(1888PressRelease)
July 10, 2009 - Also in attendance were the Secretary of State for Ibero-America, Juan Pablo de Laiglesia, expedition director Miguel de la Quadra-Salcedo; the president of Canal de Isabel II, Ignacio González, Hispasat Chairman Petra Mateos, Chilean Ambassador Gonzalo Martner and the vice-chancellor of Culture and Sports at the Madrid Complutense University, Juan Manuel Álvarez Junco, among other distinguished guests.
* Francisco González emphasizes that education and youth are the basis of the future growth of societies everywhere
* Ruta Quetzal BBVA 2009, the expedition’s XXIV edition, is divided into two parts: the first in Spain in July and the second in Chile in December, following the trail of Robinson Crusoe
* More than 270 expedition members from 53 countries will travel through the Spanish regions of Castilla-La Mancha, Valencia, Murcia, Andalusia, Castilla y León, La Rioja and Madrid
BBVA Chairman and CEO Francisco González noted that Ruta Quetzal is one of the corporate responsibility initiatives closest to the bank’s heart, going on to say that it sets aside part of its earnings for investment in education because “we understand that for a lot of people this is the only means to a better future.” He was referring to the Niños adelante children’s scholarship program carried out in Latin America, which will benefit more than 50,000 boys and girls in the region in 2009. He emphasized that “education and youth are the basis of the future growth of societies everywhere. That’s why we invest in youth through la Ruta, so they can convey to the future society core values such as solidarity, cooperation, respect for culture and biodiversity, or hard work and the quest for excellence.”
He also reminded them that this Ruta Quetzal BBVA entails two parts, spreading the spirit of the program as between the conclusion of the travel through Spain at the end of July and the trip to Chile in December, a virtual meeting stage will kick off: “La Ruta and the bank will offer programs to follow the trip online, because at BBVA we are committed to new technologies (our pillars are: principles, people and innovation). Through the Ruta’s web and IPTV, members’ families can participate in their adventures during the expedition and become part of the vast expeditioners’ network.”
The 24th Ruta Quetzal BBVA expedition, Voyage to Robinson Crusoe Island. The Land of Juan Fernández in Chile started yesterday in Ocaña, where the participants visited the Carmelite convent, burial place of Alonso de Ercilla, the author of the epic poem La Araucana. It continued today in Madrid. More than 270 travelers from 53 countries, who will camp for three days at the Canal de Isabel II campgrounds in Madrid, will visit the Prado Museum, the Royal Palace, the Botanical Garden and the National Observatory. After an audience with their Royal Highnesses the Prince and Princess of Asturias they will continue their travels across various Spanish autonomous communities: Valencia, Murcia, Andalusia, Madrid, Castilla y León and La Rioja, until they complete the first leg of the expedition on July 25.
The second leg of Ruta Quetzal BBVA 2009 will take place in Chile following the trail of Robinson Crusoe, where participants will visit some of the country’s cities and natural parks and learn about the importance of Gabriela Mistral and Pablo Neruda for Spanish literature worldwide. The travelers will have dinner with the Mapuche Indians on Christmas Eve and ring in the new year on the plane back to Spain at the end of the trip.
The route in Spain
Before heading to Valencia on the afternoon of Friday, July 10, tomorrow the youths will visit the Spanish Naval Museum, where they will be met by Admiral Manuel Rebollo García. Valencia, the capital of Turia, was the site of the first headquarters of the Tribunal for the Law of the Sea in the 13th century. There, they will tour the Lonja de la Seda y de los Mercaderes (Silk Exchange), a masterpiece of secular Gothic architecture and designated a World Heritage Site by UNESCO. During their stay in the city of Valencia, participants will tour the historic city center and later embark on the amphibious boat Galicia for a visit to Cartagena, birthplace of Juan Fernández. They will visit the National Museum of Maritime Archaeology, a submarine base and a Repsol refinery, and relive the city’s Carthaginian past.
Participants will continue their journey along the Mediterranean coast, disembarking in Malaga, the birthplace of Bernardo de Gálvez, who was governor of Louisiana in 1776 and founded the city of Galveston two years later. While in the capital of Spain’s Costa del Sol, Ruta Quetzal BBVA expedition members will visit the historic city center and climb up to the Gibralfaro fortress, among other activities.
The boat trip will end in Cadiz, a city founded by the Phoenicians more than 3,000 years ago which has been the site of significant historical events for the different cultures and peoples making up its past: Romans, Visigoths, Arabs and Christians. Participants will pay particular attention to the transformations wrought in Spain and the Americas by the Spanish Constitution of 1812. The trip will continue with a brief stop in Seville followed by a return to Madrid, the point of departure for the final stage of the Spanish segment of the Ruta Quetzal BBVA 2009.
The expedition will subsequently head to Olmedo, capital of Spanish Mudéjar art and the birthplace of Jerónimo de Alderete, before visiting Coca, Cuellar, Segovia, Peñafiel and Valladolid. Then it will move to La Rioja, where the members will visit the Valvanera, Yuso and Suso monasteries in San Millán de la Cogolla to learn about the importance of the Spanish language throughout the world.
The route will end in Madrid in late July with a ceremony organized by the Complutense University, which heads the academic program of this educational and cultural project.
Following the trail of Robinson Crusoe in Chile
The second segment of the Ruta Quetzal BBVA starts in December when it moves to Chile for the first time in its 24-year history. Participants will spend nearly three weeks learning about the adventures of sailor Alexander Selkirk, the Scottish castaway who inspired novelist Daniel Defoe’s character Robinson Crusoe. Selkirk lived on a deserted island from 1704, when he was abandoned by the galleon Cinque Ports, until 1709 when he was rescued by the crew of the Duke and returned to England. Expedition members will embark at the port of Valparaíso for a journey to Robinson Crusoe Island, which is part of an archipelago discovered by Spanish navigator Juan Fernández in 1574. He made great progress in maritime navigation to southern Chile, reducing sailing time to Concepción, Chile’s second-largest city.
The expedition will set sail from Robinson Crusoe Island to travel to Talcahuano and later to Concepción. Members will gain in-depth knowledge of the Araucanía Region and the lake region, home to the Mapuche Indians, which features thermal pools and steam baths in the Tolhuaca National Park, before moving on to the Villarrica National Park.
Another important element of the Chilean segment of the Ruta Quetzal BBVA will be to follow the trail of the country’s two Nobel prizewinners: Gabriela Mistral (Vicuña 1889-New York 1957) and Pablo Neruda (Parral 1904-Santiago de Chile 1973), two of the most prolific writers of the 20th century.
The stay in Santiago, at both the beginning and the end of the trip, will focus on commemorating the International Year of Astronomy, as proclaimed by the United Nations for 2009. The members will visit the Chilean National Astronomical Observatory, which was founded in 1852 and is one of the largest observatories in Latin America.
NOTE: To assist in downloading photographs of the 2009 expedition, an FTP has been created.
Host: ftp.dipro.es (213.170.35.70)
Username: quetzal
Password: rquetzal
For more information, please contact
the BBVA Department of Communication (91.374. 67.97)
or the Ruta Quetzal BBVA (91.351.26.21)
www.rutaquetzalbbva.com
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