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Easter in SMA - what a BLAST!!
There are no cute Easter bunnies, Easter baskets, egg hunts, new Easter duds, or hats in San Miguel today. Instead, they blast their enemies!
It started at 10:30 last night with rocket boomers and church bells blasting and ringing for a half an hour. Then they resumed this morning from 6 to 6:30 am.
The event began at noon, across the Jardin from the Parroquia where larger than life-size figures made of paper mache were lined up outside the police station.
There were about 25 of these bad guys and gals. Each had a hoop around their waist with a string of firecrackers attached. Each had been donated by a local business establishment and some had signs identifying the hated person. One said "canidate corrupto" which covers a lot! The figures were then strung up by ropes between the trees of the Jardin and the balcony of the municipal building.
One at a time they were lowered so that a man with a cigarette could light the fuse. Then they were raised and when the firecrackers went off, the figures would spin.
Then there would be a BIG BANG and the figure would be blown to smithereens. Body parts flew everywhere!
If the bang was loud and the body completely destroyed, the crowd was pleased. There were a couple of fizzles which got boos.
Body parts were collected by the crew, and after all 25 blasts, children descended on the pile to grab a limb or two for souvenirs.
This event is called the "Destruction of Judas." How cathartic to destroy your enemy via paper mache and a blast!
To see a video of one of these figures getting blown up, go to:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oaLJUTRgeYE&feature=related
HAPPY EASTER!
Good Friday, part 2 - the last procession
I returned to San Miguel early in the afternoon to encounter even more people on the streets - there must be thousands of visitors in town. The atmosphere here is much different than it was this morning in San Luiz Rey; here people are on vacation and they are shopping, eating, drinking, and having a merry time.
The event this evening was one I was looking forward to since it has been reported as the MAIN HOLY WEEK EVENT. I was advised to find a spot on the street by 5pm, an hour before the procession was scheduled to begin. So at 5 pm, I was there only to encounter the streets already packed with people. All the shady sides of the streets were taken, but I did manage to find a spot in semi-shade.
Although the procession is the most serious of Holy Week events, the mood prior to the start of it was quite lively. There were food vendors going up and down the streets as well as balloon and toy vendors. With cotton candy and candied apples, it felt like a carnival!
The procession is called Santo Entierro (Holy Burial) and is the most solemn and longest of the processions with about 2000 soldiers and mourners carrying statues and candle torches. The men are dressed in black suits and the women are in black dresses, black lace mantillas and white gloves. It is a funeral procession that begins with statues of 12 angels, small ones carried by girls and larger ones carried by women. Everyone walks in silence. Those watching the procession are suppose to be silent as well, but the procession moves so slowly (it takes 2 1/2 hours) that the crowds got restless, especially the kids. This procession has been going on here for 300 years.
Of course there were the Roman soldiers, but these fellows were big guys - not your typical Mexican male size. Apparently these big guys come from a region in Mexico were the men are big and they make a special trip to San Miguel each year to show off their size.
Then came the girls carrying small statues of angels.
Women came next carrying large statues of angels. There were 6 of them.
There was an orchestra and a choir that performed music written especially for this event.
After that there were more statues, but the most important one was of the dead Christ.
Whew! That's the last of the processions! Attending all of these events has been a real cultural experience.
Good Friday, part 1
Good Friday is the BIG DAY here, not Easter Sunday. There are mobs of people in town and traffic is gridlocked. Of 4 events going on in the area, I could only attend 2. Since I'm a bit tired of processions with statues, I opted this morning to take a bus to a small town about a mile out of San Miguel, San Luiz Rey, where the Passion Play was being performed by real people. When I left at 8:15 am, the only people out and about were the street crews and home owners cleaning streets of last night's litter.
San Luiz Rey is a working class town with cobbled and dirt roads. The event was to start at 9 am, but didn't until 9:45, so I had a chance to see the actors gathering outside the church.
Here are some of the Roman soldiers getting dressed outside the church.
In front of the small church is a platform where Christ was brought before Pontius Pilate and sentenced.
The little girls in white carry baskets that will be filled with chamomile and mint. They will walk at the head of the procession and distribute the herbs on the street. When the herbs get trampled, they release their fragrance.
My guess is that Pontius Pilate is on the right and one of the Pharisees on the left.
Here is part of the group of Christ's followers including the apostles and Mary in blue. Below is Death. She was present during the whole event, sometimes holding a human skull (see left.)
After Christ was judged and sentenced, the procession to Calvary began.
