Discovery of the Virgin of Candelaria

Ceremony of the Discovery of the Virgin of Candelaria. Image: Candelaria Town Hall

August 15th, Assumption, is celebrated in the town of Candelaria where the patron of the Canary Islands, Nuestra Señora de Candelaria (The Virgin of Candelaria or Our Lady of Candelaria) resides in her Basilica of Candelaria. 

Many thousands make a pilgrimage to the basilica each year - the town usually expects around 200,000 visitors on August 14th and 15th, principle days of the celebrations - and the actual veneration takes the form of processions and floral offerings (Romería y Ofrenda Floral - Virgen de Candelaria), but the most popular part of the annual celebrations is the re-enactment or ceremony of the discovery of the figure, which takes place in the Plaza outside the Basilica on 14th August from around 7:30pm. This more than 200 year old re-enactment ceremony is very popular, so be advised to expect total bedlam.

The invocation of the Virgen de la Candelaria or Our Lady of Candelaria had its origin in Tenerife. According to tradition - a legend recorded by Alonso de Espinosa in 1594 - the Virgin appeared, bearing a child in one hand and a candle in the other (hence "Candelaria") on the beach of Chimisay (Güímar), in 1392, long before the Castilian conquest of the island, to two Guanche goatherds. 

When they reached the mouth of a cave, their herd did not advance. One of the shepherds came forward to see what was happening and saw a small wooden image of a woman, about a meter high[1]. It is said that one of the men tried to throw a stone at the statue, but his arm became paralyzed; the other tried to stab the statue with a knife but ended up stabbing himself. The statue was taken by the local Guanche Mencey, Acaymo, to the cave of Chinguaro. 

Later, this devotion spread and is now celebrated in Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Peru, Costa Rica, Cuba, Ecuador, El Salvador, the United States, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Puerto Rico, Uruguay & Venezuela. 

[1] It has long been speculated that what the herdsmen actually found was the figurehead of a ship that had washed ashore, but the original has long since been lost - stories include it being washed out to sea in a flood - so it conveniently cannot be verified. We’ll probably never know if this Madonna was washed up on the beach in Tenerife by the hand of God or by conniving Spaniards.

Legend and appearance

Garachico tyre burning fiesta 2015

Garachico tyre burning fiesta 2015

We have Joanne Waiting to thank for highlighting this event. Of course it isn't really called the Garachico tyre burning fiesta, which she coined, but we think it's a brilliantly descriptive, attention grabbing title and don't understand why that isn't yet official. Actually called the Fuegos del Risco (Cliff Face Fires), which, as is explained in this article in El Dia, Una erupción festiva cada cinco años, these have evolved from pineapples in wooden barrels through dried corncobs soaked in petrol and diesel; sackcloth balls and, yes, on occasion, burning tyres. 

They point out that a small group of people is responsible for setting the lava slopes of Garachico aglow once again at a point close to where the ancient port was located. With logistical support from the town council, they reactivate the fury of the Trevejo volcano (or Montaña Negra - Black Mountain), which destroyed the port of Garachico in 1706, with the help of fireworks and glowing balls rolling down the slope. In the dark of night, the incandescent objects falling down the hillside recreate the effect of a volcanic eruption.

It promises to be spectacular on Sunday night, 2nd August at 10pm. But get there early, because last time, in 2010, it drew a crowd of 35,000.  

What I don't understand is why this is celebrated every 5 years on the 0s and 5s, when the volcanic eruption was in 1706 - it can never fall on an anniversary - or why it takes place in August, as the eruption was in May. No doubt someone has an explanation for these seeming anomalies, but does it matter? Do you need a valid excuse to "celebrate" a disaster by rolling burning tyres down a hillside?  

It's just part of the Fiestas Lustrales y de San Roque 2015 in honour of the Santísimo Cristo de la Misericordia (Holy Christ of Mercy) and San Roque, being held from July 23rd to August 2nd (and actually on to the Romería de San Roque on August 16th, of which more later.) The origins of the fiestas date back to 1659; the first time the firework spectacular appeared under the name of the Fuegos del Risco was in 1922, although it was already celebrated in some form in 1881.

Other attractions this weekend include the Desfile De Carrozas Alegóricas (Parades of Allegorical Floats) on Saturday, 1st August at 10pm and on Sunday, 2nd August at 6pm. These are six floats, authentic works of art that require months of work. Residents of all ages work on these making hundreds of thousands of paper flowers, and elements in wood, cork or paper.

Los Fuegos Del Risco, Garachico, Tenerife 2010

Cloud vortices off Canary Islands

Cloud vortices off Canary Islands 
Image Credit: Jeff Schmaltz, MODIS Land Rapid Response Team, NASA GSFC

Strong, steady trade winds blow past Portugal and off the coast of northwestern Africa. As these winds rush past the tall peaks of the Canary Islands, their flow is dramatically disrupted, causing a predictable pattern of swirls and eddies to form on the leeward side of each island. The patterns are called Von Karman vortices, after Theodore von Karman, co-founder of NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory who first described the phenomenon. Although the patterns appear to be somewhat random, the flow of air around the obstruction follows laws of fluid dynamics, and the patterns formed can be predicted by mathematical formulations.

The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) aboard NASA’s Terra satellite captured this true-color image on May 20, 2015.

May 29, 2015 - Cloud vortices off Canary Islands

Crosses and Fireworks for Día de la Cruz

Los Realejos Fireworks

On May 3rd, Día de la Cruz – Day of the Cross, is celebrated throughout Tenerife with the biggest fiestas in Santa Cruz and Los Realejos and  Puerto de La Cruz.

