La Semana Santa

I spent the end of Semana Santa here in Sevilla, watching pasos and celebrating with my family and Taylor. Semana Santa in Sevilla is the biggest in the world. There are people everywhere and there are processions, what we would call parades, almost all the time. Each procession leaves from their church, walks to the cathedral in el centro, then returns to their church. Each procession has two pasos, or gigantic float, that they carry. One paso is el cristo, an image of Jesus, and one is la virgen, an image of The Virgin Mary.

56 processions in total leave during Semana Santa, and they vary in length, size, solemnity, dress, etc. My ‘brother’ here left in one of the largest, with over 2,000 people, that lasted 12 hours! 3PM- 3AM..quite the marathon.

Handsome Miguel before his procession

Holy Thursday is called La Madrugada. Processions leave for 24 hours straight, and people stay up all night watching them. This is the night that is the most somber because it signifies the night of Jesus' death. Typically, people need to stand when they watch the processions and map out their nights for where they can see each. But, there are others who own seats, and Tay and I are lucky enough to be friends with one of them! We stayed up all night (until 8 am) watching the pasos from our sillas that were right in front of el Catedral, so we got to see all of the action since every single paso goes there. It was so great to spend the night with a Sevillano who could answer all of our questions. It was definitely a different view of Semana Santa than most people get to experience.

Some Vocab:

Capirote: the pointed or cone shaped hood worn by the nazarenos, symbolizing repentance and grief.

Costalero: men hidden below the paso to carry it. There are more costaleros than will fit beneath the float, and at certain times they will change to give others a rest.

Cofradia: hermandad, or brotherhood: members of the church who are part of the procession

Nazareno: member of the hermandad, who dresses in a robe and cone shaped hood to hide his or her identity. Somenazarenos from particular processions are prohibited from speaking with anyone once dressed in their gown and cap. Colors of robes and hoods depend on the procession

Paso: float with the Virgin Mary or Christ, the main attraction of a procesión decorated with candles and flowers and at times depicting scenes from the bible.

Penitente: a member of the procession - nazareno without thecapirote - repenting of their sins carrying one or more crosses over shoulder. Some have up to 4 crosses depending on the amount of repenting, and many walk barefoot through the streets.

Torrijas: the most important: like french toast, prepared with honey, eggs and white wine. A typical food prepared during Semana Santa. I'll fight anyone who thinks they have a better recipe than my mother-in-law ;)

Some Videos:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gXILbKVOdLU

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=20Lahu810GA

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QBmBWH0xMdQ

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QBDwBJyZDZk

Ahora…ha llegado Feria!!! No puedo creer que ya hubo pasado 3 meses aquí en España. Mientras Taylor y yo estabamos tomando un copa de vino repetidamente nos damos cuenta..estamos en SEVILLA..en europa. Este es una vex en la vida oportunidad q no quiero gastar ni dar por sentado. Quiero continuar aprendiendo, creciendo, y disfrutando todo.

Saludos,

Kelsey