September is a month of celebrations throughout Central America and for that reason, in Costa Rica, we call it “the month of our fatherland”. This is because at this time, each Central American nation celebrates the important process that began on the eve of September 15th, 1821, when the rulers of the current Central American countries, which in the past were part of a territory named ‘General Captaincy of Guatemala’ belonging to Spain, decided to write a document that declared the independence of the entire region.
The celebrations include, for instance, students from all over Central America running with a torch along a route that starts on the 1st of September in Guatemala and ends in Cartago, Costa Rica, on the night of the 14th of September. The Torch Run commemorates the route along which the news of independence was carried from nation to nation with a burning torch illuminating the road ahead. Today, the torch has become a symbol of freedom.
The culminating moment of the Torch Run is when our nation´s president receives it in Cartago. At that moment, the lantern parades commence in each town, recalling the moment when the inhabitants of Guatemala took to the streets, carrying lanterns in their hands, to demonstrate their enthusiasm and support, in the area where the Act of Independence was being drawn up. The celebrations, however, do not end here, because the rejoicing was such that every September 15th the streets fill with the sounds of the drum roll and the sights of colorful parades, as an expression of the sheer joy with which the Central American people walked their path of freedom.