Religion in Spain and Madrid
As a student I occasionally attended Catholic mass in Madrid, occasionally in the almost never sense of the word. That was in the years from 1986 through 1990. I didn't see many people my age in church. A quick google search really didn't inform me much at all. Depending on the source, the percentage of spaniards who consider themselves to be Catholic varies greatly with the highest statistic I found being 95%. Other sources were much lower and only 11% or 12% attend mass regularly. But the traditions associated with Semana Santa (Holy Week) persist.
Holy Week Traditions in Madrid
All over the country processions are held in which relics are brought out of the churches and cathedrals and carried dutifully along planned routes for hours. To say this is a labor of love would be an understatement. These artifacts they carry are enormous and quite heavy. The planning and practice that goes into this is remarkable. In Madrid alone there are something like 16 processions throughout the nine days leading up to Easter and then on Easter there is a Resurrection Drum Festival in the Plaza Mayor. To keep this short, I will just say that several of the processions pass through the Puerta del Sol and usually they pass through there sometime between 7:45 and 10:30 PM.
Holy Week Processional Costumes
The costumes they wear are maybe a little jarring to Americans. But they are the traditional religious costumes used for this purpose throughout history. The hooded vestments date back to the time of the Spanish Inquisition (started in the late 15th century and lasted more than 350 years). The costumes are what the punished people had to wear. I really don't know much more about this. But if you find it intriguing, I invite you to do the research. I only share it here because tourists might be a bit taken aback. I know I was a bit shocked. And years later my family was a more than a little curious when we traveled to Spain over our children's spring break (it coincided with Easter week that year). We were in Santander to visit old friends. As we made our way to see them, we saw the processions. We stopped to watch briefly and I took that opportunity to explain the little I knew. The processions are not the only element you can experience in Spain during Holy Week. There are also various foods that are served especially at this time of year.
Spanish Foods to Look for During Semana Santa
During Easter Week, there are several foods that are eaten traditionally. These foods are eaten at other times during the year. But during this period, they are available in restaurants around Madrid and other cities.
Torrijas
Perhaps the most popular thing to eat is a dessert called torrijas. Think slices of day old loaves of bread soaked in a mixture of milk, eggs, and vanilla, then fried and sprinkled with cinnamon and sugar or honey. Some will refer to them as Spanish French Toast. Honestly, it's more special than that; usually very rich. And they can vary a bit from place to place. Recently we had a version that was very thick, dense, and custardy, dusted with cinnamon and drizzled with honey, served with a generous portion of rich vanilla ice cream. It was absolutely delicious, like bread pudding on steroids. I read somewhere that this is traditional during Semana Santa because they needed a way to use up the left over bread from lent when people couldn't eat meat. It was tasty and filling. I'm sure there's more to it than that. No matter when you visit Spain, you're sure to find this treat on dessert menus. So, give it a try. You won't be disappointed!
Bacalao (Salt Cod)
Then there are the salt cod dishes. Maybe the most popular are the buñuelos de bacalao (salt cod fritters, pictured in the center above), soldaditos de pavía (not pictured but similar to the salt cod fritters), and the potaje (a stew with salt cod, garbanzos, and spinach). Remember, in Spain it's typical to eat the main meal of the day around 2PM or so. You might want to fast a little earlier in the day or have a lighter breakfast to have room for all of the delicious food at lunch time.
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