With the middle of April fast
approaching, it’s hard to believe that my eight months in Spain are almost
over. It’s a bittersweet feeling: I can’t wait to see my family and friends
back home, but I know I’m going to miss both the people I’ve met here and Spain
in general very much!
Last week was Semana Santa
(Holy Week), a week-long Easter celebration important in Spain and especially
Andalusia. Teachers get the week off, and I made the most of it! The weekend
before it started, some friends and I went to Lisbon and Porto. Later, I saw
several of Semana Santa’s processions and celebrated the week like a linarense—with lots of tapas and drinks.
It was my first time in
Portugal, and I fell in love with the country. I loved both Lisbon and Porto for
different reasons. Lisbon’s narrow, winding streets were really charming.
Several old trams run through the city, including the famous Tram 28, whose
route goes by most of the city’s main sites. Sometimes the roads were so narrow
that people walking by had to lean right up against the walls of houses as we
passed! The city is incredibly hilly and is full of beautiful views as a
result. We enjoyed wandering the streets, seeing the colourful plazas, visiting
the old and very well-preserved castle, seeing a typical Fado concert (a type
of Portuguese folk music), and trying typical Portuguese fish dishes and strong
espresso. Porto, which is north of Lisbon, surprisingly felt more like Paris
than Lisbon at times with buildings built in similar styles and even a bridge
designed by Gustave Eiffel! The port, however, had its own personality with
beautiful, colourful buildings lining the water and lovely bridges crossing
over the Duoro River to the city of Vila Nova de Gaia. The older part of the
city was also gorgeous, featuring many buildings in the azulejo style, in which the outer walls of buildings consist of
ceramic tile painted with blue and white designs. We also climbed up the 240
stairs to reach the top of Torre dos Clérigos; visited Livraria Lello, a
breathtaking gothic-style bookstore where J. K. Rowling wrote parts of Harry
Potter; and had a very overpriced coffee at Café Majestic, an elegant 1920s-style
café. Overall it was a great weekend, though too short! I will definitely
return to Portugal in the future.
We returned to Linares on Lunes Santo (Holy Monday). Seemingly
overnight, Linares seemed to have transformed: every street was teeming with
people at all hours, and every tapas bar, café and restaurant was full to the
brim. It was the first time I had seen Semana Santa and I absolutely loved it.
Every day there are processions that go through the city. They begin with
penitents, people dressed in capirotes
(long robes and large, pointed hats in different colours), which most people
admit look a bit like the KKK! Next, there are marching bands playing
incredible music, sometimes featuring well-known tunes such as the Lion King.
The tronos (floats, for lack of a
better word) are the most important part of the processions. There are usually
two, the first always depicting Jesus at the various stages between his arrest
and resurrection and the second always depicting Mary. The tronos are very impressive: they are elaborately decorated (some
are even gilded in gold) and extremely heavy, requiring around 40 people to
carry one. They can be carried by costaleros
or horquilleros. Costaleros carry the trono from beneath on the top of their
neck/back and must listen carefully to the person directing them because they
cannot see where they are going! Horquilleros,
meanwhile, carry the trono on one shoulder. My favourite
procession was the Nazareno, which
began at 4 am! Despite the late/early hour, the square where it began was
packed. It’s a special procession because the trono with Jesus on it blesses the city of Linares with a
mechanically moving hand. There are also some nice features, such as somebody
knocking on the church door to see if Jesus is there before his trono comes out and later all the lights
in the square going out except the tronos.
It also had a third trono
featuring Saint John. I spent the
week with Elena, Andrés, and their families and friends and experienced Semana
Santa as they do: out all day on the streets, watching the processions and
stopping at tapas bars and cafes in between. I loved the atmosphere and
especially the 30-degree, sunny weather we were lucky to have all week!
Well that’s all for now. My
next entry will probably be about Gibraltar because I’m going there on a school
trip next Friday. I’m excited to experience the unique mix of English and
Spanish culture there. ‘Ta luego!
