Malaga (Rincon)

We stayed in Rincón, a site run by a Yorkshire woman and her hubby. You can cycle on the very busy seafront prom to Malaga in an hour. We had a look around Malaga, paying for the alcazaba and the castle and also doing the Roman theatre. We stayed until Palm Sunday to see the Palm Sunday procession. It was why we were here. Malaga puts on one of the best Easter weeks. We spent about 7.5 hours standing in one spot watching hundreds or thousands of people dressed in robes and capirote (think Ku Klux Klan hats) . On Palm Sunday 9 brotherhoods carry their thrones around the streets. Each brotherhood starts with a cross bearer with a few bits of expensive silver candlesticks and staffs. Followed by the folded banners, then the senatus to remind you of the Romans, then the book of rules for the brotherhood, then the standard bearers and miles of candle bearers. Then the first throne (most brotherhoods have 2) of Jesus through his passion . Preceding the throne are the Acolytes with silver lanterns and incense. I love the smell of incense. Then a band , then more candle bearers then the second throne (of Mary) and the second band. Some have three bands. Children ask the candle bearers to add wax to their ball of wax that is collected over the years and some of the nazareno (people in the procession) hand out little cards with pictures of Christ or Mary on them. Often the nazarenos are not allowed to talk. Each brotherhood takes about 1 hour to pass by. It is done slowly but there are a lot of people. I glibly mentioned the thrones. These are the party pieces of the show. You have to see it to understand why. Each throne can weigh up to 5 tonnes. They are carried by between 120 and 270 people. They carry them for between 6 – 14 hours. Some start early in the morning, some midday but finishing early the next morning. The men (and women) are touching, resting a hand on the shoulder of the person in front. Often their whole bodies touching they are so close. This is a sheer endurance test for them and some chaps were obviously in a lot of pain. They move slowly and stop frequently. They step to the beats of the drum and control the lifting and dropping of the throne by the toll of a bell, which is on the front of each throne and hammered by a bloke at each stopping place. A chap is on each corner of the throne directing them around street corners. Watch the videos we post up! The figures on the thrones are life size. A couple even had trees on them, I did wonder if they would get under the telephone wires but of course they did. These are works of art. The Mary’s are covered in candles and her veil flows out far behind her. Both have lots of flowers, gold and silver. The seats in Malaga to watch this cost between £100 and £900 and sell out in January. The crowds are huge. Many people are dressed smart, this is a religious affair at heart, but a huge money spinner for Malaga. It continues for a week.