“Nothing is wrong, the Virgin is on board!” The famous shout from Puerto once again resonated this Tuesday in the Tourist City. The Virgin of Carmen, the patron saint of sailors, experienced the most peculiar and well-attended embarkation of all the celebrations held in her honour in Tenerife. That explosion of collective joy, which occurred once the religious image was placed on the ‘Nuevo San Ramón’, took place just after 20:30, following two hours of procession to cover a distance of barely 300 meters.
Teresa Álvarez awaited the climactic moment from near the Customs House. “I’m looking forward to seeing the carriers lift the Virgin onto the boat,” she said, as San Telmo, who accompanies the Virgin every year in this procession, appeared in the vicinity. Teresa lives in Arona and decided to cross the island to witness for the first time a celebration that she has always enjoyed. “I’ve seen it on TV and thought it was exciting; that’s why I came,” she affirmed.
At 17:15, the Eucharist in honour of Our Lady of Carmen and San Telmo took place at the Church of Our Lady of the Peña de Francia. The ceremony was officiated by the three members of the Order of Saint Augustine present in the Canaries. This is the congregation to which Pope Leo XIV belongs, who was in Puerto de la Cruz on two occasions before becoming pontiff.
The Choir San Andrés and Santa Mónica from Los Realejos provided the musical note to the religious celebration preceding the procession. This musical group sang inside the church, while outside the carriers sang: “Long live the Virgin of Carmen, Carmen / who was brought to the dock / and those from Realejo cry, cry / for all the sailors.” That was one of the chants that would be repeated numerous times during a parade that went through the streets of Quintana, Santo Domingo, and La Marina, and during which there was even a release of doves. Some tourists watched in awe.
“People experience it incredibly,” said Juan Bacallado, from Santa Cruz and aged 72, when asked about what he was witnessing. It was striking that he and a group of people accompanying him followed the procession a few meters behind the rows of spectators, as if they didn’t want to get too close. “We stand here because if someone gets too close they get pushed and fall to the ground,” he stated near the parish of la Peña de Francia.
The festive atmosphere was not just a phenomenon of the evening. At 7:00, the traditional floral dawn procession went through the historic centre of Puerto de la Cruz, marking the start of a day that had its epicentre at the dock. At 9:00 the first Eucharist of the day was held. Following that, there was to be a hot chocolate event, a children’s fishing competition, a tombola, and several popular tournaments.
The Greased Pole
Folklore also had its share of prominence with a festival held at the Santa Bárbara Battery in honour of the Virgin and San Telmo. At 15:00, there was a significant event known outside Puerto de la Cruz: the greased pole, where locals try to reach flags by sliding down a pole over the sea. A mix of speed and balance is needed to grab one.
The greased pole was exactly what another of the thousands of attendees referred to. “I came after lunch, saw the greased pole, had a drink, and now the procession,” he explained. He was accompanied by his wife, daughter, and dog. “I think even he enjoys coming here, rather than being cooped up all day in Geneto,” joked this resident of La Laguna referring to his pet.
On one of the bulging balconies near the dock were Chago Melián and Tony Acedo, who, as usual, sang to the Virgin of Carmen. The latter is a Malagueño residing in Puerto de la Cruz who performs ‘Gente de mar’ each year, a catchy sevillana that has become an inherent part of the event. “Ranilla, from the task to the shore / Ranilla, from the task to the shore / oh, my fishing neighbourhood,” says the lyric. “Blessed Virgin of Carmen / remember this Malagueño / who wanted to be a Canarian / for I am not from this land / I sing to you in sevillanas,” he expresses later on.
Next to him was the well-known Chago Melián, in a red blazer, a prominent name in the music and popular festivals of Tenerife. After about 40 years, he has passed the baton of ‘Ave María’ to Miriam Reyes during the embarkation of the Virgin of Carmen from his town, Punta del Hidalgo (La Laguna). However, he did not miss the opportunity to be part of this event. And there was a novelty: if it is customary for him to sing ‘Ave María’ and ‘Blessed be my Guanche land’, this Tuesday the second piece was ‘Song to Puerto de la Cruz’, which played as San Telmo was being embarked onto the ‘Adrinere’ while the Virgin of Carmen made her way to the ‘Nuevo San Ramón’ through a corridor opened in the midst of the crowd.
The calm sea aided the manoeuvre, but it is always complex. The captain of the ‘Nuevo San Ramón’, Manuel Martín, a descendant of the owners of the old ‘San Ramón’, followed the operation with composure. Around him, shouts and excitement. Finally, the statue was hoisted with apparent ease. And the words “Nothing is wrong, the Virgin is on board!” echoed along with repeated “Long live the Virgin of Carmen!” Thousands of people surrounded them; numerous boats were nearby, and those in the water splashed about in apparent celebration… The journey to Punta Brava and Martiánez was beginning.
There was Rosa, a 62-year-old resident of Los Realejos. “Coming here is a very family tradition; now my grandchildren come with me.” “I love seeing how they take the Virgin from the dock,” she expressed. “Some say a lot of people come for the party and not for the faith, but I always say this brings us all together, both believers and those who just come to enjoy the atmosphere,” she stated.
“Puerto comes together in July to remember that our traditions and the sea make us who we are: a people proud of its culture and coast. These festivities not only connect us with the past, but also project us into the future with pride and unity,” expressed the mayor of Puerto de la Cruz, Leopoldo Afonso, who also emphasised the “identitary character” of the event.
Alberto González is a photography enthusiast who joined the event. “I come partly because I like it and partly to take photos, which I then edit and share some on my networks,” he indicated. “There are scenes that give you goosebumps, and beyond the photos and images it leaves behind, it’s a very profound celebration, of sailors, of memories…” he added, before highlighting the need for the event to be preserved.
José Manuel, on the other hand, highlighted the crowd concentration there. “I’m finding it a bit overwhelming; I came a couple of years ago and there were a lot of people, but it wasn’t this much; you can hardly move,” affirmed this resident of Orotava. “I came early to park, I’ve been around with family, we see the procession and then we go,” he explained about the planned schedule. “It’s a beautiful, different event…” he considered regarding the embarkation.
José Manuel’s opinion on the attendance was shared by Luis González, who has lived in Puerto de la Cruz for two decades but is originally from the peninsula, from a family from Segovia. “I already feel like I belong here and I roughly know how this works. I’ve seen it many times and I’m surprised that more people come each time,” he posited. “There has been lots of festivities and good vibes throughout the day, and now it’s the more serious and religious part, but it’s still very festive,” he described.
The Ranilla
After the journey along the coast, another part of the event awaited, probably the most local and heartfelt, where the Virgin of Carmen traverses the streets of La Ranilla and fishermen and their descendants remember times when the sea played a bigger role than it does today. “I always stay until the end. I end up getting home quite late, but I love the moments in La Ranilla,” highlighted María del Carmen, 48, from Tacoronte, who has reserved the Tuesday of the Virgin of Carmen in Puerto de la Cruz to intensively experience this festival for “at least ten years, since before the pandemic.”
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