Semana Santa (Holy Week) and Lent in general are difficult to put into words here in Antigua. So, I've made a video to share with you all of the crazy and wonderful things that I've seen over the past few weeks. (The video is on Facebook. I'm having trouble uploading it here, but I'll keep trying!)
The most impressive and famous part of Lent in Antigua are the alfombras and the processions. Each Sunday during Lent as well as each day of Holy Week, processions occur (often more than one at a time). We even went to a procession at 3am on Good Friday!
Before the processions, families make huge alfombras on the procession route. The alfombras (or blankets) are made out of flowers, fruits and vegetables, colored sawdust. Basically anything goes. After the alfombras are all ready, people walk around for a bit and "oooh and awww". Then the procession begins. Nobody is allowed to walk over the alfombras until the Jesus float passes over it. It is a very big honor to carry the Jesus float or any other that float. Immediately after the procession passes the alfombra is swept up and the family starts talking about what they're going to make next year.
With all this lead-up during Lent, I was expecting a great Easter Sunday! But... nothing happened. There was no acknowledgment that it was Easter. Even the more religious families didn't go to church. When I asked what we were doing for easter, they replied that they were going to rest. It was all a bit strange.
Luckily, we didn't completely miss out on the Easter fun because my sitemates and I had purchased supplies to teach our host families how to dye Easter eggs! This was a great opportunity to show our families a bit of American culture and to do something nice for them, since they've been taking great care of us.
I hope you all had a great Easter! Talk to you soon!
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