On Tenerife, divers honored the underwater Virgin of Carmen with flowers.
Near Tenerife, divers annually lay flowers at the underwater sculpture of the Virgin Carmen, the patron saint of sailors, located at a depth of over 30 meters.
Not far from the southern coast of Tenerife, at a depth of over 30 meters, stands an unusual sculpture – the Virgin of Carmen. Local divers know her as the Underwater Virgin, who seems to guard the seabed between Los Cristianos and Palm-Mar. This is a special place, although not very well known outside the diving community, but important to locals as a spiritual and tourist attraction.
The sculpture was created in 2005 by Juan Carlos Martín Díaz. It weighs about 700-800 kg and is a copy of the image of the Virgin, which is worshiped in the church of Los Cristianos. It took a whole operation involving divers and special vessels to install it on the bottom. Since then, the Virgin has stood on the sand, next to a memorial cross and a dolphin sculpture dedicated to the famous ocean explorer Jacques Cousteau.
The place was chosen for a reason. The Underwater Virgin is located near the entrance to the popular Cave of Shrimp, which is often visited by divers. Large fish, moray eels and many other marine inhabitants swim around her. Therefore, diving here is not only a spiritual experience, but also an opportunity to see the beauty of the underwater world of Tenerife.
Every summer, during local holidays, the diving clubs of Arona organize an underwater flower laying to the Virgin of Carmen, the patron saint of sailors. Dozens of divers participate in this dive, supporting the ancient maritime tradition of Los Cristianos and combining faith with sport.
You can't just see the Underwater Virgin, because the depth requires experience and a special certificate. Usually, to get to her, they order a dive in one of the diving centers of Los Cristianos, Las Galletas or Playa de las Américas. They organize special tours to the Palm-Mar Cave.
The dive starts from the port of Los Cristianos and lasts about 20 minutes by boat. Underwater, you can first see the entrance to the cave with its diverse marine life, and then go down to the place where the Virgin stands.
Instructors advise to have experience in deep-sea diving and to control the air supply well, because the Virgin is at a depth of about 33 meters. If you do not dive, you can see it only in photos and videos that diving centers publish on social networks.
The Underwater Virgin has become a symbol of the southern coast. For believers, she is the protector of fishermen and sailors, and for sea lovers, she is a unique place where faith and nature meet under the waters of the Atlantic.
During the celebrations in Los Cristianos, the organization "World of Silence", which is engaged in the protection of the marine environment, held a traditional underwater flower laying to the Virgin of Carmen.
The day began with a small ceremony on the shore, where a local priest consecrated the flowers. Then divers, government officials, a priest and members of the organization sailed by boat from the ports of Las Galletas and Los Cristianos to the Cave of Shrimp (also called "Juanito's Cave"), located near the Montaña de Guaza rock.
"World of Silence" is a non-profit organization that actively works to preserve and protect the underwater world, encouraging people to be responsible towards the sea. They are one of the main organizers of this unusual flower laying to the Underwater Virgin.
This event has become an important part of local holidays and emphasizes the connection between coastal communities and the sea, where the Virgin of Carmen is revered as the patron saint of sailors and fishermen.