The procession moved through town in a round about way covering a distance of about a mile and half. The procession grew bigger as it moved along. The people attending were all townsfolk with only about 20 gringos in the crowd. The streets were decorated with purple and white crepe paper, paper flowers, overhead streamers, and palm and corn stalks.
Above are the two condemned criminals and below is Judas who wandered along in the crowd and eventually hung himself in a tree.
Along the way, the stations of the cross were acted out. (I am only familiar with several of them - all learned in art history classes!) The last bit of the way went up a steep street to a knoll used for Calvary.
I was relieved that this was all acted out without any real blood or torture. The follows were on the cross, standing on platforms, for about a half hour and then were taken down.
Then people drifted back to their homes and life in town resumed.
Along the way I photographed a view of San Miguel in the distance. A man with a burro added a picturesque touch.
Santero (maker of saints)
Genaro Almanza Rios was a well known maker of statues of saints in San Miguel who learned the craft from his father, Donato. Genaro died a couple of years ago but his legacy lives on in the many beautiful statues sitting in niches in churches throughout the region. The statues have a core of a light weight wood that is then covered in with plaster then painted. Genaro was also a conservator of old statues as well as an active preserver of San Miguel traditions.
Some of the church statues are believed to be associated with miracles while others are cherished because of their age. Some were made in Spain. Many were donations to the churches by individuals who favored a particular saint or by wealthy parishioners. There is one in town that is very old and has a core of corn husks. It is brought out for display only a couple of days each year.
Tomorrow, Good Friday, there is a procession at the Parroquia where a figure of Christ meets up with a figure of the Virgin and the bowed head of Christ raises three times to gaze at his mother. It is called "The Meeting." (I will miss it because I am going to be at another procession.) Yesterday I visited the church where the statue of Christ was on display and as I was photographing it, the head moved! It was not a miracle - a man was sitting under the platform operating the head for visitors.
The figure of Christ tied to the Column is much venerated here because it is believed that it eradicated a plague in San Miguel at one time. This statue is brought from a church 4 miles away in an overnight procession. It stays in a church here for two weeks than is returned in another overnight procession.
Here are some more saints.
Santa Semana - 3 more processions
Holy Week and Easter are the most religious holidays in San Miguel - a bigger event than Christmas - so it is a travel destination for many Mexican families. The number of people on the streets has increased daily and this evening I noticed that streets near the Jardin had been closed to traffic. The mood in the Jardin is especially festive these days with entertainment (juggler, hula hooping, Andean pipe music along with a couple of mariachis, and 12 foot puppets) food venders, souvenir vendors, and lots of well behaved kids. While just a block or two away, religious processions are taking place.
Procession 1
On Monday evening, one of the churches put on a dramatization of the last supper and Gethsemane followed by a procession. Children play roles in these local church events along with lots of men dressed as Roman soldiers. (I suspect that there is something macho about playing a soldier and dressing up in a flashy uniform.)
In this rendition of the Last Supper, grandmothers were in attendance to keep the apostles in line.
Here the angle is appearing to Christ while the apostles sleep.
The choir of angels waited patiently for their opportunity to sing.
Judas betrays Christ and the Roman soldiers arrest him.
Then the figure of Christ is carried through the streets followed by a procession. Chamomile is spread on the street beforehand and then immediately swept up afterward.
Procession 2
Today I attended another procession at a neighborhood church and it was a real delight! The homes along the procession way were decorated in white and purple and mobs of people lined both sides of the street to see the kids parade by.
Below is the crew that follows the procession to sweep up the chamomile and flower petals.
On the streets next to the church were women making a special Lenten treat of corn tortillas filled with brown sugar then deep fried.
Above is the head soldier in his shiny gold armor. The clown was a by-stander - he was not in the procession!
The children were dressed in costumes and family members were taking pictures - it almost seemed like Halloween! Of course, like all the other processions, there was a brass band playing somber music, there were members of the clergy, and of course, the religious statues were carried on platforms covered with flowers - but it was the kids that made this procession special.
First came the littlest angels. They were followed by older ones.
Then the bearded apostles came along and they were followed by the tortured Christs.
That's Judas in the magenta robe. Friends and I agreed that the little Christs look like they are being tortured with measles.
And the choir was last. Their singing was lovely.
Procession 3
This procession consisted of lots of religious statues (men carry male statues and women carry female saints) that made its way through town stopping at 14 locations where Stations of the Cross were located. At each location, priests read liturgy and prayed, so the procession was a slow moving one. The youngest kids that part of it were fine while the procession was moving, but when it stopped, they were bored.
There will be more in the days to come!
Palm Sunday, procession 2
Procession Two gathered at a park about 8 blocks away and took about a half hour to arrive at the Parroquia. At 11am the church bells rang and rang and rang.
