The visit of the President of the Government of Spain, Pedro Sánchez, and the Prime Minister of the Portuguese Republic, António Costa, to Lanzarote has only just begun. On the occasion of the celebration of the 34th Spanish-Portuguese Summit, which will take place this Wednesday, the Iberian presidents will tour, together with their team and representatives of the Archipelago, emblematic places on the island. From the José Saramago House-Museum to the Jameos del Agua, passing through the Castle of San José.
For this Tuesday, a visit to the house of the Portuguese Nobel Prize winner and an informal dinner at the Castle of San José are planned.
Visit to the house of José Saramago
Before dinner, the President of the Government of Spain and the Prime Minister of the Portuguese Republic, António Costa, will visit the José Saramago House-Museum. There they will be received by the leader of the Canary Executive, Ángel Victor Torres.
The Portuguese writer wrote a good part of his work from the Canary Island and is one of the examples of the cultural relations shared by both countries. "This visit is, once again, a way of dignifying and commemorating the possibility that, being so different, we have such a similar culture," begins José Saramago's widow, the journalist and writer Pilar del Río.
Del Río will be the hostess of the political representatives of both countries and, paraphrasing her husband, she highlights "the cultural value of the South Atlantic basin." The tribute to the Portuguese writer rooted in Lanzarote could not miss a nod to an island winery. The journalist will serve El Grifo wine in homage to the writer, the Saramago 100. "I am going to open the doors of my house and we are going to toast to his legacy," she said in statements to this newsroom.
Within the framework of this meeting, Pilar del Río has taken the opportunity to reflect on the value of politics in the current world and its relationship with culture: "Everything cultural, like everything personal, is political." The writer's widow narrates how Saramago wrote in Portuguese and then translated simultaneously into Spanish. For her, understanding the value of culture and reinforcing it is the first step towards achieving economic union.
The informal dinner this Tuesday will be at the Castle of San José and the essence of the island will not be lacking. As starters, they will have La Santa prawn tartare, avocado, ginger and lemon, wrinkled potatoes with cherne salpicón, three-cheese croquettes, frangollo and foie. In addition, the presence of La Graciosa is also assured, with hake from the Chinijo archipelago bathed in a traditional Canarian mojo. There will also be black suckling pig, accompanied by sweet potato and banana, chocolate coulant and gofio or papaya and pineapple skewer.
Between 80 and 90 people will attend the evening, including ministers, secretaries of state and other officials. "The products will be zero kilometer, all exclusive to the island," said the CEO of the Art, Culture and Tourism Centers (CACT), Benjamín Perdomo, in statements to this newspaper. The hustle and bustle arrived early at the Centers, from where they are in charge of preparing the menu, in conjunction with the Lanzarote chef Orlando Ortega.
The celebration of the Spanish-Portuguese summit will take place this Wednesday at the Jameos del Agua. The work of the artist César Manrique will exclusively host the political representatives within the framework of this Spanish-Portuguese summit. It will be in this same space where ministerial meetings will be held and where a press conference will be given to the media.