5.000 Walkers Attended
to by Red Cross; Big
Business For Small
Vendors
This year's "romeria" or
pilgrimage to Cartago
expects some 2 million
to descend on the "old
metropolis", some coming
as afar away as
Guanacaste to pay homage
to the Virgen de los
Angeles.
The Cruz Roja (Red
Cross) reports that it
has attended some 5.000
people since Sunday,
among then 92 children.
Of those attended, the
Red Cross informed that
it had to take 20 to
hospital for medical
attention.
The majority of those
attended were for sore
muscles, blisters on
their feet, fatigue,
problems with
hypertension, asthma,
dizziness and cuts and
scrapes from falls.
The Red Cross as well as
the Policía de Tránsito
and the Fuerza Pública
will be out in full
force today when the
majority of the "romeros"
will be in Cartago.
While the hundreds of
thousands show their
devotion, the "romeria"
is not just sacrifice,
for many, it is also a
way of cashing in on the
economics of the large
number of people taking
part in the tradition.
Vendors have set up
sales points at various
points along the route
and are cashing in on
sales of juices and
water as well as snacks.
The big companies like
Maggi took the
opportunity to launch
its new lentil soup
product, offering free
samples to walkers at
its stand near the
Metrocentro, 2
kilometres from the
Basilica.
The Municipalidad de
Cartago issues dozens of
vendors permits for the
event each year, mostly
to family groups and
social organizations,
who see the day as an
important source of
income, like the
“Asociación pro niños
con cáncer”. |
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