Honorable Mayor, Councilor of Festivities, Members of the
Municipal Corporation, neighbors of Arrecife, visitors and
friends. Good afternoon to all.
It is a pleasure for me to be here with you today and I thank
Mr. Mayor, Don Cándido Reguera, for giving me the
opportunity this year to give the Proclamation of the San Ginés Festivities,
Patron Saint of this City in which I was born and in which I have
lived so much.
The protohistory of this clear and cheerful city dates back, after the
Phoenician and Roman exploration of the Canary Islands, to the time of the Majos,
as evidenced by the remains of hooks found in El Charco,
very similar to those used by the Berbers of the north of
Africa. But its history dawns in the 15th century in the neighborhood of La
Puntilla, next to the Charco de San Ginés. It was there that, according to
the story goes, the French merchant Francisco García
Santaella, who traded with this port, landed in 1630 and then erected
a hermitage under the patronage of S. Ginés, after having arrived at
its waters a painting of the saint, the French bishop of Clermont. It
is here, around the hermitage, where the first borough was created that
constituted the embryo of the city. In El Charco, a volcanic caldera
filled with the waters of the Atlantic and twin sister of the Charco de los
Clicos, in this inland sea and fishing refuge is where the
first fishermen and sailors who have to face the
sea are installed.
Arrecife is a natural port, the best in the Canary Islands, of enormous
beauty, sheltered and protected from the winds and the sea of
bottom, with coves and islets. The urban layout of its
streets leaves much to be desired and so there are those who have come to
say: "the engineers who created this town have been the same
goats that as they passed were tracing the streets"
The beauty of this port city contrasts with the fact that its
first houses were simple, in the words of Agustín Espinosa:
"low houses, as if crushed against the earth like a sheepfold
under the storm", which have nothing to do with the rich
mansions, grain warehouses, wineries, distilleries or fish markets that
were built on Calle Real and its surroundings during the 17th and
18th centuries, when a large bourgeoisie arose favored by the
flourishing of a prosperous trade. On the backs of camels, along
the Camino Real, products as ours as salt, the
cochineal, onion and wine arrived at our port in
search of other markets that already then coveted them.
The physiognomy of Arrecife is reflected in its incomparable bay
and highlighted by a series of engineering constructions, such
as the Puente de las Bolas, the Castillo de San Gabriel, or the de
San José. Gone are the attacks and raids of the Moorish corsair
Calafat of El Turquillo or Morato Arráez. Special mention
deserve the docks and ports, not in vain Arrecife was a
port before city. The Muelle Chico was built at the beginning of the
18th century when the barilla was at its peak, and, at
the end of the 19th century, it became the Muelle de Las Cebollas.
As this was insufficient for the fishing fleet, the
alternative was in the Bay of Naos, a true natural port
of our coastline, in which the Muelle de Naos is built, which
was to house the most important fishing fleet in the Canary Islands. More
later the fishermen finance the Muelle de la Pescadería for
sailing boats and rowing boats.
The architectural heritage of Arrecife is very rich, so we have
the Church of San Gines (1630), the Casa de la Aduana., from the 17th century
(known as Casa Arroyo), La Recova, the Casa de la Cultura
(1850), the Mercadillo (Headquarters of the Ancient Democracy) (1850), La
Casa de Pereyra (1916), the Cabildo Insular (1927) and many other
properties. The Salinas de Puerto Naos with
its mills and cooking pots and, of course, the bridges: How I
would like these to also unite us in the ideas and projects
of future!.
I have a special memory of the Institute, the first Center for
Secondary Education on the Island, as it was there that I trained,
studying from 1928. I am therefore proud to
have been one of its first students since this was the year of its
creation, having then as Director D. Agustín Espinosa,
who taught me Language and Literature and who, as
distinguished writer that he was, left us a masterpiece in the field
of surrealist literature with his work: "Lancelot 28º-7º". The
building was nothing more than a ground floor house located in Las Cuatro
Esquinas, which was later demolished and today is part of a
bend of the Charco de San Ginés.
I will now make an outline, an intrahistory, of the evolution of that
Arrecife from the 40s-60s with its old neighborhoods of La
Puntilla, El Lomo, La Destila and La Vega, to the present day: The
population that was seven thousand seven hundred inhabitants in 1940 has
has become more than 59,000 neighbors who inhabit the new
city, distributed in the neighborhoods already mentioned and those of Argana,
Titerroy, Valterra, Maneje, Altavista and San Francisco Javier, among
others. Spectacular urban growth occurs with the
wide Vía Medular, a true lung of the city. The
Parador de Turismo a prominent component in the advancement of this
process. But this development has not been easy or comfortable, but
achieved by the enthusiasm and stubborn effort of its neighbors.
