«I pass by the Florida park every day and had never noticed these trees ». New scheduled visits to this emblematic place in the capital of Alava they allow tourists and locals to get to know other facets of this park founded in 1820 and they provoke phrases like this. From yesterday until Wednesday, families can discover the history and botany of Florida through the Open School of Citizenship and from this Saturday the Tourist Office will offer routes to mark the 200th anniversary of the park at a price of 6 euros until the end of September.
The park is the same as always but customs have changed. Participants are required to come with masks to the visits and the staff collect the contact details of the attendees to facilitate the work of the trackers in case it is necessary to notify them in case of regrowth. Afterwards, the walk passes naturally between native species, curiosities brought from abroad and memories of 19th century Vitoria. In your hands a small map that, instead of collecting streets and avenues, summarizes Florida’s historical landmarks and places its most unique sculptures and trees.
Come on guys, help me find a yew. It is not far from here », encourages the Aitziber Mondejar guide. Soon those children who are accused of spending too much time with technology find the copy and are willing to know more. 200 years ago the environment of the park was very different. Florida was created in 1820 in the style of the French gardens to replace the old Parque del Espolón and, in 1855, it was extended over the gardens of the convent of Santa Clara with a romantic design. Its artificial hills, its caves, waterfalls and winding paths continue to shape one of the green lungs of the city.
Velocipede races were held in the elliptical area near the kiosk, French and earlier than the rest of the park.
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So that, the elliptical area near Santiago Ramón y Cajal street was the first to be built in the style of the Versailles gardens. In it velocipedal races were held, precursors of current bicycles and it soon became the meeting place of Alava society. Later they would arrive the upper paths connecting the south of the park with the English-style Parliament and thought to get lost in them. The presence of more than 250 different species of trees and shrubs is largely the responsibility of gardeners who for decades were responsible for acquiring and caring for them at fairs such as those held in Paris. These renowned professionals lived where the Ignacio Aldecoa House of Culture is located today, cultivated flowers for sale in a greenhouse and shaped the park as it is today. Some examples are the ginkgo biloba, European fern-leaved beech, redwood or Lebanese cedar They came as suckers and now, after years of growth, they offer shade to walkers.
A new “tree of love”
Near the latter was the corner of the tree of love, a Cercys siliquastrum, which disappeared in 1930. Until then the loveless Vitoriaans circled his trunk seven times asking for luck to find a partner. The Vitoria City Council has proposed to recover this species characterized by its pink flowers, so it will soon become one more alternative to flirting applications.
These visits by the School of Citizenship and the Tourist Office also recall curiosities such as that, in its day, the park ponds They helped repopulate the rivers of Álava with trout and focus on newer aspects of the park such as the secret Garden of Water, founded in 2006. “We have discovered aspects of Florida that we did not know,” Aitor Lauzurica and little Elena, 7, celebrated yesterday.
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