Land ho, 1502

Happy St Helena Day! It was on this day, 507 years ago, that Juan da Nova Castella discovered this ol’ lump of rock and named it after Constantine’s mother. To mark the day, all sorts of celebrations were held in town, starting with a parade by the various scouts and beavers groups to a marching band. The parade was concluded with a short service in the Mule Yard. There followed water sports, a marathon, ladder challenge, face painting, tombola and various stalls, with the tantalizing smells of burgers and spring rolls in the air. An impressive motorbike cavalcade had made its way around the island, arriving back in town in time to lead the main parade at 4 pm, where a few different groups and government departments had their floats ready – some must have taken months of preparation! It was a grand and happy parade. The evening celebrations included a short concert, and unfortunately, drunken revelry! All in all, a really good day and certainly a diverting break from the usual midweek routines. We were all involved in one way or another – I sold jewellery all day; the boys were in the first parade in their beaver outfits, and Nick was part of a band in the evening, performing four or five songs.