Holy Week in Seville is intense, to say the least. Between the Nazarenes strolling through the city and thousands of people following them, plus a temperature of 35 degrees Celcius, it struck you.
In the capital city of Andalucia, you can experience one the most passionate Holy Weeks of your life, even if you’re not catholic at all. It is worth living it. Men are dressed in suits and women fancy it up with long Sevillian dresses and heels. From Thursday until Sunday, you got to dress to impress. They all look really posh, but it is what their devotion demands.
The processions or pasos (as the locals refer to them) start around five o’clock in the afternoon and finish in the early morning. If you happen to visit Seville at that time of the year, you should wake up early because it’s gonna get crowded as hell (ha!). The amount of Nazarenes (the guys that look like KKK) is impressive. Women, children, adults and teens all assume their role in the procession. Some might be carrying candles and crosses to pay their penance, then there are the carriers (I don’t the exact word in English, in Spanish, they are called cargadores), their job is to carry gigantic golden religious figures across the city from church to church.
Talking about churches, Seville’s cathedral is the biggest in the world and the third biggest religious building behind San Peter’s and Basilica of Our Lady of Aparecida in Brazil. The highest point of the cathedral is called La Giralda, watching the streets from above.
From all the cities I’ve visited in Spain, probably Seville was the one that fascinated me from the getgo. Madrid has all the entertainment and nightlife you can dream of, Barcelona amazing architecture and art, San Sebastian brings you the cuisine, but in Seville, you sure feel in Spain. The locals are kind, glad to help you, it has nice weather all year long (of course if you feel comfortable in hot weather) and the city centre is impressive and historic. What someone can imagine about Spain, you shall find it near the Gualdaviquir.
Have a glass of wine in the riviera, observing Torre del Oro or maybe pass by Saint George’s Castle crossing through the bullfighting mecca that la Maestranza is. The gardens of Alcazar are worth a visit and a must if you are a Game of Thrones fan.
Mixing Islamic, goth, baroque and renaissance, the combinations of styles you see around every corner makes Seville a definitive destination.
