Adeje Council has announced that from this year onwards animals won’t be taking part in the annual Romería. In addition, and given the current head-wave, the traditional pilgrim parade this year will begin later and be a smaller ‘Paseo Romero’ or Pilgrim Walk, starting at 1pm this Sunday, October 15th, at the Plaza de la Cruz del Llano to the Santa Úrsula parish church at the top of the Calle Grande, concluding with the traditional offering to the Virgen de la Encarnación.
"This heat wave has led us to take this decision regarding the use of animals, something we have been considering for a while. There is no doubt that we cannot expose the animals to an event of this nature with the high temperatures we are experiencing at the moment. And we have decided that the measure should be permanent in the interests of animal welfare," said the mayor, José Miguel Rodríguez Fraga.
As usual in Adeje, the day will begin with the Romera Mass at 11 am in the parish church of Santa Ursula. From 1pm onwards, the pilgrims will start their pilgrim walk accompanied by their standards, musical and dance groups, and those carrying local products to offer to the town’s patrons. This will be followed by a get-together in the plaza and later, at around 5pm, the traditional end of the festivities with dancing in the Plaza España to the music of Sensación Gomera and Maquinaria Band.
The organisers will inform the public if there are any further alterations in the schedule due to changes in the meteorological situation, though for now a drop in temperatures is forecast.
The Adeje Romería, organised annually by Adeje Council with the help of the Municipal School of Folklore, has gone through different stages over the decades, first with animals, then with motor vehicles, subsequently a return to the use of draught animals, and now the decision to prioritise animal welfare. "Despite the fact that the fiestas in Adeje are held in October, we are always faced with high temperatures and it seems that this is not going to change, with the reverse likely, if we listen to the reports that evaluate climate change," explained the mayor.
A weekend of fiestas despite the heat
This weekend the Adeje Patronal Fiestas enter their final phase with important events such as the celebration of the 25th anniversary of the twinning with La Gomera and the 35th anniversary of the Folklore Festival, both of which will take place on Saturday the 14th from 7.30pm and 9.30pm respectively.
On Friday, the stage in the Plaza España will be taken over by the music of the Beatles, with a tribute to this historic group and a performance by Los Salvapantallas. But the music does not stop there, as the Corinto and Wamampy orchestras will follow. There will be street parties on Saturday and Sunday, with the Council taking all necessary measures to avoid scheduling events during the hottest hours of the day.
