This Thursday, Les Useres is bustling with activity, finalizing details for one of the most significant days of the year. Thirteen pilgrims will repeat the tradition of walking in silence from this municipality to the sanctuary of Sant Joan de Penyagolosa. The procession, declared an Intangible Cultural Asset, will depart from the village tomorrow, Friday, after mass.
Residents will bid farewell to the pilgrims at the outskirts of the urban center. These barefoot pilgrims will cover the thirty kilometers separating Les Useres from Sant Joan de Penyagolosa. In addition to the usual residents, many children of the village who live elsewhere return for this procession, which commemorates a tradition spanning over seven centuries, when pilgrims journeyed to the sanctuary to ask for water, health, and peace.
“"For those of us from the village, the procession is the greatest thing there is."
Throughout this Thursday, residents and bakeries are working intensely to have nearly 2,000 'fogassetes' ready by Friday morning. These will sustain the pilgrims and the entourage of about sixty people accompanying them on their journey to and from the sanctuary. The entourage includes the thirteen pilgrims, the singers, the priest, the carriers, and the cooks.
“"Thirteen pilgrims, the singers and the priest and the carriers, who go separately, and the cooks."
One of the organizers highlighted the emotional significance of this tradition, over 700 years old, for the local community. He emphasized the importance of preparing everything involved in the pilgrimage, as they deeply feel for the pilgrims and their journey.
The day after tomorrow, Saturday, the ceremony of forgiveness will be held at the sanctuary, and a secret ancestral ritual will be commemorated. Afterward, they will return to Les Useres, completing the thirty-kilometer return journey.
