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Semana Santa is coming up. Every city in Andalucía is getting ready. In the north it might be quite solemn, but here in Andalucia it is a fiesta. You dress up, you stay up, you eat well and you hang out on the streets with family and friends. It goes on all night long, all next week. One of the most striking, and perhaps most eerie, spectacles of the festival are the Nazarenos in their tall, pointy hats and matching robes with their faces completely covered, apart from their eyes. The sight of hundreds of slow-moving unidentifiable figures in these ghostly, alarming costumes can be a little unsettling, and they are frequently compared to the Ku Klux Klan. One can be forgiven for believing the Ku Klux Klan and the Semana Santa parades were borne of the same idea, since the costumes of both are practically identical. Despite this, there appears to be no connection whatsoever between the two, although the Nazarenos came first. The Ku Klux Klan used their costumes for disguise, for the Christian connotations and perhaps the fact they were usually white had a racial significance. As for why the costumes are used in Semana Santa celebrations, the origins remain a mystery but the purpose is simple – their faces are covered in mourning, and also as a sign of shame for the sins they have committed throughout the year. Somehow, though, they manage to soften the blow for spectators not in the know by the sneakers they wear visible with their costumes and the can of beer and half-smoked Ducado they are often seen carrying – a reminder that Semana Santa is, essentially, simply a fun festival in Andalusía. (I've quoted Think Spain in some of this)
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