I appreciate the opportunity to contribute this message to Sinergia Skål and, above all, to do so as someone who is deeply proud to belong to a historic club such as Skål International Málaga-Costa del Sol.
I was born in La Carihuela and Torremolinos is my hometown, a place that is part of the living history of tourism in Spain. I grew up surrounded by visitors from all over the world, and my childhood memories are closely tied to those early years of tourism: as a child, I was always at the Hotel Pez Espada, playing and swimming in its pool.
That's why I can say that tourism is in my blood.
I've always thought that tourism is like a tree: you have to fertilize it, water it, prune it, and care for it so that it continues to grow and bear fruit. If we stop doing that, sooner or later the tree ends up drying up.
The Costa del Sol relies heavily on the tourism industry, in all its branches and aspects. It's an industry that generates activity, employment, opportunities, and prosperity, but precisely because of its importance, we cannot take it for granted.
We need to continue taking care of it and have a clear, well-defined and well-managed strategy, capable of addressing the challenges of the present and preparing us for the future.
Because if we don't take care of what has allowed us to grow and prosper for so many years, we could end up killing the goose that lays the golden eggs.
Tourism has given us so much. Our responsibility now is to take care of it so that it can continue to do so for many generations to come.
