Ok, after a great trip in Morocco we arrived to a cold Madrid, which put a damper on our intended section of the camino. Cold and rainy did not sound like alot of fun. So, instead we headed south to Seville looking for warmer weather and sun.
We also knew Easter week would be starting on Apr 10th and had heard it was quite the event. And it was !!! It occurs most days and/or nights with elaborate processionals.
During the week we saw them in Seville, Cordoba, Zuheros and Granada . Each was abit different with theme of elaborate floats being carried on the shoulders of about 25 people, thru the narrow streets. Always by a band, and people wearing pointed hats covering their faces. Yes, to Americans, way too similar to the kkk costume. But this is a tradition from the 16th century.
In every village, each church would have their own procession. And there are alot of churches! Seville has more than 115, Granada has more than 300! The processional often would occur until 2am!
main street of many of the processionals. Made for some interesting videos and pics, but not much sleep.
This was the first major celebration since pre covid so there were alot of people! In Seville, we found it almost impossible to get back to our apt thru the throngs of people. But it was fascinating.
The pics of people in the purple robes was from Zuheros, a very small village of about 600 people. We stopped in for a morning coffee, and to walk around one of the prettiest white villages. Our coffee ended up placing us in the main square, while the village had a morning procession. Every single person in the village had to have been attending!
Other than that we waundered around each town and went into some amazing Cathedrals. All of them began as Mosques, transformed during the Spanish inquisition. Sevilles is the 4th largest in the world, and the largest Gothic church in the world, beating out the Hagia Sophia. And the interior was incredible.
The Cordoba Cathedral interior kept most of the Mosque arches, with a large Christian altar in the center. An interesting blend of
