THE LOOKOUT | Bulls, halters and horses in the street are the greatest spectacle of the Ascension

The Ascension festival in Chamusca, which this year takes place from the 4th to the 12th of May, is a truly popular festival. It was born from the will of people and only with them and their dedication, it comes to fruition. This year, according to the IPMA (Portuguese Institute of the Sea and Atmosphere) forecast, it will take place with little or no rain, but there has never been a year in which it failed to occur due to the weather.
On Ascension Thursday, May 9th, there is no rain and the maximum temperature predicted is 31 degrees, but here, it can be said right away that the IPMA fails, particularly at the end of the morning, when the bulls cross the town, escorted through fields, among a crowd of enthusiasts and curious people, installed on sidewalks, balconies, windows and on top of tractor trailers or other vehicles.
In the few minutes that the ride lasts, between the south entrance and the bullring. Even the hearts of the calmest will beat at an uncontrollable gallop and the heat of enthusiasm will defy the highs of the hottest August days.
The program has multiple subprograms so that the party reaches everyone and is available online. Bullfights, fado, folklore, taverns, crafts and the religious aspect because, Ascension Thursday celebrates the moment reported in the New Testament in which the Resurrected Jesus was elevated to heaven, in the presence of eleven of his apostles.
In addition to Chamusca, Thursday de Ascensão is also a public holiday in other municipalities in Ribatejo, namely in Alcanena, Alenquer, Almeirim, Arruda dos Vinhos, Azambuja, Benavente, Cartaxo, Chamusca, Coruche, Golegã, Salvaterra de Magos, Sobral de Monte Agraço , Torres Novas and Vila Franca de Xira. And in all of them there are many people who maintain the tradition, coming from an ancestral connection to nature, of going to the countryside to collect ears of corn, wild flowers and olive branches to make branches that are kept at home from one year to the next for good luck, health and happiness to residents.
There are people from Chamusca who live in other areas of the country, where it is not a public holiday, such as in Lisbon, for example, who take holidays at this time so as not to miss the party, which thus becomes a moment of reunion and conviviality between friends and family. And many of those who are far away bring with them friends from other latitudes to explain to them better and without words, who they are and where they are from and why their hearts beat like that.
On a musical level, artists such as Mickael Carreira, Soraia Ramos, Orquestra Típica Scalabitana, Rita Rocha, Carlão, Romana, GNR and Bárbara Tinoco will appear on the main stage, set up next to the city hall building. But there are other stages and other music. DJs and other entertainers perform every night on the Youth Stage.
On the last day, Sunday, May 12th, fado singers Manuel João Ferreira, João Chora, Rui Tanoeiro and Marisa Ferreira take to the stage, accompanied by the Portuguese guitar, fado guitar, drums and keyboards, for a show where they revisit the most emblematic themes Chamusquenses.