31/08/2017

Gran Canaria once again moves to the fervor of #SentirElPino

The fiestas of El Pino 2019 once again make all roads in Gran Canaria lead to Teror.

The story goes, that despite the prevailing official ban, fishermen used to make their way up to Teror, in Gran Canaria, and, would slink along the night shadows up to the so called Pine Tree of Wonders, to take anything they could get their hands on, maybe a fallen pine cone, or at least a piece of twig or tree bark. One fisherman even told of how he survived a sea storm, settling the waves by throwing a pine he had picked up from the miracle tree overboard into the sea from his endangered vessel. According to traditional tales, the pine tree in Teror was the site of the apparition of the Virgin, back in 1481.

The Basilica of Our Lady of El Pino, in Teror

The same tradition points to a powerful storm that knocked the formidable tree to the ground, which was said to measure over forty metres high. However, not even the strongest winds could knock down the popular fervor that surrounds the Virgin of El Pino, with its deep-rooted presence in the islanders’ culture. The 7th September 2019 sees the return for another year of the great pilgrimage-offering that winds up at the doors of the Basilica in Teror, a widely supported event which highlights and reinforces the massive attraction the Patron Saint of Gran Canaria holds for the whole population. So now, many centuries on, Gran Canaria once more moves to the fervor of #SentirElPino.

Pilgrimage Offering to Our Lady the Virgin of El Pino, in Teror

 

The pilgrimage-offering is a grand spectacle for the senses. It oozes all the essence of Gran Canaria and the islands as a whole, along the thirty richly adorned roads leading to it, representing all 21 Gran Canarian municipalities, as well as the rest of the islands. It is a flood of emotions, colours, sounds and aromas, which reveals a whole way of life along its route. By watching this human flow through the Villa Mariana you get a perfect insight into the real soul of the islanders.

A group of people looking around the old town centre of Teror

This fiesta is the largest attended event of the year in Gran Canaria, and precedes the great festivities of the Virgin of El Pino, which is held on 8th September. This event brings right up to date a location which seems to have been stuck in times gone by, as if the olden days were hanging from the ancient roof tiles lining the beautiful stately homes and wooden rails of their balconies. Just by stepping on the cobbled streets that lead to and surround the Basilica of Our Lady of El Pino, visitors bring back echos of a yesteryear which reverberate into present day.

Teror, Gran Canaria

What also rings out at the fiesta of El Pino, and in perfect tune, is music. On 13th and 14th September 2019 the 31st annual Teresa de Bolívar Musical Gathering takes place at nine o’clock in the evening at the Plaza de Sintes.

Celebrations at the Fiesta of El Pino, in Teror, Gran Canaria
Teror, Gran Canaria
Poster of the Fiestas of El Pino 2019

Another of the top musical evenings is the 28th annual Gran Canaria Folkloric Festival, on 6th September, again representing all the Canary Islands. At the fiesta del Pino they cater for everyone and everything, including you. Maybe then we’ll see you at #SentirElPino (#FeelElpino)?

Updated dates for the 2019 Fiestas