For children in Spain, tonight is the most magical night of the year. As those in the UK recover from the excesses of Christmas and the New Year, the Spanish are at it again! The streets of many towns in the region will be transformed into fantasy scenarios as they witness the arrival of "Los Reyes Magos", the Three Kings - oh what it is to be young.

January 6th is the feast of Epithany, when the Three Kings arrived in Bethlehem bearing gifts for the newborn Jesus. However, the fun starts the evening before, on the 5th. Families will be out in force to watch a succession of beautifully decorated floats parade down the streets with the Three Kings throwing handfuls of sweets to the waiting children - and I´ve noticed many of the adults scrambling for them too.

In Benidorm, the procession departs from Park d´Elche (Dove Park in the Old Town) at 6pm, heading down towards the Calle Ruzafa before finishing at the main Town Hall Square. Although there have been some budget cuts, more than 300 people will be taking part in the parade this year, including three bands and a total of eight floats - in addition there will also be many animals such as horses and donkeys. During the parade, a total of 1,500 kilos of sweets will be thrown out to the spectators along the route.

"Coal" for the naughty children!

After the parade, children go home and tradition is that they leave a shoe outside filled with straw before they go to bed. In the morning they will wake to find gifts left by the Three Kings... however, those that have been naughty will be left coal. Rather than a real lump of coal, these days the supermarkets produce "Carbon"- sweets that look like coal, sold in old fashioned hessian type sacking! They don´t miss an opportunity do they... This explains why the toy shops will be at bursting point today and by the end of the day, the shelves will be virtually empty.

The day of the 6th is a family day and many will enjoy a "roscon" together at breakfast, a sweet donut shaped pastry. A bit like a Christmas cracker, a roscon hides a surprise deep inside, normally a porcelain figure of a baby Jesus and whoever finds it in their portion will have luck for the entire year. This will probably be the only thing you will find at bakeries, who have probably been up most of the night baking them and people will be queuing up to buy them in the morning.

Below are some pictures from today´s parade....

Spain will then get back to normal on Monday 7th, having at long last finished their Christmas festivities, as children go back to school - much to the relief of many parents I guess and offices and business re-open after the extended break.

Also, remember to buy your El Nino lottery ticket today.... the draw is tomorrow!