Emerald Tales

Currently sailing the eastern Atlantic visiting Maderia, the Canary Islands and the Azores

26 August 2024 | Terceira, Azores
18 August 2024 | Sao Louenco Bay, Santa Maria Island
08 August 2024 | Santa Marina, Azores
13 July 2024 | Santa Maria, Azores
22 March 2024 | Las Palmas de Gran Canaria
01 March 2024 | Porto Santo
23 February 2024 | Porto Santo
22 January 2024 | Madeira
15 December 2023 | Porto Santo
13 October 2023 | Porto Santo
15 September 2023 | Porto Santo
09 August 2023 | Porto Santo, Madeira
28 July 2023 | Porto Santo, Madeira
23 June 2023 | Porto Santo
15 January 2023 | Porto Santo

Semana Santa part II

19 April 2014 | Ayamonte, Spain
Nichola / warm evening
Monday 14th April

Each day of Semana Santa has a different parade. After Sunday's daytime parade they have now moved to the evenings, starting around 8:30pm and going on until the early morning.

pointy hat

We followed the sound of the drums to find a big crowd waiting for the parade to pass; with so many people we wouldn't have seen much so ducked around the streets to find a better spot further down the route where the crowds were thinner. We got a spot right next to the road as two pointy hatted lines slowly marched their way down the cobbled road towards us, carrying long candles. As they got closer they paused for a while in front of us. Children holding small balls ran out from the spectators to the nazarenos. The nazarenos tilted their candles to pour wax onto the balls, then the kids ran off to the next candle. Those that didn't have balls used cups, bowls and even their hands to collect the wax drips. We realised the nazarenos were all children too and as the wait increased they started fidgeting with their hoods and wandering off when they saw someone they knew in the crowd. Then between the wavering lines would come the 'mother hen' nazarenos, an adult with a long stick which they would tap repeatedly on the ground to bring the younger ones back into order.

wax

Finally they began moving again and we saw the float come around a bend. This was different from yesterday's with a figure of Jesus on it. It was again carried by men, pausing regularly for stops and directed by a man walking alongside as those carrying were hidden by a curtain and couldn't see where they were going. As the float came alongside the crowd went quiet and as it passed they clapped applause. Following on came the band, dressed in immaculate white uniforms and playing the funeral marches that were actually quiet catchy, although I wasn't sure if it was the done thing to jig along with the music!

band

We moved on to another spot by a large, palm filled square and realised there were 2 more floats coming along behind, each with their own line of nazarenos wearing different coloured pointy hats and more bands.

black hood

The second float had Jesus on the cross, the third was a spectacular float with the figure of a lady on it wearing a huge, golden head dress and surrounded by tiers of candles. As the float moved along it swayed precariously from side to side.

float

float

Having seen all 3 floats we hung around the square a while longer listening to the bands as they moved on very slowly. We wandered back to the boat, the parades had a few more hours to go before they finished in the early morning.

Comments
Vessel Name: Emerald
Vessel Make/Model: Kelly Peterson 44
Hailing Port: No fixed abode
Crew: Colin 'Skip' Wright, Nichola Wright
About: One from Northern Ireland, one from Yorkshire, UK
Extra: Emerald has been our home since 2004. We've sailed around the UK, the western Baltic and have spent 7 years in the Med. We're currently in Portugal, planning a refit. Lot's more information about us and the boat can be found at www.yachtemerald.com
Home Page: https://www.yachtemerald.com/
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