Since the onset of the year, the preparations by the residents of Garachico have been relentless. They cannot afford to pause as they are gearing up for a “historical” summer. In August, a new edition of the lustral festivities for the Blessed Christ of Mercy will coincide with the traditional patron saint celebrations of Santa Ana and San Roque, which will commence in July and conclude on the 16th with the customary pilgrimage.
This year’s event carries extra significance as the lustral holiday returns to the town and port after a decade, having been cancelled in 2020 due to COVID-19. It was on March 14, 2020, that the various teams ceased their activities, and all the prepared materials, including thousands of paper flowers and intricately carved cork figures, were stored away in sealed and labelled boxes, placed in a dark room to shield them from light, allowing most of them to be preserved, as confirmed by the councillor of Fiestas, Andrés Hernández.
An attempt was made to resume the preparations the following year, but the pandemic was not sufficiently under control, leading to the decision to postpone the lustral festivities until 2025. This is why there is heightened anticipation this year. The locals take charge of all preparations selflessly, from decorating the squares to creating the allegorical floats that will parade through the streets. Additionally, they will craft the fireballs that are hurled through the Risco to commemorate the volcanic eruption of 1706 that buried the Historic Port of Garachico.
One of the innovations this year will be a tribute to Paco Delgado, one of the oldest members of the community who passed away in 2018. “The aim was to honour him in 2020, but that was not possible,” Hernández notes. The sculptor Raúl Pérez, who is the youngest member of the team, has designed a float to pay homage in a manner that reflects Delgado’s distinctive style, which was highly influential, as he emphasised.
Consequently, the summer in Garachico is set to be “intense,” as the festivities kick off on July 23 with the proclamation and the official launch of the San Roque celebrations. The following weekend will be dedicated to the lustral festivities, and the San Roque celebrations will take the spotlight until Saturday, August 16, when the traditional pilgrimage occurs, thereby concluding more than a month of popular festivities in the Villa and Puerto de Garachico.
