My first day in Mallorca I went to a Catholic procession for Semana Santa (Holy Week) in Spain. This week is the week before Easter and consists of many important celebrations. The first thing I must address is the costumes. Probably your first though upon seeing the picture above was the KKK. This is not a KKK march or in anyway associated with them. I know you are probably skeptical, as was I at first, but these Catholic processions have been going on for hundreds of years in Spain, some dating back to the 16th century. 



I must admit, it was frightening to see at first, but please understand that different cultures and religions have different customs, traditions, and practices. Part of traveling is being open to different cultures and religions, even if it is unfamiliar. In this blog post I wrote about what it was like to see the procession for the first time and a look at a unique cultural experience. At the bottom of the post I have included links to several sources if you are interested in reading more about the Catholic processions or Semana Santa. 



At the end of my first day on the island Hannah's abuela suggested we go see the Catholic procession in the capital city of Palma, a half hour drive from their house. We arrived in the busy city and Hannah’s mom, abuela, Hannah, and I walked towards the cathedral. 



The Cathedral, La Seu, was enormous. Hannah told me to was from the Gothic era. I didn’t know what to expect when we found a spot to stand on the nearby street so I was surprised to find hundreds of Catholics walking down the streets dressed in robes and pointed hoods. My first thought was of the KKK. These, of course, were harmless people, but they still seemed creepy as they marched down the streets. 



There were many groups of them and each church in the capital had a group. Each church had their own symbol and robe colors. The newest churches would go first with one person carrying a banner with the name of the church and the year it was founded. Some were founded in the 1950’s and some were founded in the 1500’s. 



There were both men and women marching in two lines behind the person carrying the banner. Many people walked bare foot through the cobbled streets. They had been marching for hours. There were children running around in the middle of the two lines with sticks to scrape off the melting wax from the long candles the cloaked adults supported by a belt. The children wore robes but not the hoods. They laughed and some of them played with the sticks. 



There was then people carrying ornate floats with statues of Jesus or Mary. These are called pasos. A paso is a huge ornate float with statues of biblical scenes or characters. The larger pasos were carried by dozens of men supporting the structure from underneath. It was huge and heavy to carry. They would stop every so often and rest or switch out with another person marching nearby. These men, called costaleros, were not cloaked and carried the pasos on their necks and shoulders. Sometimes there were women dressed in black with views that followed behind holding lit candles. The larger churches had a band that followed behind. 



The procession went on for hours. Neither Hannah nor I are Catholic, but it was fascinating to watch. Hannah explained that they were remembering the Crucification of Jesus. She also explained that the reason behind the robes and hoods was to conceal their identity to remain humble and show that they marched for religious reasons, and not for acknowledgement. Many believed marching would help their sins to be forgiven or bring good fortune on their family, especially if they had an ill family member. Some people went as far as to drag chains on their feet or carry huge crosses on their shoulders. Hannah’s mom also told me that in major cities, such as Madrid, some people practiced self mutilation and would whip themselves with rocks or chains. 



I had never seen anything like this. One of the most interesting parts was that some of them handed out anis candy. Some of the hooded adults handed it to you wrapped in tinfoil or just by themselves. I looked at Hannah skeptically but she had already put in her mouth so I assumed it was okay. They were round, white, bumpy, balls that tasted like sweet herbs. It humanized the cloaked people when you could look into their eyes. 



It was definitely an interesting cultural experience. It was slightly scary but mostly interesting to see the march. People did this for their strong devotion to their religious beliefs. It was admirable, and certainly unique from an American perspective, for hundreds of people to march down the streets for hours dressed as they were. It was certainly different from Easter in the United States.