Wow! So in the last several weeks, we have been to a festival in downtown Rota, had our first guests, bought a car, FINALLY got our household goods, and adventured out on a few day trips in the area.
In addition, there has been life---a middle school dance and big birthday for Boy 2, a visit home from college for Boy 1 (I never thought that would happen when we lived in Cuba and he shipped off to college in Madrid!), our fifth official anniversary of living overseas, a field trip to a national park with the entire sixth grade class, and countless dinners and celebrations with several friends, including our new Spanish neighbors.
In the meanwhile. . . I've slipped with keeping up with writing and have a lot of catching up to do. I have a few half-written posts and others that are still simmering in my head, so hopefully I will catch up this holiday weekend.
*****
Every town in our area has its own special day, and Rota's is October 7. Festivities leading up to that day center on the Patron Saint of Rota, Our Lady of the Rosary (or Nuestra Señora del Rosario). During most of the year, her larger-than-life statue in inside of la Parroquia de Nuestra Señora de la O, or the Church of Our Lady of the O. The church was built in the 16th century and stands next to the Castle of the Moon in the center of downtown Rota. The Lady is lifelike, standing on a large silver platform. The size of the statue (and what she stands on) is important, because one of the highlights of the festivities is a parade in which many men carry the huge statue around town, music playing.
We read about the celebration online and knew something big was going on when we could hear music from our house and saw many women running to celebrate:
As we got closer to the church, you could feel the excitement in the air. We lined in front of the church and were not disappointed. Musicians played and the crowd grew. What was going to happen next? Even our youngest who has become, shall we say, less impressed with much of anything in his ripe old middle school school age, loved the music and climbed on top of the grandstand with me to see what would happen next.
In addition, there has been life---a middle school dance and big birthday for Boy 2, a visit home from college for Boy 1 (I never thought that would happen when we lived in Cuba and he shipped off to college in Madrid!), our fifth official anniversary of living overseas, a field trip to a national park with the entire sixth grade class, and countless dinners and celebrations with several friends, including our new Spanish neighbors.
In the meanwhile. . . I've slipped with keeping up with writing and have a lot of catching up to do. I have a few half-written posts and others that are still simmering in my head, so hopefully I will catch up this holiday weekend.
*****
Every town in our area has its own special day, and Rota's is October 7. Festivities leading up to that day center on the Patron Saint of Rota, Our Lady of the Rosary (or Nuestra Señora del Rosario). During most of the year, her larger-than-life statue in inside of la Parroquia de Nuestra Señora de la O, or the Church of Our Lady of the O. The church was built in the 16th century and stands next to the Castle of the Moon in the center of downtown Rota. The Lady is lifelike, standing on a large silver platform. The size of the statue (and what she stands on) is important, because one of the highlights of the festivities is a parade in which many men carry the huge statue around town, music playing.
We read about the celebration online and knew something big was going on when we could hear music from our house and saw many women running to celebrate:
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| Ladies running in heels, wearing mantillas, silver staff in one hand, cigarette in the other |
Suddenly music stopped and church bells clanged loudly, announcing the presentation of the Lady, carried by several men on their backs out of the church and through the streets of downtown Rota.
The music and parade continued well into the night---I'm not sure how many miles they carried her, but it lasted for hours.
The procession, the formalities, the ceremony all reminded me of several things. The anticipation of the crowd which grew with the music reminded me of my childhood and young adult years, growing up near New Orleans and never losing my excitement for Mardi Gras. In that same city, a visit to St. Louis Cathedral in Jackson Square is a ritual I never miss. Although I did not grow up Catholic, I have spent a bit of time in Mexico as a tourist and as a student. In high school, I saw a woman on bloody knees, one small child holding each hand, shuffling to the Basilica in Mexico City where the Virgin of Guadalupe is housed to show her devotion. (I have since always had a few pictures of the Virgin around the house---I love the story of her humble origins because it symbolizes the country I love so much). In college, I attended mariachi mass in an incense-filled historical church in Cuernavaca. I can't smell incense now without thinking about that experience. My love of Mexico in intertwined with my fascination with Mexican-Catholic culture, and seeing devout Catholics carrying Our Lady of the Rosary on their backs was a very emotional experience. It's hard to explain in words the pure emotion I feel when I saw the procession. Even though it's not my faith, I guess it's something about that deep a devotion really affects me. I shed a little tear watching her disappear around the corner, then sat down with friends (and a tinto de verano) to celebrate our new town's own special day.
We got home near midnight, and the best surprise was the firework show we could see perfectly from our new rooftop patio. It was a perfect ending for our first Rota Day celebration, and something I am already looking forward to celebrating next year.
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