Those who are Catholic as I am, will probaby know that on March the 30, a very special week starts, the Holy Week. For those who doesn't know what does this mean, in this week we conmemorate the death and resurrection of Christ.

Here, in Seville, this has an special meaning beyond the religious one: During the holy week (which date changes every year, for example in 2007 it's from March the 30 to April the 8 ), people crowds the streets of the town centre to watch a wonderful spectacle. This one:

This are two of the many images of Virgin Mary and Christ that are carried through the city to the Cathedral in penance.

Almost every church has an agrupation of people which we call here "hermandad", these groups of people work hard all year in several ceremonies and the culmination of these ceremonies is the Holy Week when they can show to the rest of the city their loved images. These images are most of the times pieces of art, some of then date back to 18 century. They're carried by strong men who are called "costaleros", this name refers to the piece of cloth they wear on their heads to protect their necks which are the ones to stand the weight of the images. This piece of cloth is called "costal", and here's an image:

Apart from the images and the ones who carry them, there's another way to participate on a "procesion" (wich is the name for each group of images and people, i think it's similar to the word "procession" in english). This way is as what we call "Nazareno", what would be this:

For those who are asking themselves: NO, they're not from Ku Klux Clan!!! lol

Well, i hope it's everything clear, and you're know wishing to visit Seville during the Holy Week, if you're contact me please, i'll be happy to help you!! :P

For further information: http://www.exploreseville.com/events/semana-santa.htm