Fallas Queen speaks out

Consuelo Llobell eagerly awaits the moment of taking the mask off the plaza del Ayuntamiento falla in Valencia city

VALENCIA’S ‘Fallera mayor’ spoke about this year’s events and how she and her court of honour heard about and reacted to the news of the Fallas being delayed.

Consuelo Llobell is this year’s Fallera mayor, although her reign has turned out to be very different than she imagined. Having graduated in medicine but not registered with the official school of doctors at this time, she is currently at home refreshing her medical knowledge in case her services are required.

Regarding the Fallas, she says that she has not entered the room of her house where her family keeps her dresses and keepsakes. "When all this is over and its return (the Fallas) is imminent, I will open the door, go inside, see the dresses…"

She adds that she was with her entire court of honour when the news of the cancellation broke. "When it was said, we were all crying with unimaginable grief. My boyfriend says that, in five years, he has never seen me like that. Crying like a little girl, out of anger, helplessness. Leaning on each other, but it was very, very tough".

Lastly, she can’t wait for the time when the mask is taken off the figure of the plaza del Ayuntamiento. ‘It will be a sign that all has passed, and that human beings have won’.