Easter Sunday

The church acrros the street from our apartment is a very busy church, it seems there is always something going on especially during holy week. This was taking place Easter unday afternoon and reminded me of the CWL suppers. Lots of food, lots of people and even live music. The first picture is of the band that was providing the entertainment.


This is part of the crowd.

And this is where they got their food.

All during the week before easter, all the altars and statues in the churches were covered with purple cloth, something I cn vaguely remeber happening when I was a child. I knew that they woudl be all uncovered Easter unday morning so I did about a 10 block walk to 6 churches and took photos of the altars and the abundance of flowers that adorned then. Mass was happening in some of them so I could not get too close so just click on them to enlarge them to get more detail.

Good Friday in Oaxaca

That day was yesterday and it started out very quiet, as Nancy and I were laying in bed, not hearing the usual sounds we hear each morning. We had to check it out and our street was very quiet also, so we had our breakfast and about 9:00 AM headed out to find out what had happened to our uusally very busy and noisy city.

It did not take long for it to come to life a bit as we started witnessing small processions, with a platform carrying the figure of Christ or Mary or both, carried by men or women on their shoulders. They started in various small churches in Oaxaca and all finishing at La Solidad, the mother church in Oaxaca. All very quiet and low keyed. This continued for most of the day but all during the day we were hearing about a huge procession, called the Procession de Silencio, or in english, the procession of silence. It was to pass right by our apartment. We heard that it was to start at 5:00 PM and then at 6:00PM. We went into our apartment for happy hour and supper and came out again at 7:00 and still no procession but people were starting to line the street. Finally at 8:00 we saw it coming and the following 15 photos show what it was all about. All the platforms come from various churches in Oaxaca, just as earlier in the day but now they were much more grand than the earlier ones. Again, carried by men and women on their shoulders, in bare feet and mostly hooded and wearing conical hats.

And as the name implies, it was silent only the sound of a drum, to add to the mysticism of it all. The streets were lined with 100s of people but no sound, just silence. It was wonderful but a bit spooky.

Besides the platforms there were maybe 200 meters of these banners, I am sure weighing 20kg each and carried on a sling around a persons waist.

Many thousands of visitors

It certainly is Easter in Oaxaca. The long weekend started Wednesday and people have been pouring into the city, not just gringos but Mexicans and their families. Last night it was difficult to walk down the street that we usually walk down to get to the center because of the masses of people.


And this is not one of them. Just an old man, resting in the plaza in front of the church across from our apartment. What is interesting is his shoes. Click on it and take a look.
Two nights ago we were walking home from the center and came upon this university band playing what we think was traditional Mexican music. It was very good and we stopped for a bit to listen. Then all of a sudden they started to leave the stage, playing a song that some of you will know from Cursillos those many long years ago. It was De Colores and sort of sent shivers up and down my spine.

As the festive season comes closer, more street vendors are selling their wares. This one is sweet stuff and we know it is sweet by the abundace of wasps swarming around.

We have new neighbors in our apartment. One of the people you recognize so the other two are are neighbors. Real sweet kids from Culican in the northern part of Mexico.

This was last night and shows a bit the crowds on a street that is generally much less busy.

There are many of these flower sellers around and they are amazing in that they can move around with those baskets on their heads. Up and down steps and through big crowds with no problems what so ever. A bunch of flowers cost $1.00

The university band that we showed in a photo up a couple is here again. This time they are on the street, playing their music and mobbed by followers as they once again head to the zocolo. Nancy and I were just standing on the street and almost got carried away with the crowd. It was past our bedtime and we wanted to go the other way.

A sunny warm afternoon in the park and so much junk for sale.

Just pretty dancers as part of the multitude of parades that are happening in Oaxaca at this time.

And more of the same parade.

A street side restaurant near our apartment. Busy from early morning till late night.

And another, special for this easter season and only a few meters away from the first one.

We took a chance on a new kind of fruit called Mowmai. We didnt like it so much so shared it with our new neighbors who think it is wonderful. It was expensive. What Nancy is holding is the huge seed from inside.

Besides mariachi music and andean music and traditional Mexican music, there is big band music. This one was playing in a large gazebo that is a permant structure in the Zocola and we understand big bands and symphony orchastras play there 3 or 4 times a week.

And when the musci is right, people get up and dance. Just like in Veracruz.

And here is the Andean band that we mentioned a couple of photos past. They were very good and Nancy bought a CD of theirs.

We have less than a week before we return to Seattle and after a couple of days there we return to Warner. The next few days are going to be very busy trying to keep up to the Easter celebrations.

Oaxaca

We finally got photos to upload on our old blog site, thanks Dennis, and we like it a whole lot better than the new one we used the last time.

Oaxaca has been very good to us. As mentioned before the weather is great, the past few days a bit warm, but last night was a cool change and this morning to go out and get our orange juice and rolls, I had to put a jacket on for the first time since we left Seattle It is now 10:30 AM and our jackets have come off.

Oaxaca is know for its' textiles and hand woven materials. Much of it is sold by sellers such as this first picture shows, in the central park and on the streets of Oaxaca.

We do like our apartment and these next two photos show a bit of what it is like. Come into our living room and sit on our comfy futon which seconds as my bed when I get snoring too loud and the second photo is the kitchen where we make a small breakfast mostly of coffee, juice and bread and in the evening Nancy makes a cena. A very light supper mostly of fruit and tortillas and sometimes meat or cheese or both. Our big meal is about 2 PM which we eat out. Most restaruants have a set lunch called the menu of the day which costs between $4 and $6 and consists of soup, a main course , desert and juice.

The place is swarming with parades and it seems most of them start about a block from our apartment. This one was a kids parade with about 800 kids and parents and 5 or 6 bands. Such fun they had.

One of the bands in the childrens parade.

Today is the third day of Semana Santa, the week before Easter, and there is preperation happening everywhere. The following photo is a shrine built in a library/restaurant.

This mural was on the wall of this building.

One afternoon when we were having coffee in a restaurant, we heard music coming from not far away so we went to investigate and there was dancing, lovely folk dancing from a village near by.

Another parade of children but this one had mostly handicapped children participating.

And another parade. We think the abundance of parades have to do with the coming of Easter and the next two photos show a parade from an indiginous village.

This is in front of the Cathdral on the Saturday before Palm Sunday. There were lots of intracate designs woven with palms. These were for sale.

The next four pictures show what was happening in the church courtyard, across the street from our apartment after one of the many Palm Sunday masses. The first is the priest, getting things organized.

This one is a band of young people.

The next is a louder band on stage, playing music that was most appealing to the many young people who were there.

And it got them singing and dancing and just having great fun. Nancy and I watched until the speaches started, first the priest and then the bishop but the young people hung in there and were most polite.