A Culture and Legacy to Protect

On October 12, 1492, after a long journey of 10 weeks, the expedition led by Christopher Columbus set foot for the first time on the land of the island of Guanahani, in the Bahamas, with a crew of 90 people. The ships sent by the Catholic Monarchs of Castile, known as the Niña, the Pinta, and the Santa María, landed in the New World, a continent until then unknown, forever binding its ties of brotherhood with Spain.

The discovery of the American continent for Europe marked a before and after for our country, significantly increasing its international influence and forever transforming our conception of the world. Much unites Spain with America; no other European country has as much connection with what was called the new continent. We share a language, a culture, and a common history.

We share a great legacy in our literature, painting, music, gastronomy, and traditions. Writers like Miguel de Cervantes and Gabriel García Márquez, Lope de Vega and Jorge Luis Borges, Federico García Lorca and Juan Rulfo are equally admired in Spain and America. The same goes for painters like Diego Velázquez and Frida Kahlo, Francisco de Goya and Fernando Botero, and Pablo Picasso and Diego Rivera.

For so many reasons, today in Alicante and throughout Spain, we celebrate the National Day, the Day of Hispanidad, and the day of all who share a common identity. Spaniards assert the many things that unite us with our American brothers.

In these times, more than ever, we must be aware of the legacy we have the responsibility to care for and protect, and what our nation means. We are a country whose national sovereignty is based on Democracy and the Parliamentary Monarchy, and whose fundamental principles are the Equality of all Spaniards, Justice, and Freedom. We live in a unique, prosperous, and supportive country, with a rich cultural heritage, a great historical heritage, and values and customs that identify and differentiate us.

And Alicante, as it could not be otherwise, is a city proud to belong to this great nation and to share these values and this wealth of which we are proud.

I want to express my conviction that we have much more to write about this wonderful History that we began together in 1492.

Happy Day of Hispanidad to everyone!