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Fiestas of San Sebastián in La Caleta, Adeje

Figure of San Sebastián being taken to Enramada Beach. Photo: Adeje Town Hall

Fiestas of San Sebastián

San Sebastián, co-patron of the municipality of Adeje together with the Virgen de la Encarnación and Santa Úrsula, celebrates its feast on January 20. In recent years it has become one of the celebrations that gathers the most people in the whole South of Tenerife, demonstrated by the large influx of people related the agriculture and livestock of the region and the island who gather at the mythical site of Playa de la Enramada.

The entire town of Adeje, as well as people from neighbouring municipalities, from the north of the island and even from neighbouring island, La Gomera, participate in the San Sebastián festivities. From the elders, who talk about the old times, to the smallest children, all have made this festival an obligatory meeting point.

The big day of San Sebastián begins early in the morning, with the holy mass, after which the venerated image leaves the temple towards the sea, preceded by a retinue of horsemen, who year after year, surprise the curious congregated in the area, taking their animals into the sea, a show that combines devotion to Saint Sebastian and love for animals. In addition to this unique equestrian encounter, all those present, but especially the little ones, enjoy the procession accompanied by oxen, cows, goats, sheep, camels and sheepdogs. This concludes in the Plaza de San Sebastián, where the parish priest proceeds to bless the animals.

The folk music and dances of the region, stalls, Canarian artisan products, food and the wines of the islands and the municipality have their leading role to supply the thousands of congregants who meet in the surroundings of the old hermitage that bears the name of the patron saint and miracle worker.

History of the Fiestas of San Sebastián

This is a very old fiesta. It began in the early years of the 16th century in a place of worship prior to the Conquest of the Canary Islands and, over the years, it has been adapting to new customs. Over the years, farmers and ranchers in Adeje and throughout the island have increased their devotion to this patron saint, but in a very special way because of the statue of San Sebastián that was in the old hermitage. Many miracles are attributed to this image. Still today, many are the people who resort to San Sebastián de Adeje with the hope of a quick cure of their ailments or to request a favor or fulfil the promise.

This festivity encourages a meeting in which adults and young people revive a tradition that goes beyond the religious, contributing to the strengthening of the spirit of coexistence and harmony among the inhabitants of the region.

FIESTA of SAN SEBASTIAN, La Caleta, Adeje, Tenerife

Tenerife Rally Calendar 2021

Adeje Rally in 2020 was posponed until Spring 2021

The Federación Interinsular de Automovilismo de Santa Cruz de Tenerife (Tenerife Motor Sports Federation), have published their final 𝐂𝐚𝐥𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐨 𝐃𝐞𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐨 𝐝𝐞 𝐥𝐚 𝐓𝐞𝐦𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐚𝐝𝐚 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟏 (2021 Season Calendar).
 

W/E RALLY
RALLYSPRINT
HILLCLIMB
MAR 06/07




13/14




20/21




27/28




APR 03/04




10/11




17/18




24/25 Orvecame Norte



MAY 01/02




08/09

Tejina – Tegueste

15/16 Villa de Adeje



22/23




29/30




JUN 05/06



Guía de Isora
12/13




19/20 Granadilla



26/27




JUL 03/04



Güímar
10/11




17/18




24/25


Palo Blanco
POSTPONED
AUG 31/01 City of La Laguna
POSTPONED




07/08




14/15




21/22




28/29




SEP 04/05




11/12




18/19



San Miguel
25/26




OCT 02/03



Tamaimo
09/10

Atogo

16/17



Palo Blanco
23/24 Isle of Tenerife



30/31




NOV 06/07



Icod – La Guancha
13/14




20/21




27/28

Tenerife Sur
SUSPENDED


DEC 04/05



Los Loros (Arafo)
11/12



Arona
18/19 City of La Laguna
25/26




Brexit: How to live, travel and shop in the UK now that it has left the European Union

This may be the only time I'll advocate veering to the right!

