Historic day lived today in the Villa de Baiona la Real, with the visit of the flagship of the Spanish Navy, the Juan Sebastián de Elcano, which after its 86 years of history landed for the first time in the town of Val Miñor.
At 8 in the morning, as scheduled from the Vigo Naval Command, the brigantine-schooner anchored inside the bay of Baiona, initially with the bow facing towards Baiona, to slowly stand to one side led by the gentle current.
At 10 in the morning the boats began from the facilities of the Monte Real Yacht Club in Bayonne and from the new America Maritime Station, moving together more than a thousand people who have had the opportunity to get on board the mythical boat or sail nearby thanks to the collaboration of the shipping company Mar de Ons.
The first to enroll were the students of the Municipal School of Sailing and Monte Real, followed by those of the Juan María special education center. Associations, social groups of Baiona and people registered by order of request have made up the bulk of those who have had the opportunity to learn about the history of a sailboat that has been sailing the seas of the world since 1927.
One of the key moments of the day was the official reception that the Municipal Corporation of Baiona offered to the Commander, Officers and Midshipmen of the Juan Sebastián de Elcano, an act that was attended by the Secretary General of the World Tourism Organization Taleb Rifai , the Director of Tourism of the Xunta de Galicia, María Nava Castro, the president of Portos de Galicia, José Juan Durán; the Subdelegate of the Government Antonio Coello; the Naval Commander of Vigo, José Ángel Chans; and the Commander-in-Chief of the Military Naval School of Marín, Juan Luís Sobrino, among other authorities, with the town councilor Jesús Vázquez Almuiña opening the speeches.
Alfonso Gómez Fernández de Córdoba, Commander of Elcano, expressed his great satisfaction for the day that the training ship and its officers were experiencing in Baiona, reiterating his strong support for the UNESCO candidacy to be recognized as a World Heritage Site together with Santa Fe of Granada and Palos de la Frontera, as Colombian Towns of Spain.
For Rifai, the happy coincidence of his journey through the Rías Baixas accompanied by Nava Castro and the visit of Elcano was a great surprise, praising at the same time the geographical conditions of the Villa de Baiona.
At eight o’clock in the afternoon, the Juan Sebastián de Elcano began with the departure maneuvers, hoisting gear that caused a great sensation to the followers who from more than a hundred boats accompanied the ship on its departure. The Monte Boi promenade, as well as the Parador Nacional de Turismo, were overflowing with an expectant public at the presence of the mythical sailboat.
Before setting course for Marín, Fernández de Córdoba left in the air a phrase of wide significance: “That in our next visit the Villa de Baiona will be a UNESCO World Heritage Site”.
