Sunday 28th March - Day 22 and 23 and 24 - Domingo de las palmas and on

Semana Santa - Domingo de las Palmas

The Plaza de Armes

Sunday morning 6.30a.m. - Karen and I leave for the start of our Palm Sunday adventure.  First stop is the Cathedral in the Plaza de Armes which, we were told had the blessing of the palms and mass at 7a.m.  Having hurried to get there in time, we found the enormous studded doors firmly shut and noone about.  Eventually we gathered that the service does not start until 10a.m. - another hour in bed would have been nice - so we decide to do the rounds of some of the other 36 churches in the city to see what is going on in them.   We visited four of them, all full of people with their palms and although we didn't stay more than ten minutes or so in any of them we begin to get the feel of the Palm Sunday festivities.  When we got to the last of the four which was near the market, we bought our palms from one of the many sellers outside and pushed our way in through crowds of people all wanting their palms blessed until we reached the altar where the priest was sprinkling the crowds with holy water.  

On the way to the altar to get out palms blessed

One of the grander palms but they were all lovely with the leaves plaited into shapes

Karen and I complete with blessed palms

Thoroughly blessed we then popped home for breakfast before back into town for the 10a.m. Cathedral mass.  This was more formal although still palm blessing.  However, after about half an hour of standing not understanding a word I decided to creep out and see what was on offer out in the Plaza.  Good timing because as I stepped onto the pavement a giant fire cracker was let off about 10feet away from me.  I thought a bomb had exploded but it was the signal for the arrival of a procession.  It started with a band, followed by ladies in their traditional clothes, men on horseback, donkeys, acrobats, more bands, men and women together in costume and on and on.  It was wonderful and the colours were stunningly bright and numerous.  Much more fun than mass, I decided.  This first procession set the tone of the day and we were soon on our way to the Festival de las Chemisas  [Fesival of Bushes]

Some of the ladies in the Palm Sunday procession

Part of the procession

The Chemisada was a gathering some way out of town of all the people who were taking part in the earlier procession together with more horses, llamas and donkeys all of which would be in the grand procession from this location to the Plaza, a distance of probably 3 miles later in the day.  When we arrived, there was music and folk dancing and a very, very festive spirit as there was free beer and chicha [yum yum] a local brew made from 7 different grains.  It starts off non-alcoholic but after only 3 days of brewing becomes more and more alcoholic.  There is another sort which is chicha morada [purple chicha] which is made from fruit and berries.   Free food for 5,000 people was also provided so you can get an idea of the scale of the gathering and also the jolly mood of everyone, especially as the sun was shining after a day of rain.  Having had our fill of chicha or beer, the procession set off to town - Karen and I decided to walk with them and took our place at the front, alongside the band and the mayor!  It took well over an hour to do the walk - so hot by now - but it was great fun, feeling as though we were actually part of the procession.  Once in town, everyone, including all the llamas and donkeys and horses, processed along the long, narrow, cobbled streets into the Plaza.  One group, special Peruvian trotting horses [Cabaleros de Paso]  held back so that they could trot the length of the street showing off their amazing high trot.  Their riders were dressed in brown vicuna ponchos and white shirts and trousers - soooooo sexy and gorgeous.

The rancheros in their wonderful ponchos

Aaaaaah  -  waiting to set off in the procession

Dressed in his ceremonial attire

Joining in with the procession to the Plaza - Look what I found!

The procession riding into town - look beyond the arch to see the road into the Plaza completely filled with people

Time was now about 3.30p.m. and Jesus was expected to leave the Monastario de S. Theresa at 4p.m. so Karen and I hot footed it back up the hill the way we had already been to grab us a good view point. We had time to get some fresh orange juice on the way - needed after the dehydration of the chicha and the long walk.  

El Monastario de S. Theresa

We waited and waited and waited and eventually at about 4.30, there was a rustle of excitement and everyone raised their palms up to the sky and shook them and shouted out 'Gloria' - Jesus was on his way!!  Out came two donkeys escorted by the 'disciples' - the first donkey carried Jesus, the second one carried two paniers filled with fruit [grapes, pineapples, apples, oranges - weird, I'm sure that that wasn't in the bible] and behind the second donkey came an enormous, empty wooden throne-like chair carried by two more men. 

Jesus, I am afraid to say, was a huge disappointment as I was expecting to see a human dressed in white with a long black wig [as i had seen on the internet] but instead, it was a smaller-than-life-size model dressed in ornate, purple robes, with ginger hair and sparkly slippers who, in spite of being tied onto the donkey with ropes, kept slipping off sideways and had to be hoisted back in place by one of the disciples. 

Jesus leaving the Monastario

A somewhat unstable Jesus riding to the Plaza

 I rushed in to take a picture, telling Karen I would meet her back on the pavement, but by the time I had got my shot, I was being swept away by a sea of people shaking their palms and calling out 'Gloria'!  It was like being caught up in a tsunami and there was no way I could return as everyone was by now moving along the road with Jesus on the way to the Plaza.  Hey ho, thought I, the motto of the trip is 'go with the flow' so off I flowed with about 10,000 people and joined in with every 'Gloria' and 'Que Vive' that was chanted along the way.  What I didn't realise was that once started there was no going back - the police had to join hands and make a human barricade against the pushing, seething mass that included me with my face pressed up into someone's neck and god-knows-what pressing into my back.  My flip-flops got trodden on as did my toes and within a short time, my hair had come loose as had all the buttons down my shirt.  There was no room for me to even move my arm to do them up!  We edged our way along the streets sometimes being showered by rose petals from the windows above us and although it was quite frightening to think what might happen if someone had tripped or fainted, it was, I suppose, quite fun and an extraordinary experience.   My humour did fail me once or twice as I got a palm up my nose or in my ear and after an hour and a half, I had definitely had enough.  Eventually we all spewed into the Plaza amidst an enormous rustle and shake of all the palms and thank God, it was over.    No one else from my house was around so I staggered back home just in time for dinner - exactly 12 hours after I had left in the morning.  I was in bed by 7.30, asleep by 8 and didn't wake until 6 this morning - a record.

Police cordon for the human tsunami or 'moshpit' as it is known! 

That was Day 1 of Semana Santa - what next I ask myself.  

Today [Monday], as normal - went to Ancianas this morning - it really is my favourite placement as they are sooooo appreciative and love it when I dance with them and generally make a loco of myself.  I dont even mind chopping the veggies - better than having little children climbing all over me, that's for sure.  Went to the plaza to see this evening's procession - a small version of the enormous edifice that they carry on Easter Sunday.

 

Monday night's procession

There is a party on Wednesday night which goes on till 2 or 3a.m. but I am going to pass on that one, chicha or no chicha. [Since recovering from Sunday's ordeal, I have decided that I will be joining in the Wednesday night celebrations.!] Unfortunately, we have just had a dreadful thunder storm and pouring rain which will have washed away all the wonderful flower carpets laid in the Plaza for tonight's [Tuesday] procession. We were going to watch but it is still tipping down so have decided to catch up with home chores.

Love to all - only another 4 days to go until Brazil.  Not sure if anyone will want to know about that, so might not keep on blogging.  Let me know.