The annual season of traditional ‘Romerías’ got under way yesterday with one of the Tenerife’s oldest and biggest spring celebrations. Tegueste in north Tenerife was the scene of the first of the impressive rural life showcases featuring processions with lavishly decorated ox-drawn carts, traditional music, and Canarian food and drink.
Locals dressed in traditional costume turned out in force for the centrepiece procession, which also featured groups of singers accompanied by musical instruments and even dancing troupes.
Romerías in Tenerife are a vibrant religious pilgrimage and harvest festival, blending Christian and pagan traditions. In essence, they are a massive town party held in honour of the local saint and are usually celebrated on the Sunday nearest the saint’s feast day. They play a major role in showcasing and retaining cultural and agricultural traditions and customs, and are a significant part of the island’s festive calendar.
Yesterday’s Romería in Tegueste in honour of San Marcos (St Mark) once again attracted thousands of ‘pilgrims’ young and old from across Tenerife, as well as from other parts of the Canaries such as Fuerteventura and El Hierro. The procession took almost three hours to make its way through the packed streets of the town centre. It marked the high point of many days of San Marcos celebrations in Tegueste, which now hands over the Romería baton to other towns in Tenerife. The other best-known festivities are La Laguna, which holds its traditional Romería in honour of San Benito in early July, and Garachico, where the San Roque Romería is staged in mid-August.
Photo: BaraBara