Then loud boomers began and accompanied the procession the entire way, about every three minutes. A fellow led the group with a rocket launcher. He set off the rockets with his cigarette!
First were the clerics followed by a drum and bugle corps.
Next came various church groups and lodges.
Then came some young people waving flags and mock fighting with knives. (I don't know what that was all about.)
The main event was the arrival of an image of Jesus on a donkey.
Jesus was followed by the Apostles and they were followed by hundreds of religious followers.
The entire procession passed through the gates of the Parroquia and entered the church for a Mass.
A great many gringos have already left town headed to homes in the north. But everywhere I turned today, I was encountering friends and acquaintances. Here are some.
On the right is Ellen from Cape Cod. Bob is standing next to her. He is her San Miguel landlord. The couple next to Bob are Claude and Nacine, Claude is Ellen's cousin.
This is Don and Leslie. I ran into them at 2 of the 3 processions today. Don was in one of my Spanish classes and speaks muy bien.
Rumor has it that the kids/angels are going to show up at another church tomorrow evening. We'll see...
Palm Sunday, processions 1 and 3
I attended 3 processions today and will report on the first and third now and will follow with another post for procession two since the first and the third were shorter ones.
Procession 1
The first took place at 10am (or there abouts) and was four blocks long beginning at a chapel and ending at the church of San Francisco followed by a Mass. I was very early for the event and caught a glimpse of the apostles scurrying up to where the procession was forming. Loud boomers announced the beginning of the procession.
When Jesus entered Jerusalem, I doubt he had a police escort!
After the lead group of Jesus and his Apostles and a couple of drummers, the procession consisted of parishioners carrying palms.
Before the procession began, I encountered Jesus on the street. According to the local paper, Carlos Ruiz has been playing the role of Jesus for 11 years. He is a 32 year old teacher who believes that playing the role means a commitment to Christ throughout the whole year. Cute guy!
Procession 3
There's a lot of information and misinformation around town about the various Holy Week events. The major events are listed in the local paper and appear on a website, but the many neighborhood churches have events that are word-of-mouth. And so it was with this late afternoon procession that I was told included lots of little kids dressed as angels. It didn't happen that way!
This procession was one and half blocks long. It was lead by fellows carrying a statue of Jesus on the donkey, the parish priest, and a small brass band playing a somber tune.
These fellows are carrying the image to where the procession was forming around the corner and down the street. At that spot, the priest performed a dedication of palms. The palms are intricately woven in various configurations and are sold outside of every church in town. Parishioners carry then in the processions.
The procession made its way back to the church with parishioners following.
Before filing into church for Mass, the priest sprinkled Holy Water on the palms.
Procession 2 in the next post.
Friday of Our Lady of Sorrows
Today was another religious holiday with the celebration taking place this evening. Dating from the 1940's in Mexico, it is celebrated in San Miguel with many families creating altars in windows, doorways, entrance lobbies, and decorating outdoor fountains. Featured in the altars are images of a sorrowful Virgin.
Preparations begin during the day with the gathering of traditional materials that all have symbolic significance: chamomile flowers, mint, fennel, oranges, pots of wheat sprouts, candles, and purple fabric and decorations. At the mercado, there were lots of vendors selling these things and people were buying them in various quantities. As I walked around town, I saw families creating their altar arrangements.
The celebration takes place at night. People walk the streets visiting the altars. The families give out popsicles or sweet fruit drinks as symbols of the the sweet tears of the Virgin. And they play religious music. It all sounds very solemn, but it turned out to be a fiesta! I have never seen so many people on the streets of San Miguel. People must come from all over for this event and everyone was in high spirits. It is a family event with children of all ages including infants and toddlers as well as older children, teenagers, young adult couples, parents and grandparents. Some streets with lots of altars were closed to traffic. It reminded me of when I was a child and my parents drove me all over town to see the Christmas lights - only here everyone walks. Some of the altars were quite modest while others were very ambitious displays that drew crowds.
This house is just up the street from me. Above is what it looked like during the day. Below is at night when the family opened the door to reveal that they had converted their living room into an altar arrangement.
So here are some of the altars I visited.
Below is the entrance to a large house with inner courtyard. The line to enter was a block long. I didn't bother.
This one was huge and had a painted back drop of a mountain (Calvary.) It had colored lights that kept changing color.
Below is a family run hotel where preparations took two days. An inside courtyard had a huge altar. The hotel has a computer room and all eight computers displayed rotating images of Holy Week events.
There are many fountains in San Miguel, often located at intersections. Local families convert these fountains into altars.
