SEMANA SANTA
Easter is considered the most important holiday in Spain. It is a great annual occasion that reflects the rich heritage and culture of the different regions. Known as «Semana Santa» in Spanish, it is an opportunity for Spaniards to party. The celebrations begin with the «Domingo de Ramos», or Palm Sunday, and end with the «Lunes de Pascua», or Easter Monday. Easter is considered a religious holiday by the people of Spain, which commemorates the resurrection of Jesus with great fanfare and in the most contagious gaiety. Processions are held in the country, where people carry large branches of palm trees or olive trees that have been blessed in the church.
Corpus Christi is the first ritual performed in Spain at Easter. In this ritual, the streets present themselves as the stage where religious passion and devotion will be played and displayed. The people, dressed as members of the old brotherhoods, take to the streets and cross various cities.
Serious and austere, Easter Week in Bilbao was celebrated for the first time in 1554, when the arrival of a splinter from the cross of Christ led to the foundation of the first fraternity, that of the True Cross. Today, the Passion of Bilbao consists of a total of thirteen processions in which more than 3000 brothers participate each year.
