three in the morning
The vanguard once in control of this position could tranquilly await the Virgin 's arrival . The _ Macarenos _ each year made themselves masters of the famous street and took whole hours to pass through it , enjoying the impatient protests of the fraternities of other wards . Sierpes Street was converted into a sort of reception hall with the balconies thronged with people , electric globes hanging from wires strung from wall to wall , and all the _ cafés _ and stores illuminated ; the windows were filled with heads , and rows of chairs along the walls , with crowds , rising in their seats each time the distant trumpeting and beating of the drums announced the proximity of a float . It was three in the morning and nothing indicated the lateness of the hour . People were eating in _ cafés _ and taverns . The thick odor of oil escaped through the doors of the places where fish was frying . Itinerant venders stationed themselves in the centre of the street crying sweets and drinks .