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My Semana Santa began on Friday when I finished with class. After I finished, I went straight to Madrid with my work friends Sara and Rosa. The next day my cousin Michael was due to arrive in Madrid. Michael had astutely worked out his vacation time so he could come visit in Spain and explore Europe with me for a week. Early Saturday morning, I went to the airport to pick up Michael hence beginning our European adventure. It was great to see Michael in Europe. He was the first family member to come visit me out here in Spain. After leaving the airport, went straight into tourist mode. The nice thing about Madrid is that the majority of the sights are located close together in the historic city center. The first thing we went to go see was the Plaza Mayor, which is a beautiful walled-in plaza in the center of Madrid. We also took in many of the popular sites in Madrid later that afternoon and went to the Prado, which is a famous Spanish art museum in Madrid. That weekend in Madrid, my Irish friend from Cuenca Brian, was also hosting some of his friends from England. We were able to meet up with each other and Saturday night we were able to experience some of the nightlife in Madrid. The next day we went to watch to see a soccer match between Atletico Madrid and Getafe, two of the lesser-known soccer teams of Madrid. The game was the one of the most exciting matches I've been to. Although the crowd wasn't crazy, it was very into the game which kept things exciting. We saw luckily saw lots of goals, three to be exact, including one from Falcao, the Colombian star from Athletic. We spent rest of the afternoon enjoying the warm weather and exploring parts of the city we had yet to see.
Michael and I at the Athletic soccer match
Monday, Michael and I went back to the airport to hop on our plane to Paris, France. I was excited so see Paris because I had heard so much about the city and I had not yet had the chance to go to France. The only thing I was a little nervous about was the language. I have no ability to communicate in French whatsoever and I was told that Parisians were not the friendliest of people when you could not speak their language. Once we got into Paris, we went directly to our hotel to check-in. The hotel turned out to be a little seedy and not the cleanest in the world but it was cheap. We were rarely in our rooms the whole time in Paris anyway. After checking in, we were off exploring again. One thing we learned quickly was Paris a lot more spread out than Madrid. After Michael and I looked at a map, we calculated that we could walk from our hotel to the Louvre in about twenty minutes. Our calculation was a little off, because trip actually took an hour and a half. Our first night in Paris, Michael and I bought some food at a supermarket and carried it with us to the Eiffel Tower. Even though I have seen millions of photos of the Eiffel Tower, nothing compares to seeing it lit up at night in person. It was a spectacular sight!
The next day we woke up and got right back to exploring Paris. We went to go see Notre Dame, which was impressive. We also ate lunch in and explored the Latin Quarter. Then we head back to the Eiffel Tower to climb to the top. Michael and I decided to skip the wait for the elevator and take the stairs. We got a little bit of a work out but it was not as bad as I had expected it to be. Once we made it to the top, the view made the climb well worth it. We were lucky and had a pretty clear day so we could see the entire city! From the tower, you could see why Paris is such a big tourist destination. It seemed as if every building and street in the city was beautiful and well-kept. Later that evening, we met up with my friend Cristina, who I had met in Salamanca for a drink. She is Spanish and working as a Spanish Language Assistant in Paris. It was great to see her and hear about Paris from someone who is actually living there.
I've grown a bit...
Wednesday was our last day in Paris. We spent the entire morning exploring the massive and famous Louvre Museum. I was amazed by the size of the museum. There were countless countless corridors that seemed to go for miles. The building that the museum is situated in was once a royal palace. As you might imagine, the building is beautiful with intricate designs and paintings on the ceilings and walls. Although you need a whole week to see the Louvre in its entirety, Michael and I were able to see the majority of the well-known paintings and sculptures in the museum. We saw the Mona Lisa, of course, but it was a lot smaller than I had expected. It was also a bit difficult to see because it was behind a layer of glass and there was a huge crowd of people in front of the painting. After the Louvre we went to neighborhood of Monmartre and to the Basilque du Sacre Coeur, which is the famous white church that sits on the top of the hill. Probably the most impressive thing about the church was its view of the city. The surrounding area, although quite touristy , was an artsy neighborhood that was fun to explore. Michael and I ordered some delicious crepes to eat since we hadn't done that yet. After our short excursion to Monmartre, we headed back to the airport and back to Spain.
Although Paris was beautiful and I loved the city, it was nice to be back in Spain where things were familiar again and I could speak the language. After seeing the grand cities of Madrid and Paris, it was time to show Michael the grand city of Cuenca. Like I said early, most towns in Spain have big Semana Santa traditions. The celebrations in Cuenca are particularly famous. Everyday, long and painstakingly slow processions pass through the streets of Cuenca. Each procession represents a part of the Crucifixion and Resurrection of Christ. Through these processions, the Crucifixion and Resurrection are reenacted. The first afternoon Michael, my friends from Cuenca and I went to go see one of the processions. At first it was a little shocking to see the processions for Michael and I because the participants are dressed in tunics and hoods that are basically identical to what was worn by the KKK. The only differences is they wear a variety of colors. In the processions, there are hundreds of participants dressed in this fashion and are accompanied by marching bands. Probably the most peculiar thing about about these processions is some participants carry huge statues that represent Jesus and other parts of the story. These statues weigh hundreds pounds so it takes many people to carry them and many times the processions last up 6 hours! That night we all went to see the procession called Las Turbas, which is the most famous procession in Cuenca. It starts at 4 am on Friday morning. We arrived a half hour early to wait for the procession to pass, but unfortunately it never came. The procession was canceled because of rain and even a bit of snow!
Procession in Cuenca
Saturday morning, I went with Michael to the airport in Madrid and sent him on his way back to the US of A. It was great having him out here to visit and although he was exhausted and sore from walking so much (I was too), I think he enjoyed his visit!
My Semana Santa was not quite finished yet. After leaving the airport, I hopped on a train to take me to Tobarra where my roommates Salva and Jesus are from. In their town, they have a very different tradition during Semana Santa. On the Wednesday of Semana Santa, the entire town puts on a tunic and straps on the a drum. They then play the drums nonstop until Sunday at midnight. Once I arrived in Tobarra, I ate and then it was time to drum. I put on my own tunic, strapped on my drum and headed to the street with my roommates and my friends. For me, Saturday and Sunday were basically two days of one big drumming party. I slept little and drummed a lot. There were also processions in Tobarro and on Sunday we watched the procession, which is the most important one. Then on Sunday at about 11:30 PM, the whole town gathered in the main square using all the energy they had left to bang out a few more cadences. Then when the clock struck twelve, the town became instantly silent. It was a very cool thing to experience and although I was exhausted, I'm glad that I was able to experience it. I met a lot of interesting people and even made some new friends. Finally on Monday, we were in the car heading back to Cuenca and ready for some sleep! Well it was an action-packed Semana Santa but probably one of the most exciting weeks I've ever had.
Salva, Jesus and I
(I don't wanna work, I just want to bang on my drum all day)
