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The Semana Santa experience in the Region of Murcia
Semana Santa in Murcia, 3 cities 3 traditions
Spain is a predominantly Catholic Nation, and Semana Santa ( Easter), which translates as Holy Week, is one of the most important events in the religious year.
In Murcia the events preceding Easter begin with carnival, the last feast of the senses before the onset of Lent, the region filled with vibrantly coloured processions filing through the streets before the cofradías ( guilds or brotherhoods) who parade in the Easter week processions officially ask their councils for permission to parade, and lent begins.
One of the most characteristic features of Lent is the Vía Crucis, an act which takes place prior to Holy Week, penitents following the stations of the cross which are denoted by sculptures or tiles on the walls in towns and villages, marking the important stages in the last days of Jesus. Prior to Easter, these are visited as part of a penitential route, with readings at each stage relating to the event portrayed.
In some towns these are simple, quiet events, with just a few faithful accompanying a solitary priest from street to street, but in others such as Moratalla, the final Viá Crucis prior to Easter culminates with a theatrical representation en-route, the figure of Jesus hauled up onto a cross in the church square to the accompanying sound effects of thunder and lightning, whilst in Lorca, the purple clad penitents carry large wooden crosses up to the Calvary overlooking the city, a hidden oasis of palms and olive trees with a tiny chapel at the summit.
Each area of the region has its own traditions and very different style of celebrating this special week, and these are three suggestions for experiencing different styles of Holy Week in the Region of Murcia.
Cartagena, Viernes de Dolores
Cartagena is renowned for the military precision of its processions, its long history as a naval base and centre of military activity giving rise to a tradition of sleek shining lines of penitents, moving silently through the marbled streets of the historic old quarter of the city.
Although the processions are impressive in their scale and richness, there is still an incredible intimacy to Cartagena’s Semana Santa, the narrow streets with crafted wrought iron balconies and sensuously curving modernist buildings create an atmosphere which includes those who watch the passing of satin and faith.
There are four brotherhoods, the most famous being the Californias who wear red, and the Marrajos in deep purple with a tradition of deep rivalry between the two.
The parades in Cartagena take place throughout the week, although the most important is on Good Friday, which is the largest procession of all.
One of the most interesting days is Viernes de Dolores, the Friday before the main Easter week, which is also the day of the Patrona of Cartagena.
This begins with a floral offering to the Patrona, in which hundreds of participants dressed in regional costumes, make a floral offering in the Iglesia of La Caridad, filing through the streets with around 2000 bunches of flowers, presented at the entrance to the church, accompanied by folk music and dancers . As this procession of flowers concludes, the Via Crucis stops at the door of the church and the huge trono bearing the figure of Jesus, dressed with flowers, turns into the entrance of the church and bobs up and down, acknowledging the patrona, before continuing along the streets, accompanied by hundreds of people.
His trono is followed by that of the Virgin Mary her trono carried only by women, 100 of them. From time to time they rest the heavy trono on wooden legs and as they lift their burden again the crowd cry out "Vive la Virgen, guapa, guapa, guapa, " Live the Virgin, beautiful, beautiful, beautiful" the street throbbing, staffs resonating in rhythm to the cries, the whole experience emotional, uplifting and indescribably enveloping, before arriving at the Plaza de Mercedes, where the two different tronos split apart, each taking an opposite route around the square to meet face to face amidst an explosion of fireworks and tumultuous applause.
By this point satin clad figures are heading for the Iglesia de Santa Maria de Gracia, where penitents have a last cigarette, a quick chat with their friends, enter the church by the side door as a chattering crowd of assorted colours , and emerge through the front door as an orderly procession, silent, reverent , in perfect order, and in perfect time.
Lorca the biblical processions
Lorca is famed for its biblical processions and embroideries, a dazzling display of cloaks and costumes, horses and spectacular which draws visitors from across Spain.
The story of the bible is re-told on an epic scale, Pyramids, Palm trees, Roman Armies, Egyptian Queens , Chariot racers and horses dressed in acres of sumptuous embroidery and shining jewellery file past in an astonishing biblical parade, which can only be properly viewed by booking seats in the tiers of stands lining the route. There are some standing spaces, but they´re very limited and the procession is best seen from the stands.
Theres deep-seated rivalry amongst the two main Cofradias, the Whites (blancos) who symbolize the purity and beauty of the Christian religion, and the blues, (azules) who represent the infinite blue of the sky and the shining sun, and theres stiff competition between them to put on the best show.
Even the seat sales are done by the Cofradias, the whites have one side of the street and the blues have the other, and as their pasos file along the street the air is filled with cheering and flowers rain down on their "home" paso.