(The following is for Spanish nationals visiting or living in the UK, so may not be relevant to you. However, I thought it was interesting to see this from the opposite point of view and particularly to see the disparities. The first glaring ones are that whilst Spanish tourists can stay in the UK for six months, British nationals visiting Spain as a tourist can now only stay for any 90 days in any 180-day period and will need to have at least 6 months left on a passport to travel to most countries in Europe. See: Spain travel advice for more.)

A new phase began between the United Kingdom and the European Union on Friday, January 1, 2021, when the free trade and cooperation agreement that will govern relations between both territories came into force after the four years of Brexit negotiation. The text ties up the main issues on trade, fishing, air transport, energy, mobility, etc. However, with the first rupture in the history of the common market, doubts assail citizens on both sides of the new frontier. Do I need a passport or visa to travel? Will I need a residence permit? Is roaming back? What will happen to the services of British companies in the European market?

Do I need a visa, passport or ID to travel?

EU citizens will not need a visa to enter the UK as tourists for stays of a maximum of six months. Spaniards, just as nationals of other EU countries, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway or Switzerland, for the moment, can enter the UK with their national identity document and can always do so with a valid passport, even if it expires in less than 6 months.

However, according to the Foreign Office, the DNI will not be valid to enter the United Kingdom from October 1, 2021, with the exception of people who have established or pre-established their status under the EU Settlement Scheme or have a Frontier Worker permit. In that case, they will be able to use it until at least December 31, 2025.

Can I stay more than six months?

Stays of more than six months are not considered tourism, so a visa is necessary. Foreign Affairs informs that on January 1, 2021, the new British immigration system comes into force, to which all citizens who wish to enter the United Kingdom to work, study or reside, regardless of their nationality, must submit.

The type of visa, permits and conditions vary if it is a question of qualified workers with a contract, investors, artists, health workers, researchers, students, etc., so the United Kingdom Government has made a website available for interested parties know the requirements and the type of document you need from Jan 1. In the process, depending on the case, knowledge of English, the payment of fees, a contract, a minimum salary or the sponsorship of an entity, among others, are required.

I already live in the UK, how does my situation change?

Adults, minors, retirees, workers or students. If you were already residing in the United Kingdom before December 31, 2020, you will need a residence permit from the EU Settlement Scheme (EUSS), although you have until June 30, 2021 to apply for it for free.

There are two different statuses: indefinite (for those who have been resident for more than 5 years and their families) and limited (for those resident for less than five years).

The EUSS means that citizens of the EU, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland will be able to stay and continue working, studying and accessing benefits and services such as health care from the National Health Service (NHS) in general in the same way as they currently do.

I have permission, what about my family?

The spouses, domestic partners, dependent children or grandchildren and dependent parents or grandparents of the EU citizen may enter the UK at any time, provided the relationship existed before 31 December 2020 and at the time of entry in the United Kingdom. Future children will be able to enter the UK at any time.

For non-UK family members of an EU citizen who do not reside in the UK there are specific permits that they can apply for.

Can I go to study, now that there is no Erasmus?

From now on, Spaniards will also need a visa to study in the United Kingdom. According to the Ministry, those who will start from January 1 must verify if they are required to obtain a visa.

Those over 16 years of age can apply if the accredited institution where they are to start can act as a 'sponsor'. If you are 16 or 17 years old and want to study at an independent British school, you must apply for a child student visa.

In the case of courses of up to 6 months duration (English training, business, literature ...), a visa will not be necessary, as long as you study at an accredited institution. In the specific case of English courses, there are short-term study visas of up to 11 months.

Will my academic and professional degrees be recognized?

Yes, the homologation of EU titles in the United Kingdom will continue to be carried out by the British agency UK NARIC. For the equivalence of British degrees in Spain or another member country, the procedure will be required for third States that are not members of the EU or the conditions that are included in a bilateral agreement. In any case, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Government of Spain guarantees that the homologation or equivalence of university degrees may continue to be requested.

