If they let us...

"If they let us... we are going to live in a new world". Living a dream. This is the philosophy of tourism, the most global social, cultural and economic phenomenon of our time. In the aftermath of the pandemic, the desire to enjoy has multiplied everywhere because hope is always greater than the pain accumulated by the coronavirus.
 
FITUR'23-IFEMA, from January 18 to 23, is once again the cosmopolitan meeting point to expose travelers and businesspeople in the sector to the new rebirth of this highway of coexistence. From wellness and health tourism to space, there is a wide variety of types of tourism (sport, gastronomy, wine, business, rural, cultural, historical, religious, solidarity, adventure, nature, luxury) that meet all the demands of the new digital citizen.
 
Spain is, together with France, Italy and the United States, the country that has grown the most in the last sixty years, thanks to sun and beach tourism. A great invention of modernity. And the essential component in the collective ascent to the Himalayas of peace. 
 
South of the Mediterranean, we also have first-rate powers: Egypt, Israel, Morocco, Tunisia, Jordan, Algeria and South Africa. On the other side of the Atlantic, the USA, Mexico, Peru, Brazil, Colombia and Argentina are still desirable destinations.
 
"If they let us... we look for a corner near the sky; if they let us we will make with the velvet clouds. And there the two of us, close to God, will be what we dream of". José Alfredo wrote it and Luis Miguel sang it for us. Leaving home is always a ritual event for those in love with life. Landscapes and memories are bottled in the brain and we meet people, human beings with the same illusions and disappointments as ours. Mixing, sharing: a common challenge, because we are all one world. Tourism is like a river that cannot turn back as it disappears into the ocean. No one can go back. We must always keep looking forward.
 
"If they leave us... I take you by the hand, my heart, and there we go; if they leave us, we forget everything else.
 
Tourism is like an endless dream of love. If they leave us. A flight to paradise. For those of us who are from the drylands, it is not difficult, with the pain alone, to imagine ourselves in front of the sea, recovering so much lost time. Tourism and love, explosive cocktail. The International Tourism Fair '43 is the best leisure showcase for feelings. The coronavirus could not stop this appointment with the knowledge and discovery of people eager to travel and live.  FITUR is the future. Welcome to Madrid.
 
*Antonio REGALADO is a journalist and directs BAHÍA DE ÍTACA in: aregaladorodriguez.blogspot.com