The Easter processions during Semana Santa in Vinaròs
The week before Easter, also known as the Holy Week or Semana Santa, is a week filled with religious events. Some of the events organized in Spain during this week are well known and attract large crowds. The the Easter processions in Seville or Zamora. But processions like these are held in cities all over Spain. Also in the city we currently live in, Vinaròs.
This year the Holy Week in the southern and eastern parts of Spain, normally the sunniest parts of the country, had to deal with strong winds and hard rains. This Easter storm brought was so bad that several Spanish cities had to deal with floods. Because of this many cities had to postpone or even cancel the events that they had planned. Luckily that wasn’t the case here. So despite the strong winds and occasional rainshowers, we did get to see something of Semana Santa.
Of course we went to one of the processions. In this procession the 15 brotherhoods of Vinaròs carried statues depicting scenes from the Bible through the streets. Most of the members are dressed in the penitential robes which were worn by heretics during their penance in the time of the Spanish Inquisition (1478-1834). Some brotherhoods were dressed in formal suits or had a few members that were dressed as Roman soldiers. The brotherhoods don’t consist of brothers only. Men and women of all ages take part, including young children. Some so young that they were being carried by their parents.
During the procession, the members of the brotherhoods have different duties. One of the members walks in front, holding the banner of the brotherhood. Then there is usually a group of people holding lanterns or candles. Within this group, one member is there to make sure that everyone in the brotherhood walks and rests at the same time. This is the person with the big metal staff. By hitting the bottom of their metal staff on the ground twice, they tell others to stop or start walking. Near the end there is a group of members that carry or push the large statues which show Jesus, Maria, angels and other biblical figures.
We have heard that our family and followers in Poland and The Netherlands had amazing weather this Easter. Good for you guys, but try not to steal the Spanish warmth too often. We need it too! Now we were left with rainshowers and stormy weather, which broke our internet for a few days. Despite that, we did enjoy our Easter. For us the processions, the eggs and the cheesecake more than made up for it. We hope that you enjoyed your Easter (and our post :D) as well!