Apart from the scale and extravagance of the procession, two extra elements make this a really unique experience- the number of horses involved and the quality of the embroidery.
Over 700 horses participate in these parades, some as solitary, magnificent examples, dressed in astonishing works of embroidered artworks, dancing, showing off, displaying their finest fancy footwork and proud horsemanship, whilst others race in glittering chariots and yet more pull carriages , harnessed in teams of up to 10 horses. Some of the carriages are so wide that inch perfect precision is required to complete the procession without demolishing half of the seating areas, and it´s very dangerous on the ground, as the carriages race up and down at high speed, much to the delight of the spectators.
There are four parades in total, two in which only partial elements of the biblical story parade and then 2 larger parades which are the paid parades.
Good Friday is a partial parade, with just a few elements and there is no charge. On Palm Sunday there is another partial parade, with a good number of elements, a full contingent of horses, followed by parade of palms and there is no charge for this one either.
On the Thursday before Easter there is a biblical parade, which is a paid parade, but isn´t as good as the main Friday parade, the biggest and best of all, with all the biblical elements.
The seats are expensive but this is a one-off experience, and bearing in mind the many thousands of man hours which go into making these spectacular embroideries, is worth going to, even if just once. Click for Biblical processions in Lorca for the full details and buying tickets for the biblical parades in lorca for the nitty gritty details.
Murcia, Wednesday, the parade of the Coloraos.
The Coloraos are the biggest Cofradía in Murcia and their most important procession is on Wednesday night, when thousands of them parade through the centre of the capital city in their distinctive red robes. There are two different types of robes in Murcia, so although the full length robes and capirotes, (the tall pointed hats seen in Semana Santa) are worn, Murcia also has a shorter style of robe and cap headwear than that seen in most of the towns, showing the hand crocheted stockings which in themselves are a fascinating detail of the Murcian Semana Santa, each bearing distinctive characteristics of the brotherhood to which their wearer belongs.
Unlike the smooth military parades of Cartagena, Murcians make their parades a celebration and this parade of the Coloraos is a noisy and colourful occasion, in which the penitents share food with the onlookers.
Their tunics are hoisted and their stomachs bulging with food, distributing hard boiled eggs and bread rolls, broad beans or sweets with the crowd. The parades in Murcia are on such a large scale, the tronos so impressive in their size and decoration, the quality of their sculptures and the sheer number of penitents participating so much larger than in other locations, so if you’ve never been to a Murcian parade, give it a try. This parade of the Coloraos passes in front of the cathedral, creating atmospheric photo opportunities, the red a dramatic splash of colour in front of the creamy stone of the Baroque Cathedral.
Another important day in Murcia is Good Friday, with the important procession of the Salzillos on the Friday morning, a procession in which the pasos made by master sculptor, Francisco Salzillo file forth in parade, and in the evening, when the largest procession of the week takes place.
Full programmes from across the region for 2013 and a wealth of background detail are available in the Religious Murcia section of Murcia Today, and in the respective local town sections.
Cartagena
El Carmoli
Islas Menores and Mar de Cristal
La Manga Club
La Manga del Mar Menor
La Puebla
La Torre Golf Resort
La Union
Los Alcazares
Los Belones
Los Nietos
Los Urrutias
Mar Menor Golf Resort
Pilar de la Horadada
Playa Honda / Playa Paraiso
Portman
Roldan and Lo Ferro
San Javier
San Pedro del Pinatar
Santa Rosalia Lake and Life resort
Terrazas de la Torre Golf Resort
Torre Pacheco
Aledo
Alhama de Murcia
Bolnuevo
Camposol
Condado de Alhama
Fuente Alamo
Hacienda del Alamo Golf Resort
Lorca
Mazarron
Puerto de Mazarron
Puerto Lumbreras
Sierra Espuna
Totana
Abaran
Alcantarilla
Archena
Blanca
Corvera
El Valle Golf Resort
Hacienda Riquelme Golf Resort
Lorqui
Molina de Segura
Mosa Trajectum
Murcia City
Peraleja Golf Resort
Ricote
Sucina
Condado de Alhama
El Valle Golf Resort
Hacienda del Alamo Golf Resort
Hacienda Riquelme Golf Resort
Islas Menores and Mar de Cristal
La Manga Club
La Torre Golf Resort
Mar Menor Golf Resort
Mazarron Country Club
Mosa Trajectum
Peraleja Golf Resort
Santa Rosalia Lake and Life resort
Terrazas de la Torre Golf Resort
La Zenia
Lomas de Cabo Roig
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