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Santa Cruz de Tenerife Carnival Queen 1996

Nayra Plasencia Jorge, Carnival Queen in Santa Cruz de Tenerife 1996

1996 Carnival Poster
Carnival Queen in Santa Cruz in 1996 was Nayra Plasencia Jorge, in a costume entitled "Ra", designed by Justo Gutiérrez and representing Almacenes El Kilo.

In 1996, the court was made up as follows:

  1. 1st Maid of Honour: Raquel Bedoya González, with a costume entitled "Mundos de cristal" (Crystal Worlds), representing Swarovski Ibérica and designed by Marcos Marrero and María Díaz.
  2. 2nd Maid of Honour: Noemi Marrero García, with “Yo soy la María” (I am the Maria), representing Cerveza Sol and designed by Juan Carlos Armas.
  3. 3rd Maid of Honour: Raquel Pérez Franquis, with "Entre el cielo y la tierra" (Between the sky and the earth), representing Círculo de Amistad XII de Enero and designed by José Julio Rodríguez and Juan Fajardo.
  4. 4th Maid of Honour: Sandra Sosa Borges, with a costume entitled “Realidad virtual” (Virtual Reality), representing Centro Comercial Alcampo - La Laguna and designed by Leo Martínez.
The theme of carnival in 1996 was Mexico. The set evoked a neighbourhood in Mexico, with characters that depicted stereotypical, negative portrayals of Mexicans as "drunk, lazy and violent". The Mexican Consul was in attendance, and it was broadcast in America by Galavision and in Spain by Telecinco. The show nearly created a diplomatic incident: Televisa closed its office in Tenerife, which was owned by Canal 7 del Atlántico (ECO Noticias). 

Its highlight was a performance by Enrique Iglesias.

Recinto Ferial by Koppchen / CC BY
The year 1996 was the first that the  contests were held at the Centro Internacional de Ferias y Congresos de Tenerife (The Tenerife International Centre for Trade Fairs and Congresses), opened that year, designed by architect and engineer Santiago Calatrava (also responsible for the Auditorio de Tenerife).

The stage was located at one end of the building, and candidates had to cross a walkway from the other end of the building to reach it. A miscalculation in the construction of the walkway required a small ramp, so that there wouldn't be a step between the walkway and the stage; The candidates needed help to access the stage after crossing the catwalk, because due to the weight and volume of the costumes, they could not climb the ramp, which caused many problems.


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.