Adeje celebrated yesterday, in a festive atmosphere, the big day of San Sebastián, co-patron of the municipalitywith a mass sung by the El Mestuaro group and the subsequent pilgrimage in procession, accompanied by the Nuestra Señora de las Nieves Group, under the sun to La Enramada beach, where the most colorful and anticipated event of the festivities took place: the horse bathwhich was followed by thousands of attendees waiting in the beach area set up by the southern city council.
There, a hundred riders, this year with a high female participation, once again showed their skills on the saddle. Subsequently, the delegation headed to the area of El Humilladero, a location where the traditional blessing of the animals took place, including numerous horses, goats and sheep.
The parish priest Agalac Alonso Siverio highlighted in his homily, celebrated in the church of San Sebastián, in La Caleta, the example represented by the holy co-patron of the municipality. “The arrows did not kill him, it was his double martyrdom; “He was a Milanese soldier whose faith went before his spear and he stood before his executioner to continue announcing the gift of faith,” he reminded the parishioners, to pronounce his conclusion: “Without faith, nothing is sustained in our life.” Shortly afterward he gave three cheers to San Sebastián, in chorus with the faithful, to end the mass.
Different images of the celebration, yesterday, of San Sebastian Day, which Adeje celebrated with a mass and the procession to the beach./ Fran Pallero
Different images of the celebration, yesterday, of San Sebastian Day, which Adeje celebrated with a mass and the procession to the beach./ Fran Pallero
Different images of the celebration, yesterday, of San Sebastian Day, which Adeje celebrated with a mass and the procession to the beach./ Fran Pallero
Different images of the celebration, yesterday, of San Sebastian Day, which Adeje celebrated with a mass and the procession to the beach./ Fran Pallero
Different images of the celebration, yesterday, of San Sebastian Day, which Adeje celebrated with a mass and the procession to the beach./ Fran Pallero
Different images of the celebration, yesterday, of San Sebastian Day, which Adeje celebrated with a mass and the procession to the beach./ Fran Pallero
Different images of the celebration, yesterday, of San Sebastian Day, which Adeje celebrated with a mass and the procession to the beach./ Fran Pallero
The mayor of Adeje, José Miguel Rodríguez Fraga, about to pack his bags for the Madrid International Tourism Fair (Fitur), referred to the celebration as an act that reflects “a feeling of belonging that links us to our history, the tradition and memories, because on a day like today it is impossible not to remember those who are no longer among us.” The southern councilor, who highlighted the “good vibration” of the party and its “absolutely spontaneous essence,” asked San Sebastián for “peace in these moments of war in the world.”
Among the large audience, the high presence of tourists stood out, who gathered both on the beach and in the garden and pool area of the H10 Costa Adeje hotel (which four years ago went around the world when it was confined by the first cases of COVID -19 in Spain) and who recorded with their mobile phones the passing of the saint and, above all, the equestrian exhibition on the coast, the most unique aspect of the celebration.
Family tradition
“This is a very special tradition that is transmitted from generation to generation and that we already enjoy with our parents and grandparents; It is something unique that you have to experience, the feeling is spectacular,” summarized one of the riders on his horse. Another participant, excited, confessed to the City Council’s media, which broadcast the celebration live, that he has been coming “for more than 25 years as a promise of gratitude, because on this beach I almost drowned; That’s why I come year after year.”
The Adejero City Council activated a comprehensive preventive security device, although there were no significant incidents to report during the celebration. In addition, the organization fenced off different spaces, with shaded areas and water supplies for the animals, while several veterinarians were in charge of guaranteeing animal well-being.
The festival of San Sebastián, one of the oldest celebrations in Tenerife (its origins date back to the first half of the 16th century), is related to agriculture and livestock in the southern region. It is a festival that combines recreational and religious events and which began last Friday in the church of San Sebastián with the mass sung by the Armeñime Bolero Group and which continued with the procession, in which the Band of the Musical Board of the Historic Villa de Adeje. The night closed with the offering of fireworks back to the Church of San Sebastián.
