Tejina stands out in August for having within it three of the most unique festivals in Tenerife, all of them in honor of their patron saint, Saint Bartholomew. Two years later, after overcoming the restrictions due to COVID-19, this lagoon town -some still insist on segregation- has been able to enjoy the water festival, the original pamela party and, yesterday, the start of the party de los Corazones, where residents of three streets make an effort to adorn metal structures with all kinds of fruit that show the vitality of the town.
Despite the inclement heat -it could well be used for the pamela party-, thousands of tejineros and visitors gathered from early in the morning, at least those who got up early after a long night of fireworks, to set up and raise the three large structures with the filling of hearts with fruits and flowers in the church square and the corresponding offering to Saint Bartholomew, while at night the XXXII Festival of Exaltation of the Hearts was celebrated. Each of the three streets (El Pico, Arriba and Abajo) raised their hearts, to the enthusiasm of their countrymen, while this afternoon the fruit and flour cakes will be taken down for tomorrow to proceed to the traditional pique of the parrandas of the hearts and the subsequent removal and removal of the structures that the residents of the three healthy facing streets elaborate with care.
More than 100 years
The Festival of the Hearts of Tejina is based on three cross-shaped structures with two wooden hearts in each one, one larger than the other; They serve as a base on which to sew flowers, fruits and flour cakes. Weighing up to 900 kilos and 12 meters high, men carry them to the church square. They place them there and a fun ritual begins in which each one mischievously criticizes the other hearts. It is a festival declared an Asset of Cultural Interest and is more than 100 years old. There are those who point out that this festival and, therefore, the hearts have to do with the “attachment to the terroir” of the tejineros, contrary to what happens with the nearby towns of Valle de Guerra and Tegueste, where the presence of carts- boats recalls the emigration to Venezuela.
The mayor of La Laguna, Luis Yeray Gutiérrez, highlighted the value of these August festivities in Tejina “to spread and preserve the history of the tejinero people” highlighting that from the City Council “we will continue to support initiatives like this, because, without a doubt, they contribute to maintain and transmit our heritage and culture”.
While the Councilor for Fiestas, Badel Albelo, pointed out that “the fiestas have returned with all their splendor; We are extremely happy to meet again in a town like Tejina”, highlighting the good behavior of all the neighbors yesterday, something that contrasts with some vandalism during the night with container burning.
