The penultimate day of the festivities honouring Mare de Déu de Loreto is dedicated to Santísimo Cristo del Mar – the Christ of the Sea after whom one of the main streets in the port zone is named.
The day opens with the traditional despertà wake-up parade and a ringing of the church bells to announce the arrival of the special day.
Over the past few days, streets, balconies and shop windows will have been decorated and they will be willing participants in an annual competition organised by the fiesta commission in collaboration with the Xàbia Port business association. During the morning, the mayorales visit the streets and view the balconies and shop windows and decide who is the best for there are prizes to be won. These are dished out during the short but fun street fiesta in Calle Santísimo Cristo del Mar.
As the evening draws in, the town band joins with the fiesta commission in a short parade to pick up the mayorales for the special mass at the Loreto church after which there is a parade through the streets of the port with the image of Santísimo Cristo del Mar. It’s a rather solemn affair; there’s no sweet-throwing nor is there music to dance to. Instead, everyone carries a lit candle, often struggling to keep the flame if there is a strong breeze. It’s an effective scene as night falls and the parade snakes through the port and returns back to the church.
In recent years, there has been a new addition to the fiesta programme to be celebrated after the image has been returned to the church and that is known as the mascletà de colores which takes place in Avda.Jaime I. This is a firework display with a difference for it is mainly concentrated at ground level with loud explosions and beautiful colours.