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The chest swells with the symbolic wealth of the Culture, but deflates to exhaustion with its economic capital. Spain can boast of unique signatures and a cultural and artistic heritage that attracted up to 12.6 million international tourists in 2018 , according to the latest Yearbook of Cultural Statistics prepared by the Ministry of Culture and Sports, and nevertheless, it is sustained in a business fabric with flimsy seams: of the 690.3 thousand people employed in the cultural industries, 30.1% are not salaried.

"We often forget that behind a painting, a novel, a monumental building or a film there is a complex industrial fabric made up of publishers, booksellers, gallery owners, museums, producers and professionals who make this mysterious magic possible", Irene Vallejo translates into words , the writer of El infinito es un junco , the revelation essay of the season (14 reissues) and Las Librerías Recommend 2020 award . "This splendid inherited wealth demands protection and investments," he continues in defense of a sector that needs assistance.

14.5% of Spaniards travel for cultural reasons SHUTTERSTOCK

The recovery of cultural tourism is expected to be slow, according to the study by the consultancy DNA Turismo y Ocio on The Tourism Industry and Covid-19 , which places it behind nature, sun and beach, well-being and urban escapes as the favorite destinations for this season. Now, hope falls on national tourists, who set the trips that they made for cultural reasons at 14.5% and trips that included some cultural activity at one in four, according to the Yearbook of Cultural Statistics.

"We have an ambivalent, complex and tragic relationship with our own cultural tradition. We tend to value it as beautiful, but superfluous, extravagant and luxurious. We need to nurture collective pride in our culture. It is our fortune to possess an amazing cultural heritage woven with strands of multiple traditions and cultures, "says the writer.

World Heritage

Spain is the third country with the most places declared a World Heritage Site by Unesco, with a total of 47 and behind the 54 in Italy and 53 in China. The list ranges from the Alhambra palace in Granada, the Gaudí buildings or the archaeological complex of Mérida, to the Altamira Caves, the historic centers of Ávila, Segovia, Santiago de Compostela and Córdoba, the Mudejar architecture of Aragon or the Burgos cathedral.

And without forgetting that Castilla y León is the region in the world with the most cultural assets included in this list. "The best memories of my childhood are colored by the mysterious atmosphere of the Romanesque Soria : San Juan de Duero, Santo Domingo, the monastery of San Polo on the banks of the Duero ... Today I love walking the cobbled streets of many Aragonese towns: Alquézar, Alabarracín, Darosa, Tarazona. Their houses, their stone walls, their wooden gates remind us that we are beings of time, "says Irene Vallejo.

The Monastery of San Lorenzo de El Escorial SHUTTERSTOCK

A gigantic wealth and especially threatened, since it is sustained in a precariousness above the average . The cultural industries operate with self-employed and discontinuous SMEs and professionals who often do not even have access to unemployment benefits. In addition, spending on culture is often seen as insignificant and dispensable in cases of crisis such as Covid-19, despite having shown "at unprecedented levels to be indispensable during the pandemic, with online demand for museums, places heritage sites, theaters and shows ", as recognized by the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO).

Barely 76 million euros will be provided by the Ministry in its shock plan for the cultural sector after the stoppage of activity, although with the collapse of tourism also comes the ruin for part of the Spanish cultural heritage: institutions such as the Alhambra in Granada, the Mosque of Córdoba or the Sagrada Familia in Barcelona, ​​for example, operate only with box office benefits . And if the jewels of the cultural crown suffer, it is not difficult to imagine the situation of others.

The UNWTO encourages promoting cultural tourism among locals as a key to their recovery . Up to 61.4% of trips by Spanish residents were mainly for cultural reasons, according to the latest Yearbook. Although in the new normal, the UNWTO stresses that success will no longer be measured by the number of visitors, but by qualitative indicators. It will not be for cultural offer in Spain.

Our culture awakens admiration and fascination all over the world, they come from the most distant countries to visit our museums, our cities, they enjoy our books and our cinema. Our most valuable raw material is immaterial: the legacy of words, stories, images, buildings and creations that express the best of who we are.

Irene Vallejo, writer

According to the criteria of The Trust Project

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