CAMAGÜEY.-With the will that characterizes the locals, San Juan in Camagüey will return to its traditional program from June 24th to the 29th, with suggestive attractions that include parades and floats, orchestra presentations in party areas and the Teatro del Pueblo, in the central square of El Gallo.
The above was announced at the press conference offered by the highest political and governmental authorities together with the Culture sector at the Santa Cecilia Convention Center, a meeting that, as every year, draws back the curtains of the most popular of the Camagüey’s festivities, whose presence is part of the cultural heritage of the city.
At midnight on Friday the 23rd, with the reading of the Bando from the balconies of the bicentennial City Hall, Dixamy Rodríguez Gómez, president of the Government in the municipality of Camagüey will inaugurate the San Juan program with the opening of the main areas of celebrations in the Capdevila street in the La Vigía neighborhood, Javier de la Vega avenue, near the Casino Campestre, and in the Sánchez Soto and Julio Antonio Mella districts.
They also prepare options for the population: the cabaret on Padre Valencia street, the patio of the Rancho Luna restaurant, with humorous shows; the Casino Recreational Cultural Center, dedicated to the prodigious decade; the El Emperador restaurant, with country music; the track of the Lenin neighborhood, and the Plaza de La Libertad, where the Parade groups will make their presentations.
The parades, which will take place on the 24th, 25th and 26th, will be attended by floats from Culture, Transport, Agriculture, Industries and the sugar sector; the comparsas Los Guaracheros de San Juan de Dios, La Estrella and Arte Joven, and the rhythm of the congas Los Comandos, Retoños de Los Comandos, La Estrella, La Arrollador, La Farola and Los Caribes, as well as the varieties that traditionally accompany such as dolls and motorcyclists. The parades will travel through Avenida 26 de Julio, Carretera Central, and Avenida de La Libertad to the square.
For the final days of the celebrations there will be parties organized by the initiative of the communities. On Thursday 29th, as is typical, it will close with the burial of San Pedro, from Workers’ Square to la Libertad Square, this year with the largest number of brass bands, according to Reinaldo Echemendía, president of the Parade and director of the Folkloric Ballet of Camagüey.
For Saturday July 1st, the Children's Carnival is announced in the areas of la Libertad Avenue and the Casino Campestre, an activity that will kick off the 2023 summer program.
The San Juan in complex days like today represents an extraordinary effort for its organization. The difficult economic conditions we are going through could lead one to think that doing so is due to a lack of sensitivity or will mean abandoning basic services or aid programs for the population. Quite the opposite.
The recovery work in the 25 neighborhoods most affected by the floods at the beginning of June and the support for the affected families will continue because they express the will of the Revolution not to leave anyone abandoned and use all its resources in situations of this type.
But, the people of Camagüey cannot renounce the San Juan celebrations, in this is the decision to maintain a tradition settled for centuries, heritage conquered with pride in the land of Camagüey, and that strengthens the spirituality of the locals.
Translated by Linet Acuña Quilez