In one part of time it was like a street party because there were so many altars in the neighborhood. Traffic was diverted and there were tables where food was being prepared and served.
I'm looking forward to more events in the coming days.
Preparations begin during the day with the gathering of traditional materials that all have symbolic significance: chamomile flowers, mint, fennel, oranges, pots of wheat sprouts, candles, and purple fabric and decorations. At the mercado, there were lots of vendors selling these things and people were buying them in various quantities. As I walked around town, I saw families creating their altar arrangements.
The celebration takes place at night. People walk the streets visiting the altars. The families give out popsicles or sweet fruit drinks as symbols of the the sweet tears of the Virgin. And they play religious music. It all sounds very solemn, but it turned out to be a fiesta! I have never seen so many people on the streets of San Miguel. People must come from all over for this event and everyone was in high spirits. It is a family event with children of all ages including infants and toddlers as well as older children, teenagers, young adult couples, parents and grandparents. Some streets with lots of altars were closed to traffic. It reminded me of when I was a child and my parents drove me all over town to see the Christmas lights - only here everyone walks. Some of the altars were quite modest while others were very ambitious displays that drew crowds.
This house is just up the street from me. Above is what it looked like during the day. Below is at night when the family opened the door to reveal that they had converted their living room into an altar arrangement.
So here are some of the altars I visited.
Below is the entrance to a large house with inner courtyard. The line to enter was a block long. I didn't bother.
This one was huge and had a painted back drop of a mountain (Calvary.) It had colored lights that kept changing color.
Below is a family run hotel where preparations took two days. An inside courtyard had a huge altar. The hotel has a computer room and all eight computers displayed rotating images of Holy Week events.
There are many fountains in San Miguel, often located at intersections. Local families convert these fountains into altars.
In one part of time it was like a street party because there were so many altars in the neighborhood. Traffic was diverted and there were tables where food was being prepared and served.
I'm looking forward to more events in the coming days.
More wire art
I have become obsessed. Yesterday when I returned from the studio, I took a detour just to look for more pieces of wire in the road!
Archer on Top of a Big Rock
Tired Giraffe
Woman with Hair in her Eye
Prehistoric Cave Painting
Yoga Class
Trying to Learn Spanish
espanol and more silly wire things
SPANISH
While here, I've learned an incredible amount of Spanish in a very short period of time. It is all in my head except for my ears and my mouth. It will take lots more time and lots of practice before I'll be able to participate in a conversation. When I do manage to put words together and speak a sentence, I am so amazed when native speakers understand me! The Mexicans are very forgiving of gringos who slaughter their language!
Above on the left is Warren Hardy and his wife, Tuli. Warren is the founder of a Spanish school designed for older minds and Tuli is the school's administrator. Warren has authored excellent study books and materials and is a great teacher. On the right is Rocio Ruiz, a vivacious and patient teacher who makes the struggle to learn fun! Below are my classmates in the class I just completed.
L to R: Don, Sandra, Lesley, Libby, and Carolina - all of them much more fluent than I am!
FOUND WIRE ART
I found more twisted wire on the dirt road to the studio. I don't think there are any more so this is the last of them. (I have not bent any of them - they are as I found them.)
Skinny Person Sitting on a Cushion
Woman Talking on Cell Phone that has Antenna
Kid Pulling Sled
Bird on Branch
Bird in Flight
Sphinx
My Challenge (to explain to US Customs why I am bringing these home with me....)
While here, I've learned an incredible amount of Spanish in a very short period of time. It is all in my head except for my ears and my mouth. It will take lots more time and lots of practice before I'll be able to participate in a conversation. When I do manage to put words together and speak a sentence, I am so amazed when native speakers understand me! The Mexicans are very forgiving of gringos who slaughter their language!
Above on the left is Warren Hardy and his wife, Tuli. Warren is the founder of a Spanish school designed for older minds and Tuli is the school's administrator. Warren has authored excellent study books and materials and is a great teacher. On the right is Rocio Ruiz, a vivacious and patient teacher who makes the struggle to learn fun! Below are my classmates in the class I just completed.
L to R: Don, Sandra, Lesley, Libby, and Carolina - all of them much more fluent than I am!
FOUND WIRE ART
I found more twisted wire on the dirt road to the studio. I don't think there are any more so this is the last of them. (I have not bent any of them - they are as I found them.)
Skinny Person Sitting on a Cushion
Woman Talking on Cell Phone that has Antenna
Kid Pulling Sled
Bird on Branch
Bird in Flight
Sphinx
My Challenge (to explain to US Customs why I am bringing these home with me....)