Fishing activity in the Banco
Canario- Sahariano, especially of croaker and sardine, which
led to the installation of the factories of Lamberti, LLoret
and Linares, Ojeda, Afersa and Garavilla that so much work and wealth
offered. An important milestone in this evolution was the installation of
the first desalination plant in the Canary Islands by the Díaz Rijo brothers, which
will boost all island economic sectors. Previously
the mail boats "La Palma" helped us with the water supply,
"León y Castillo" and "Viera y Clavijo", water that was then distributed
through barrels loaded on camels and carts with drums and
cans. Finally, the new dock of "Los Mármoles", work of the
engineer D. Ruperto González Negrín, gave the definitive impulse
to economic activity. Currently arrive at our port
large ocean liners on their cruise routes, which constitute
an important source of income for Lanzarote.
I miss, however, more Cultural and Recreational Centers
where to enjoy a theater session, an opera, a concert,
a ballet? I hope and wish that our beloved and esteemed Mayor and
the Corporation achieve it.
If we look at the social aspect, there were then the societies of
recreation: El Casino, with its costume balls, La Democracia, El
Culantro (split from the Sociedad Democracia due to differences
among its partners) and, subsequently, the society
".Torrelavega",. La Democracia and el Culantro disputed the success
and the duration of their festivities, reflecting their rivalry also in
football matches. And so, the "Culantro" that had
figures such as: Manuel Garrido, Narciso Fábregas, Jaime Marrero, Pepe
Toledo, Caraballo, Nicolás Martín, Guillermo Toledo competed with the
team of La Democracia, called the "Fénix" formed by: Gregorio
Armas, Modesto Armas, Pepito Miranda, Emilio Cabrera, Pepe Prats,
Carlos Díaz, Rafael Clares, Daniel Cabrera, Paco Fierro, Juan Pérez
and Justiniano Perdomo. with D. Manuel Camejo as coach.
There were conejeros who preferred to entertain themselves with the sport
hunting. It was hunted especially in the Volcán de Tahiche and,
to chase the rabbits, D. José Saavedra was helped by his
dog "Colón" and D. Rafael Ramírez de "Tigre". Very commented were
also the regattas of balandros and jolateros, but more
surprising the cockfights, to which my friend
my friend Emilio Sáenz. The North side, captained by D.
Francisco Delgado, with Miguel Gopar as runner, faced the
South side with D. Andrés Fajardo and D. Fernando Rocha. The roosters
best cared for were those of the first, who were victorious in
most of the fights. The "Pollo", by Perico Fierro, had
also outstanding interventions.
There is something that, at my 95 years, I cannot or do not want to forget: Those
Carnivals that I knew as a child and that are so rooted in
our customs, although they do not have to do exactly with the
Festivities that bring us together here today.
For the people of the sea this celebration was a vital imperative as
reflects the couplet:
Since February arrives
The sailors are arriving
And for carnival
Inflating the buches
In Las Cuatro Esquinas converged the lively masks and the
large groups enlivened with accordions, timples and guitars.
From El Lomo they descended towards La Calle Real, there they met
a large number of masked people with their buches (cured and inflated fish bladder)
and the first greetings, jokes and fights used to occur:
Lawsuit in Las Cuatro Esquinas
The sauce of carnival
You can already hear the buchazos
Throughout the city
But the Fiesta par excellence was always "San Ginés". All the
arrecifeños waited for those days with special illusion. The big day
dawned with the dance of Giants and Bigheads, and around twelve
solemn mass was celebrated, which was attended with the best finery
newly released.
In the afternoon, the maritime zone began to liven up with the
massive influx of people from all over the island, as well as other
visitors from different areas of the Canary Islands. The visit to the Fair was
essential, Who did not suffer the vertigo of the slide, or felt the
swing of the marine wave? Who has not been moved sometime to hit
to the target or to win in the noisy roulette?
Everything was a continuous coming and going. From nine o'clock at night
friends met in the ventorrillos to "jincarse" a
rum, have some carajacas and talk about the divine and the human.
Apart from the open-air verbena and the dances in the different
societies, a very important chapter in the festivities was the
election of the Mises. The Mises of before had the same illusion
than those of now. As you can see, the tradition continues and I hope that for
many years. All these are the elements that, for me, make up
the Fiesta de San Ginés. It has always been said that the arrecifeño is
open and jovial, very given to chatter and humorous commentary,
knew how to enjoy and participate in the party despite the scarcity of
means that existed at that time and that, unfortunately, also
we have in the present moment. Therefore, in these days I invite you
to the revelry and enjoyment and I also allow myself to advise you
participation in the religious acts in honor of San Ginés to
pray for the health and well-being of all.
Thank you for accompanying this act with such a kind presence. Happy
Holidays!
