53rd Annual St. Anthony's Celebration Comes to Pismo Beach

St. Anthony Celebration
Pismo Beach, CA

Portuguese and St. Anthony admirers alike will take over Pismo Beach once again for the 53rd annual St. Anthony Celebration of Pismo Beach. This celebration is to Pismo what apple pie is to Americans or what pasta is to Italians. Pismo Beach locals and visitors enjoy the unique festa and anticipate it year after year. Festivities will begin on Saturday with a special rosary and novena prayer.

There will be an exchanging of St. Anthony statues at 7 p.m. on Aug. 20 at the Veterans Memorial Hall in Pismo Beach. Weeklong activities include dances, a procession, Mass, a live auction and grand march. A beef stew lunch served at the St. Anthony Celebration Grounds at noon on Aug. 22 will conclude the events.
The St. Anthony's Celebration is celebrated annually to honor the life and works of St. Anthony of Padua, who was born in Portugal in 1192.

Book now at Valentina to reserve your villa today for this event-filled celebration.

Pismo Celebrates the 54th Annual St. Anthony's Festival

54th Annual St. Anthony's Celebration
Parade (courtesy of Santa Maria Times) 

Portuguese descendents flocked from the San Joaquin Valley to Pismo Beach this weekend for the 54th Annual St. Anthony's Celebration. The Portuguese “festa,” which recognizes St. Anthony of Padua in Portugal, includes the traditional procession of altars and queens and their courts from near Pismo Pier through the downtown streets to St. Paul the Apostle Church on Bello Street, where Mass was celebrated.

After Mass, the festivities proceeded to the festa grounds at the end of the street, where sopas ( beef and cabbage stew with bread)  was served to any and all who showed up.

The celebration continues today with a dance, the crowning of this year’s queen, and a fundraising auction.

St. Anthony was born 1195 in Lisbon, Portugal. He was a Franciscan monk and orator. He possessed in an eminent degree all the good qualities that characterize an eloquent preacher: a loud and clear voice, a winning countenance, wonderful memory, and profound learning, to which were added from on high the spirit of prophecy and an extraordinary gift of miracles. He is the patron saint of sailors, pregnant women, amputees and fishermen as well as the poor. (http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/01556a.htm)

Be sure to check out the festivities today, or come back August of 2011 to witness this beautiful celebration.

And when you return next year, be sure to stay at Valentina Inn & Villas in Pismo Beach, CA, located on Price Street, less than two blocks from the beach. Valentina's spacious suites are perfect for large groups of family and friends, and also make for the perfect romantic getaway.

Reserve today at ValentinaPismoBeach.com.

~ValentinaPismoBeach.com

Make Your Reservations for the St. Anthony's Celebration: August 14-16- It's Not Too Late

St. Anthony Festa Parade, Pismo Beach

Make your reservations today for the St. Anthony Celebration/Festa in Pismo Beach the weekend of August 14-16.

The parade begins on Sunday at 9:30 a.m. with sopas being served at the St. Anthony's grounds at 390 Bello St.

Book now at Valentina Inn & Villas, located less than 2 blocks from the beach in the heart of beautiful Pismo Beach. We are across the street from Giuseppe's, and across from Pismo Bob's as well. Call now at 805-773-1234.

~ValentinaPismoBeach.com

Pismo Projects Portuguese Pride at the St. Anthony's Celebration

St. Anthony's Festa/Celebration - Pismo Beach, CA

Delicious sopa, a parade, music and dancing, and good times-- need I say more? The St. Anthony's Celebration is one of Pismo's greatest traditions, and a "must" to attend.

The St. Anthony's Celebration Committee sponsors this annual event to celebrate the cultural contribution of the area's Portuguese descendants. The parade begins on Sunday at 9:30 a.m. with sopas being served at the St. Anthony's grounds at 390 Bello St. For more information, please call the Chamber of Commerce at 800-443-7778.

Festivities will begin at noon Saturday with a barbecue luncheon for all donors, followed by an auction of crafts, fruits, vegetables, garden supplies, appliances, tools, gift certificates and Portuguese sweetbread. Dancing to the music of Loucura will begin at 8 p.m. in the Veterans Memorial Building right after the presentation of the outgoing and incoming queens.

The traditional grand march with the entourage of queens and attendants plus the new slate of officers at 8 p.m. in the Veterans Memorial Building will be followed by dancing.

And while you are enjoying this magnificent festival, be sure to stay at Valentina Inn & Villas of Pismo Beach. Valentina is Pismo's newest resort, and is located at the heart of Pismo Beach, on Price Street. Our villas are the size of a vacation rental at the cost of hotel suite. For more details, check out ValentinaPismoBeach.com.

~ValentinaPismoBeach.com