It is important to remember that, after Brexit, the procedure may require more paperwork, something that does not happen among the Twenty-seven [countries of the European Union]. In any case, the UK will continue to be part of the European Higher Education Area.

If something happens to me in the UK, am I entitled to medical assistance? Do I need insurance?

It depends. If you are going on a trip, you will only need the new European health card (Tarjeta Sanitaria Europea) in the United Kingdom, valid from this Friday [Presume they mean the rule is valid from 1 Jan 2021?]. But if you are going to be in the country for more than 6 months, the British Government requires the payment of a fee to the NHS. With a valid residence permit and payment of fees, healthcare is guaranteed.

In addition, migrants arriving in 2021 will have to pay an extra £624 per year and have at least £1,270  during the 28 days prior to applying for the visa.

Finally, Spanish citizens who are covered by the Withdrawal Agreement will continue with their right to receive health care as before. As for travellers who require regular health treatment, such as patients requiring dialysis or certain types of chemotherapy, they will be able to continue receiving them until the end of 2021.

Is 'roaming' back? Will it cost me more to call from there with my Spanish contract?

It depends, the European Parliament decided in 2017 to end roaming in Europe, allowing you to call from any EU country without additional charges. This rule will no longer apply in the UK, so it is left to the mobile phone operators. Some companies in the UK have already announced that they will maintain conditions similar to the current ones.

Can I go with my pet?

Yes, if you [they?] have a microchip, passport or official certificate from a veterinarian, according to Foreign Affairs. They are required to be vaccinated against rabies and have undergone antiparasitic treatment. If the requirements are not met, pets could be rejected at the border or quarantined.

In the case of introducing a pet - a pet dog, cat or ferret - from the United Kingdom into the EU or Northern Ireland, given that the British authorities have not agreed to comply with the common health regime, a health certificate will also be required the animal, although the rabies antibody test will not be necessary.

Will my driving license in the UK work for me?

Usually yes. Visitors will be able to continue using their European driving license.

For residents, a single specification has been established. And it is that from 67 years of age you can be required to drive with a British license and the one issued in Spain or another Member State will no longer be valid.

Will the lorry queues at the border be repeated?

The United Kingdom has been left out of the single market, which means that there will be more customs procedures and controls of goods, with more delays at the borders.

However, the agreement reached this Thursday [24 Dec?] will allow trade without tariffs - tariffs - or quotas - maximum volume of each product - between the two parties, "the first agreement signed by the EU" that includes it, Prime Minister Boris Johnson has assured, although there will be a watch to make sure that the UK maintains the required labor, environmental and tax standards.

What about companies offering services in the EU market?

Services will lose all international free trade rights that they had until now. They no longer benefit, for example, from passports, which allow automatic access to the entire EU single market. Again, it is something that translates into more obstacles and bureaucracy.

However, non-discrimination standards, visa facilities for company employees, for digital commerce, as well as public tenders will be established.

What has finally happened to the fishing quotas? How does it affect us?

Fishing has been one of the main obstacles, but for the moment we breathe a sigh of relief: London expected to cut European quotas by 60% or 70% in three years, but a transitional period of five and a half years has finally been reached during which reciprocal access rights will remain unchanged.

European vessels will be able to fish for the next five years in British waters, but they will have to reduce their catches. The Galician fishing sector estimates that 1,400 tons of hake, monkfish, gallo (Lepidorhombus boscii) and cigala (Nephrops norvegicus, known variously as the Norway lobster, Dublin Bay prawn, langoustine) will stop being caught. The worst, they insist, will come from 2026, when London and Brussels will have to annually renegotiate the access of the European fleet to British waters.

What about the Gibraltar border?

