The informative day ‘Discover Laroya, from Cervantes to the Fires’ brought together hundreds of people this Saturday in Laroya, with the aim of spreading its roots, culture and history and publicising its cultural, tourist, natural and gastronomic potential. The event was organised by the Town Council and was held thanks to the support of the Almería Provincial Council.
Discover Laroya, from Cervantes to the Fires’ started in the morning and will continue with numerous activities until the evening. Among the initiatives that have been carried out are a dramatised route, a popular paella, children’s games and, in the afternoon, representations of some of the most unique traditions of the town as the quartets; visit to the Church of San Ramón Nonato, Moors and Christians …, a dozen stands of crafts and gastronomy, or an intervention of Cervantes.
With this activity Laroya wants to make known all that it has to offer to the visitor. In this way it has spread the word about the passage of Miguel de Cervantes through the municipality when he was a tax collector, the phenomena of the fires of Laroya that kept Spain in suspense during the summer of 1945, as well as other traditions such as his famous quatrains, rhymed verses on themes of the municipality, or the excellence of its trails.
The event, which was attended by more than 100 residents of El Ejido, a municipality twinned with Laroya, and another 50 from Cartagena, was attended by the mayoress, Loli Moreno, and the president of the Diputación de Almería, Javier A. García, who was accompanied by the vice-presidents Ángel Escobar and José Antonio García.
Javier A. García congratulated the town council and its mayoress for “the excellent work they have been doing for years to revitalise the municipality. This day is another example of the great work that is bringing life back to Laroya, a town that offers numerous alternatives to visitors and has a rich history and genuine traditions that make it a special place.
Along these lines, García acknowledged that “Laroya is the best example of how it has taken advantage of the Diputación’s support to grow and improve the quality of life of its residents. Here we inaugurated the first cash machine of the Council’s Plan Against Financial Exclusion. And I also had the opportunity to inaugurate its bar, the Bar Alameda. Because one of the great challenges we have set ourselves as a provincial government team in this term of office is that in every municipality there should be at least one bar-shop”.
Finally, the president wished the participants in the event that “you enjoy this day that opens the heart of Laroya, a place full of history that makes us feel deeply proud of our roots, of being from Almería. Because as it is said in Don Quixote, “Never was love unhappy that was known”, and today is a day to fall in love with Laroya”.
For her part, the mayoress reiterated her gratitude to the Provincial Institution for its contribution to making this day a reality and highlighted all the actions that have been undertaken to promote the town from a social and economic point of view and recalled that “rural tourism is key to our future and with this day we want to make known all that Laroya has to offer”.