[center][img]https://i.ibb.co/xmW6PrK/421724915.jpg[/img][/center]

[center][color=00aeef][b][h3]Continuing ACT 1 - Latitudes & Attitudes[/h3][/b][/color][/center] 
[center][color=00aeef][b]Late August - [color=ed1c24]Saturday Night[/color] - Azul Days Opening Parade - [color=ed1c24]Clear with Marine Storms on the Horizon[/color][/b][/color][/center]

[center]This evening marks the beginning of annual Azul Days- a celebration of the island’s history and people. Throughout Ave Pura Vida on Isla Zafrio torches are lit while flags and lights are hung high and low between businesses and residences alike. Music is so loud the sands on the beaches shift as the people of Azul turn out for the start of what amounts to a week-long party that will culminate with the Vida de Exito Ceremony. Unknowing tourists are typically taken aback by the magnitude of the excitement leading more to the mystique that Azul is the best kept secret in the Caribbean.

This year large pictures and murals of the mayor are displayed prominently throughout Isla Zafrio and the Flores family have encouraged all to turn out in remembrance of the mayor and to celebrate rather than be mournful. Somewhat surprisingly, Alejandro Flores has already declared his candidacy for his late father’s position as mayor. While his running is not unexpected, the announcement comes before the special election has even been called for by Azul’s interim government. This has led to some speculation among the community that the Flores, with their deep connections to island governance, already know when the official announcement will be made.  


Later, after an evening of feasting, singing and revelry, the annual Pot Breaking ceremony is the highlight of the night and marks the official start of Azul Days. In order to please La Mujer Fatal, tradition dictates a woman from the community be chosen at random to break the first of the exquisitely crafted pottery, each containing some element of life from the islands. It is considered a high honor of the old ways to have one’s art chosen and the unpredictable nature of selection and destruction are still seen by many as a form of divination about the future of Azul. Naturally an artisan cannot also be an entrant in the lottery and it is considered extremely bad luck to attempt cheating. 

There will be a drawing to determine who will have the privilege at exactly 8:13pm. The twentieth hour of the day and the highest number in Mayan numerology and the thirteenth minute, the number of known Mayan gods.    

Good luck![/center]