MC

Updated Thursday, March 28, 2024-02:03

Hundreds of towns and cities in Spain carry out their most deeply-rooted religious celebrations these days, with more tradition.

The processions of Seville

, Malaga, Valladolid, Zamora and Cartagena, among others, are internationally recognized

, but there are also more, somewhat less known, that are worth experiencing. We tour five municipalities in which Holy Week is of great cultural interest, in addition to being an attraction from a tourist point of view due to its environment, heritage and gastronomy.

Lorca (Murcia)

The Horsemen of the Apocalypse.

Rooting, staging and originality is what Holy Week in Lorca has, of

International Tourist Interest

. It is also known as the White and Blue festival (after the name of the two main brotherhoods), which has Good Thursday and Good Friday as the most important days. The processions are baroque, full of gold and silver, and scenes from the Old Testament are represented with large allegorical floats, impressive teams of horses (bigas, chariots, etc.) and spectacular equestrian groups where the characters are dressed in pieces of Lorca embroidery. handcrafted in silk and gold. The brotherhood of Los Blancos is grouped around the Virgin of Bitterness and Los Azules have the Virgin of Sorrows as their patron. More information here.

Among the typical dishes that you have to try in Lorca are

jallullo

, based on blood sausage and sausages cooked with flour, oil and salt, accompanied by a puree of stews; also lamb's trotters and artichokes,

with chickpeas, typical of Palm Sunday, and, for dessert,

chochos,

a traditional sweet consisting of a peeled hazelnut covered with sugar glaze (there are blue and white ones in honor of their two brotherhoods).

Where to eat:

Casa Roberto (Corredera, 21. Tel. 968 44 25 58). Helios Restaurant, Parador de Lorca (Castillo de Lorca, s/n. Tel. 968 40 60 47) and Poland Restaurant (Av. de las Fuerzas Armadas, 56. Tel. 968 467 425).

Crevillente (Alicante)

Located in the interior of the province of Alicante, about 30 km from the coast, the town boasts that, since 2011, its Holy Week has also been recognized as being of International Tourist Interest. It contains 32 images and sculptural groups. The peak moment is Good Friday, when, at dawn, the sound of bugles interprets the reveille, melodies that announce the processions that leave at dawn. It is worth highlighting the La Morquera parade, which stages

the embrace between Jesus and the Virgin

of Sorrows on the way to Calvary. In the afternoon, the Procession of the Death of Christ is celebrated, the most spectacular, with choral music breaking the absolute silence of the parade. More information here.

In addition to rice dishes (with rabbit and snails, vegetables, broth...), during these dates you should not miss trying pa

torrat

, a dish of cod, baked garlic and young broad beans. Also the traditional

cocas crevillentinas

, essential for Good Friday lunch (anchovy, vegetables, sardines, ratatouille...).

Where to eat:

Great variety of fresh grilled seafood from Galicia, at

Casa Tomás

(Santa María de la Cabeza, 2. Tel. 966 10 78 87). Las Palmeras (Alicante-Murcia Highway, km 708. Tel. 965 400 188).


Medina del Campo (Valladolid)

This municipality, whose greatest tourist attraction is the imposing La Mota Castle, celebrates one of the oldest Holy Week in Spain, dating back to 1411. In the celebration, a Festival of International Tourist Interest, more than 3,000 brothers from eight brotherhoods make it possible the 15 parades in this town. Holy Thursday is the day of the Lantern Procession (11:30 p.m.), in which silence, barely broken by the beating of drums, fills the Plaza de la Hispanidad. On Good Friday (7 a.m.), in the Procession of Sacrifice, the Cristo de las Claras is carried to the Castillo de la Mota and, in the afternoon, the Procession of Silence with all the brotherhoods. More information here.

It is a land of lamb and wine (DO Rueda) and also of Castilian soup, roast suckling pig, hen in pepitoria and cocadas, puff pastries, cat cagadillas, donuts on a stick, torrijas de leche, and periquillos. ..

Where to eat

: Taberna Mohíno (C. Nueva del Cuartel, 2, Bajo. Tel: 983 800 844), Mónaco Restauración (Plaza Mayor de la Hispanidad, 26. Tel. 983 810 295).

Viveiro (Lugo)

Holy Week in the beautiful coastal town in the province of Lugo is one of the oldest religious celebrations in Galicia, and it is said that it has been carried out uninterruptedly since the 13th century. Converted into one of the main tourist attractions of the town (of International Tourist Interest), thousands of people go there every year to follow live the 15 processions that run through its narrow streets and admire the rich imagery, in many cases articulated, of great value. historical-artistic. Of all the acts, the Via Crucis - the female one, on Holy Tuesday - is especially striking; the masculine, on Wednesday- and the acts of the Descent and the Encounter, on Good Friday and Easter Sunday, respectively. More information here.

Goat, lettuce and the Apostles' bread, an Easter sweet, cannot be missed on Holy Thursday in the town, along with traditional Galician dishes (with octopus and empanada at the head) and seafood.

Where to eat:

O Recuncho (Calle De Pastor Díaz, 55. Tel. 982 56 31 91), La Quinta Viveiro (Rúa Pastor Díaz, 66. Tel. 982 826 120) and Mesón A Fonte (Cam. del Matadero, 4. Tel. 982 563 433).

Hellín (Albacete)

The monumental historic center of the city is the scene of the Holy Week processions, recognized as being of International Tourist Interest. 26 brotherhoods and brotherhoods with centuries of history bring their enormous sculptural heritage to the streets of the city of Albacete accompanied by drums, the . most characteristic of the local processions. In these drum sessions, more than 20,000 people of all ages play the instrument through the streets, dressed in black tunics and red or black scarves around their necks. They last for hours and include the one on Holy Wednesday, the one on Holy Thursday at midnight and the one on Holy Saturday, which ends on the afternoon of Easter Sunday. More information here.

The Holy Week mojete (tomato, tuna, boiled eggs, olives, onions, cod, raw oil and salt) is the typical dish of these dates in Hellín. Other traditional ones to try on these dates are gazpacho manchego, made with shepherd's cakes, pieces of rabbit or hare, and sometimes chicken, ideal for cold days, atascaburras (mashed potatoes with cod, walnuts and garlic), Manchego ratatouille, porridge and, for dessert, wine rolls and sequillos.

Where to eat:

Mesón El Portón del Quijote (Ctra. Murcia, 24. Tel. 967 307 849), Los Serranos (Av. Libertad, 224. Tel. 967 301 225).