We spent Semana Santa (Holy Week) driving around southern Spain. It was a wonderful week - we traveled with our good friends the Cullens, saw my fraternity brother David Hoffner and his family in Sevilla, and had a great weekend in Grenada with our old China buddy Willie Brent and his family. I'll post some pictures and descriptions in a few separate updates.
This post focuses on the cofradias - the holy processions that take place across Andalucia during Semana Santa. The processions are run by different brotherhoods, which are something between New Orleans krewes and religious orders. The brotherhoods parade across cities in Andalucia, typically carrying either large floats (pasos), crucifixes, or both. In Sevilla, the processions can take as long as 14 hours, and there are often several going on at the same time during the week. The pasos themselves are huge, heavy, elaborate depictions of Jesus and Mary, sometimes gilded in gold and silver.
The members of the processions dress in traditional penitential robes and the tall pointed hoods known as capirotes. The capirotes were designed so that members can repent from their sins without being recognized, and were evidently the inspiration for the Ku Klux Klan robes in the US. For an American, this can make wandering Sevilla during Holy Week a somewhat creepy experience. At several points we were literally surrounded by processions of hooded marchers coming at us from all directions. We were also lucky enough to visit the headquarters of the oldest cofradia in Sevilla and get a closeup look at their elaborate pasos. It's quite a labor of love and devotion.
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| A particularly bloody cofradia in Sevilla. |
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| A cheery daytime cofradia in Grenada. |
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| Soldiers prepare to carry the crucifix in a procession in Ronda. |
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| A paso prepares to cross the bridge in Ronda. |
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| An ominous cofradia in Sevilla. |
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| Lindsay stands next to a paso in Sevilla. |
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