In an early anticipation of Easter, this week's Beyond The Frame deals with the colorful and immensely significant Semana Santa in the lovely town of Antigua, a couple of hours from Guatemala City. The Semana Santa in Antigua is considered by many as the most beautiful religious celebration in the Americas, and the largest Holy Week observance in the Western Hemisphere. Beginning on Palm Sunday and continuing through Easter Sunday, it is best known for its colorful religious processions.
I recall the tremendous fervor expressed by the Guatemalans who participate in the processions and its preparations, creating an extraordinary outpouring of Christian faith and devotion. I found it quite easy to photograph in Antigua during the Semana Santa, as there are ample accommodations, the routes of the processions are planned in advance and no one minds photographers. Just be aware that pickpockets prefer to operate in crowds!
The processions in Antigua feature feature huge platforms, called andas, on which religious statues are mounted. The first platform, holding a figure of Christ with a cross, is carried by 60 to 100 men, called cucuruchos, dressed in purple biblical clothing. This is followed by a platform with the Virgin Mary, borne by women wearing black mourning.
Hundreds of parishioners will work overnight to create carpets, called alfombras, that display detailed pictorial and geometric designs made of flower petals, pine needles, dyed sawdust and colored sand.These will run for several blocks long in front of a church or along a procession route. In addition, people who live along a route create their own alfombras on the street in front of their homes. Antigua’s best processions take place on Palm Sunday, Holy Thursday and Good Friday.
Oh, and the best capuccino I've ever had was in Antigua. Sadly, I forgot the name of the place, but it's there!
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