Processions in Tenerife are the traditional and highly successful ‘romerías’, which entice both tourists and residents to participate as spectators.
When you hear romerias for the first time, it takes a while to swallow, until you later master the meaning. This is a piece of tradition, a piece of history that should convince every native and every tourist to take part in it. Not as a processionist but mainly as a spectator.
Patron Saint
Romería comes from the word ‘procession’ and refers to the pilgrims who went to Rome (romero/romeiro) or to another shrine and as such is a Catholic celebration. Historically, this procession is a pilgrimage, but lore and traditional shifts and adaptations have meant that, today, ‘pilgrimage’ is not the right synonym to describe a romería. Still, it comes pretty close because according to its origins, during a romería one patron saint is always carried through the streets of the village.
La Orotava
Mother’s most beautiful romería is definitely that of La Orotava. This procession in honour of ‘San Isidro Labrador’ and of ‘Santa María de la Cabeza’ attracts tens of thousands of spectators every year. Not all of them come out of devotion to the Blessed Virgin. They do come to soak up the atmosphere, to witness the radiance of the floats, the traditional costumes and the musical accompaniment.
To experience the joy of it all, crowds of people flock to this event. And the success is compounded by the distribution of free local produce to the sightseers.
Dance and music at Night
The procession consists of 85 chariots pulled by at least as many oxen, 25,000 people (processionists and visitors) in authentic ‘mago & maga’ attire and dozens of groups bringing local musical colour to the proceedings.
The procession drags itself for six hours through the narrow streets of La Orotava with tens of thousands of visitors feasting on fine wines, folkloric groups, local agricultural and horticultural products (distributed free of charge) and traditional music. After the procession, the party is not over; traditionally, the evening and the night are filled with dance and music, as well as people partying.
Romerías everywhere
But there are more romerías than just this one in La Orotava. Throughout the year, a procession passes through a village or municipality somewhere. Some are bigger than others but the common thread running through each romería story is that it is infectiously inviting and people are drawn, like a magnet, to be involved in this event.
Every romería has its patron saint and he always joins, even leads, in every procession.
Guy Devos © Photography
Processions in Tenerife ©
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