Desfile de las Flores

The Desfile de las Flores (the flower parade) was created in 1963 by Mrs. Lola Olarte de Fajardo (see Appendix 7) and has become one of the most representative activities of the Festival Nacional de la Guabina y el Tiple. The Desfile de las Flores (the flower parade) is a parade through the streets of Vélez comprising floats decorated with flowers and local materials of the region such as corn, coffee beans, and cane, among others (photo 4 and reference the following video for a clearer understanding https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zb_-EJ0KYWI). These flower floats and arrangements are accompanied by folkloric music groups participating in the parade as well as spontaneous music groups that are not competing but performing traditional music, songs and dances through the entire route of the paradel. For this event, all participants must wear the traje típico of the region.

The Desfile de las Flores takes place on the last day of the festival (Sunday) from 10/11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., lasting approximately 5 hours. The parade starts at the Monumento del Artista (the Artist’s Monument), a sculpture located in one of the entrances to the town and culminates in the main park. Describing the Desfile de las Flores (the flower parade), the newspaper Vanguardia liberal (2012) says the streets of the town are “turned into a true walking garden” [“convertidas en un verdadero jardín ambulante”]. It also states that Lola Olarte made many trips to South America and Europe to view other flower parades, assuring that “the gardens of Vélez were more beautiful than the foreigners.” Some people argue that the idea for the flower parade arose from the Spanish exhibition of the Seville Fair (SINIC, n.d.), while others mention that the parade was inspired by the carnivals of Nice, France and New Orleans, United States.