The Patron saint of all Ferias and Fiestas in Montecorto is ''La Virgen del Carmen'', Patron saint of Fishermen. Now it may seem strange that a village in rural inland Spain and at least 75km from the sea has the Patron saint of Fishermen, so we ask some of the elders in the village to which we had the reply ''Como siempre'' because it always has been. The Feria del Carmen starts around the 16th July every year. A group of four young people, two men and two women, are elected each year by the Mayor to be in charge of the fundraising and organising of the Feria, they are called ''Mayordomos'' and were traditionally two people from the village and two from the countryside, they were chosen in this way to bring together village and country folk. Being a ''Mayordomo'' is a very important and responsible position to hold within the village, not only for the ''Mayordomos'' but their entire family, for the year, this group of four form a strong bond with each other that often lasts a lifetime.

Throughout the whole year fundraising events are held , such as football tournaments, selling of t-shirts, raffle tickets, christmas hamper raffles, the organisation of the bars and entertainment at the Romeria (A traditional Gypsy festival), San Juan, Navidad (Christmas), Año Nuevo (New Year) and other fiestas, all to raise money for the Feria. Never ones to miss out on 'A Party' the Spanish mentality is the more they drink and party at Christmas, New Year and the Romeria the better the Feria will be. So it's a self forfilling prophecy. Nevertheless each year the Mayordomos raise around 50,000 Euros which is amazing considering Montecorto only has 650 inhabitants.
Preparations for the Feria start in earnest about a week before with many people painting their houses, the streets are all washed, extra pots of flowers appear, fairground attractions start to arrive, flags and decorative lights are put up and outdoor bars are assembled in the Plaza de Andalucia and Plaza Ermita. In the ''Caseta Municipal'' there is a large outdoor bar and seating area as this is where the main musical events take place. During the Feria the heart of Montecorto is made in to a pedestrianised zone and there is a makeshift car park in the woods.
A traditional Feria is where Spanish sterotypes appear to come together. Flamenco, Musicians and Bullfighting. The streets are alive with music, singing and socialising, everybody is dressed up in traditional Spanish Flamenco attire and it is a beautiful and colourful sight.
At the start of the Feria (Wednesday 16th July) the Mayordomos set off 20 rockets and the party begins at 11.30am with a street procession (a pub crawl) led by the Mayordomos and a brass band. Almost all of the village follow this procession with many women in traditional flamenco style dresses. During the first day there were many other attractions to see, live music in Plaza Ermita, Church Service, Beauty Queen Contest, Childrens Games and Gran Toro de Fuego (Bull of Fire). The Toro de Fuego is a bizare event with a metal shaped bull loaded with fireworks placed upon a local lads back, the fireworks are then lit and the young man holding the ''Toro'' runs through the gathered crowd as the fireworks go off inches above his head. A little dangerous but quite spectacular to watch......from a distance! The music in the main square starts at midnight and finishes around 6am.

Thursday 17th. The festivities start at 2pm with Free Paella and drinks for the whole village at the school. Followed by more live entertainment at one of the local bars and a procession in the early evening of gigantic carnival dolls accompanied by a brass band. The music in the main square starts at midnight and finishes around 7am.
Friday 18th. Midday in Plaza Ermita and the entertainment starts again with a Magician followed by a live group. Later in the day there is the ''Fiesta de Agua'' (Water fight) which seems to involve the whole village, if you go out of your house you're going to get soaked. The music in the main square starts at midnight and finishes around 8am.

Saturday 19th. Again midday in Plaza Ermita and the entertainment starts with a Theatre group followed by live music. Montecorto was due to have its very own Bullring constructed for the Feria (a temporary structure for the week) but for some unknown reason this was cancelled at the last minute. Saturday night saw an array of different live entertainment starting with a Brazilian band and dancers (which put a huge smile on many old mens faces), A Flamenco show, more live music in the Caseta Muncipal and Fireworks at 3am - these draw the Feria to a close, although the music and celebrations continued until about 9am Sunday morning. Needless to say that the village was very quiet on Sunday with many people nursing a 4 day hangover.
During the Feria week there are also many sporting events and competitions such as Tennis, Football and Basketball Tournaments for all ages, for the less sporty Pool and Darts competitions with trophies for the winners.