais.
The following evening, 24th June, celebrations move to Monte Carlo. After a mass at St Charles Church, a procession makes its way to Place des Moulins, with a little boy at its head dressed like John the Baptist and accompanied by a lamb. Revelers watch as the little St John assists in lighting the "batafoegu" (fire of joy, or bonfire) attended once again by folk groups such as the Palladienne, and followed by a festive ball.