Spain has reached a principle of agreement with the United Kingdom, in which it allows the application to Gibraltar of policies and programs of the European Union such as the Schengen agreement, a customs regime in terms of traffic of goods, transport or the environment, as stated by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Arancha González Laya, when announcing the commitment.

Laya, who has not yet gone into many technical details, has explained that this means, in practice, the end of the Gibraltar border. "The Gate is demolished" and "mobility is greatly facilitated," she said, although we will still have to wait for the final treaty, which must be authorized by the European Commission.

Tenerife Municipal Holidays 2021

Tenerife Municipalities HansenBCN, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

On 31 December 2020 the Official Bulletin of the Canary Islands (BOC Nº 270) published ORDER 5287 of December 29, 2020, which finally determined the local festivals of each municipality of the Canary Islands for the year 2021 (Official version PDF). Nothing like last minute, eh? There are two days in each of the 31 municipalities, which added to the 12 decided at a national, regional and island-wide level, add up to the 14 days annual public holidays decreed by law.

ADEJE
20 January: Festivity of San Sebastián.
11 October: Festivity of Santa Úrsula.

ARAFO
16 February: Carnival Tuesday.
30 August: Festivity of San Bernardo.

ARICO
16 February: Carnival Tuesday.
8 September: Festivity of Nuestra Señora de Abona.

ARONA
16 February: Carnival Tuesday.
4 October: Festividad del Santísimo Cristo de la Salud.

BUENAVISTA DEL NORTE
24 August: Festivity of San Bartolomé.
25 October: Festivity of Nuestra Señora de Los Remedios.

CANDELARIA
16 February: Carnival Tuesday.
26 July: Festivity of Santa Ana.

EL ROSARIO
16 February: Carnival Tuesday.
2 August: Festivity of Nuestra Señora de La Esperanza.

EL SAUZAL
16 February: Carnival Tuesday.
29 June: Festivity of San Pedro Apóstol.

EL TANQUE
31 August: Festividad Nuestra Señora de Buen Viaje.
18 October: Festividad del Santísimo Cristo del Calvario.

FASNIA
16 February: Carnival Tuesday.
23 August: Fiestas for the Town's Patrons.

GARACHICO
24 June: Festivity of San Juan.
26 July: Festivity of Santa Ana.

GRANADILLA DE ABONA
16 February: Carnival Tuesday.
14 June: Festivity of San Antonio de Padua.

GUÍA DE ISORA
24 June: Festivity of San Juan Bautista.
20 September: Festividad del Santísimo Cristo de la Dulce Muerte.

GÜÍMAR
29 June: Festivity of San Pedro Apóstol.
7 September: Festivity of Nuestra Señora del Socorro.

ICOD DE LOS VINOS
26 April: Day after the Festivity of San Marcos.
5 August: Festivity of Nuestra Señora de la Virgen del Amparo.

LA GUANCHA
18 January: Festivity of Nuestra Señora de la Esperanza.
16 February: Carnival Tuesday.

LA MATANZA DE ACENTEJO
16 February: Carnival Tuesday.
6 August: Festivity of El Salvador.

LA OROTAVA
16 February: Carnival Tuesday.
10 June: Infraoctava of Corpus Christi.

LA VICTORIA DE ACENTEJO
16 February: Carnival Tuesday.
30 August: Festivity for the Municipality's Patrons.

LOS REALEJOS
22 January: Festivity of San Vicente.
3 May: Exaltation of the Holy Cross.

LOS SILOS
24 June: Festivity of San Juan Bautista.
8 September: Festivity of Nuestra Señora de la Luz.

PUERTO DE LA CRUZ
3 May: Exaltation of the Holy Cross and Commemoration of the Founding of the City.
13 July: Festivity of the Virgen del Carmen.

SAN CRISTÓBAL DE LA LAGUNA
16 February: Carnival Tuesday.
14 September: Festivity of the Most Holy Christ of La Laguna.

SAN JUAN DE LA RAMBLA
24 June: Festivity of San Juan Bautista.
13 September: Festivity of San José.