"In Tenerife the holiday has an additional meaning, as the date coincides with the founding of the city Santa Cruz in 1494. In this year, on May 3, the then Governor Fernandez de Lugo erected a wooden cross during a ceremony on the beach of Santa Cruz in order to officially establish the emerging metropolis.", explain Tenerife Guide.

The biggest bang for your buck will be the fireworks battle in Los Realejos, held on the night of May 3rd. Battle has been fought between the streets of El Sol and El Medio since around 1770 and today translates to a three hour firework display that uses three tonnes of gunpowder as one side tries to outdo the other. 

On 30th March 2015, the Spanish Tourism Ministry declared these "Cruces y Fuegos de Mayo" in Los Realejos to be of national tourist interest.

Fuegos 3 de Mayo 2013 Los Realejos

Remembering Dan-Air Flight 1008

G-BDAN seen at Manchester Airport in 1974 G-BDAN [CC BY-SA 2.0]

While many are aware of the accident that occurred on March 27, 1977, when 583 people died when KLM and Pan Am 747s collided on a foggy runway in Tenerife, less known is the island's second air disaster that took place some three years later. Dan-Air Flight 1008 was a fatal accident involving a Boeing 727-46 jet aircraft operated by Dan Air Services Limited from Manchester to Tenerife.

The crash, which occurred on 25th April 1980 in the forest in La Esperanza while the aircraft's flight deck crew wrongly executed an unpublished holding pattern in an area of very high ground, resulted in the aircraft's destruction and the deaths of all 146 on board (138 passengers and eight crew). Flight 1008 also marked the greatest loss of life in an air disaster involving a British-registered aircraft.

Remembering Dan-Air Flight 1008


A Turn Too Tight (Dan-Air Flight 1008)

Santa Cruz de Tenerife Carnival Queen 2015

Carnaval Queen in Santa Cruz de Tenerife in 2015, Adtemexi Cruz Hernández

Carnaval Queen in Santa Cruz de Tenerife in 2015 was Adtemexi Cruz Hernández, with "Aurea" (Golden), designed by Jorge González Santana and representing Fuente Alta bottled water and association 'Tu Santa Cruz'.

In 2015, the court was made up of:

1. 1st Maid of Honour: Lucía González Ortega, with a costume entitled "Desde el cielo" (From heaven), designed by Antonio Santos Arteaga.
2. 2nd Maid of Honour: Sonia Lechón Hernández, with "Resurgir" (Resurgence), designed by the Inmates of the Tenerife Penitentiary.
3. 3rd Maid of Honour: Teresa Pitti Barquero, with a costume entitled "Always Forever", designed by Santi Castro.
4. 4th Maid of Honour: Naomi Álvarez Fajardo, with "Enia, guardiana de una leyenda" (Enia, guardian of a legend), designed by Cavi-Lladó.

- Adtemexi Cruz Hernández, nueva Reina del Carnaval de Santa Cruz de Tenerife
- ¡Santa Cruz de Tenerife ya tiene Reina del Carnaval!

Not everyone is enthusiastic about carnaval, it seems, as comments on this report from Diario de Avisos reveal, calling it outdated and "Rubbish. Opium for the people. Mindless entertainment. Show maintained by corrupt politicians so that the people do not take care of other things. Media garbage."

The theme of the carnival in Santa Cruz de Tenerife in 2015 was "The Future". Almost 7000 spectators at the carnival queen gala enjoyed an overture that recreated planet Earth in the future and in which robots, dancers, galactic stilt walkers and beings from other planets paraded on stage. Several trapeze artists flew over the Recinto Ferial and a giant human figure moved among the spectators until it reached the stage, in the style of La Fura dels Baus. Everything was surrounded by the light and the images projected by the large LED screen of more than 50 meters wide that surrounded the stage. One of the most emotional moments of the gala took place when the Guinness record of 1987 was revived on stage. That year more than 200 thousand people had danced to the rhythm of the queen of salsa, Celia Cruz. The stage was filled with dancers from the carnival groups and the voices of six singers reviewed the hits of the Cuban artist. 

Tenerife ya tiene reina del carnaval, Adtemexi Cruz con la fantasía 'Aúrea'

The Annual Miracle of La Servita

Facade of the Santa Catalina Convent in La Laguna. Photo by Koppchen

On 15th February, the doors of the Santa Catalina convent in La Laguna will be opened (from 5am) for the faithful and the curious to queue around the block (~15,000 every year) to view the incorrupted body of Sor María de Jesús (Sister Mary of Jesus de León y Delgado) (1643 - 1731), known as La Siervita.

De León died on 15th February 1731 and three years later, in January 1734, her body was exhumed and her remains found to be intact, with wet clothes, flexible and with a natural colour, it was said. Still preserved in the convent, every 15th February, her body is placed on public display in a luxurious glass-covered coffin, which was donated by La Laguna born pirate, Amaro Pargo, her friend in life and benefactor of the convent, who was present at her exhumation.

María de León Bello y Delgado was born in El Sauzal on March 23rd, 1643 and entered the convent in February of 1668. She spent a year as a novice, then took up the habit for the rest of her life. Contemporary texts claim that shortly before she died, she "fell into ecstasy", while retaining a pulse for more than 24 hours.

However, we learn that the body is located ten meters away from where viewers are able to pass and the lighting isn't too good. And despite numerous claims, there are no scientifically verified cases of genuine incorruptibility. But as this post points out, "to be able to spend almost 300 years right next door to La Laguna town hall and still remain "uncorrupted" is a worthy miracle." :)

The Miraculous Sister María de Jesús