SAN MIGUEL DE ABONA
16 February: Carnival Tuesday.
29 September: Festivity of San Miguel Arcángel.

SANTA CRUZ DE TENERIFE
3 May: Festividad del Día de la Cruz.
16 July: Festivity of the Virgen del Carmen.

SANTA ÚRSULA
16 February: Carnival Tuesday.
21 October: Festivity of Santa Úrsula.

SANTIAGO DEL TEIDE
16 July: Festivity of the Virgen de Nuestra Señora del Carmen.
26 July: Festivity of Nuestra Señora de Santa Ana.

TACORONTE
16 February: Carnival Tuesday.
25 November: Festivity of Santa Catalina.

TEGUESTE
26 April: Festivity of San Marcos Evangelista.
8 September: Festivity of Nuestra Señora de los Remedios.

VILAFLOR DE CHASNA
19 April: Festividad of Santo Hermano Pedro.
30 August: Festivity of San Agustín y San Roque.

Tenerife in January 2021

What awaits us all in January 2021?

Two public holidays begin the year on Friday 1 January and Wednesday 6 January for 'Los Reyes' (Kings Day), or Epiphany. That's about it for anything usual. The Three Kings Parades that normally draw huge crowds on Twelfth Night have been replaced this year with the trio instead visiting many more districts, so that they can be seen from homes and balconies instead. 

Three craft fairs for the Christmas and Three Kings holidays, will be held in Santa Cruz de Tenerife, La Laguna and Puerto de la Cruz. The Christmas and Three Kings Craft Markets are usually held between 2nd and 5th January

The following municipal holidays are listed for January, which were finally agreed on the 29th and published on 31 December. These, of course, with the current restrictions, merely indicate days when local shops and council offices close. 
  • 18 January: Nuestra Señora de la Esperanza in La Guancha
  • 20 January: Festivity of San Sebastián in Adeje
  • 22 January: Festivity of San Vicente in Los Realejos
Fiestas of San Sebastián in La Caleta, Adeje and the Fiestas of San Antonio Abad in Arona, Buenavista del Norte, Chio, Gúímar, La Matanza de Acentejo, Los Silos, Tigaiga and La Florida (La Orotava), we shall have to live without. 

The Rutas de Almendros en Flor (Almond Blossom Walks) are planned to take place between 23 January and 14 February, part of the cultural program of the Santiago del Teide Council. Mayor of Santiago del Teide, Emilio Navarro presented the program that will include a large number of routes, events, contests and a gastronomic route ...

Saturday, January 23, two long, two short and a short route with pets.

On Sunday, January 24, at 12:00, a gastronomic workshop entitled "Cooking Among Almonds" broadcast through the Council's social networks.

On Saturday, January 30, two circular routes operate for all the family. 

On Saturday, February 6, two routes will be developed "Without Barriers", for people with reduced mobility and for the deaf.

On Sunday, February 7, at 5:00 p.m., a recital among almond trees by Satomi Morimoto and Besay Pérez, broadcast through the Council's social networks.

On Sunday February 14, coinciding with the celebration of Valentine's Day, two routes are organized under the title "Lovers Route".

Apart from these walks, a gastro route has also been organized throughout the municipality in which 25 restaurants and shops will participate, the "Almendro en Flor" photography contest and a contest called "Líricas del Almendro" aimed at the schoolchildren of the municipality. In addition, during all Sundays and holidays of the campaign there will be guides distributed along the route to respond to questions and various tracks of QR trails will be uploaded to social networks for those who want to make the walk independently.

Tenerife Land of Eternal Christmas

Sunbathing SantaDesert Island ChristmasScuba Diving SantaTropical Santa
Santa's Having a Whale of a TimeSurfing SantaWaterski SantaCamel Rodeo Santa
With a wide range of products in each design, click the pics (above) to see the full selections.