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We had been contemplating our visit to see the Romeria de el Rocio for the last few weeks and couldn't decide on when to go. We had already managed to catch up with the Fuengirola Romeria who were making their way to El Rocio via Ronda and Seville. After their 300 mile journey they would join more than 100 other brotherhoods at the famous site near Huelva where they would pay their respects to the Paloma Blanca (the statue of the Virgen de El Rocio). We decided to go on the Saturday and left about 8.30am. The four hour journey took us past Gibraltar where we filled up with cheap diesel, around Jerez de la Frontera and Seville and into the Donana National Park.
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The tiny town of El Rocio is usually a sleepy little place but once a year, 50 days after Easter Sunday to be exact, it comes alive as more than a million people converge there. El Rocio is best described as a town from an old Western movie. There's no tarmac or concrete. The streets are of sand and the casitas (small houses) are arranged in rows and resemble the old saloons. On arrival you tie your horse to a wooden rail outside the bar. The casitas are all owned by the different brotherhoods from all over Spain and this is where they will spend their time at the Romeria.
The traffic heading into El Rocio was heavy by 1.30 when we arrived. The last few miles into the town took us around an hour. The Guardia Civil were out in force keeping the traffic flowing. At the point where the Romeria starts all traffic was diverted into the various car parks where a fee of around 55-75 Euros was being charged. Most of those staying for the week long Romeria were already camping in the woods. There was a faint sound of flamenco coming from every direction and large rockets were being launched from the main church every few minutes. The air was filled with dust kicked up from the sandy streets and there were horses everywhere. |
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We found the Plan de Aldea (Temporary Town Hall) where we pulled up and went to collect our press pass. After about 30 minutes of paperwork we walked out with a special vehicle press pass that gave us unrestricted access throughout the site; something that proved to be of little use later as there was no special car park for press and taking the vehicle into the main town would have been total stupidity. There was no way any vehicle other than hardy 4x4's could make it through the sand and they would struggle to push through the crowds. We opted to park on the edge of the woods near the campers and walked the half a mile into El Rocio.
It wouldn't matter how well we described the event here as no words could explain what it really felt like. There was a distinct lack of foreign tourists and 99% of people were dressed in their bold flamenco dresses. The men wore traditional suits with bolero hats. There were thousands riding horseback . The whole place was alive with music.
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All the different brotherhoods were making their way through the narrow, sandy streets, towards the main church of El Rocio. Their Virgen statue was either pushed by hand or drawn by oxen to the church where it would be blessed. They had already dragged this chariot half way across Spain. The brotherhoods had been on the road a week or more already and some had come from Barcelona, Canary Isles, Madrid, Seville and beyond. As each brotherhood arrived at the main church the Lord's Prayer was recited and the band played to announce their arrival. Chants of Viva La Blanca Paloma were followed by chants of "Viva".
Idealspain took the video camera right into the crowd.
We have seen many celebrations in Spain including massive Easter parades and communions but never before have we experienced such images of passion and devotion, all totally unspoilt by tourism and international modernism. This was pure Spain. The Romeria at El Rocio has remained virtually unchanged for centuries. One has to wonder what drives the Spanish to participate in such an event that must cost them considerably to attend, let alone the personal sacrifices they had made just to be a part of it.
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We spent the whole day immersed in the event. We took lunch at one of the casitas where we enjoyed pinchitos on garlic bread, accompanied by the biggest salad I have ever seen. It was the perfect location for watching the crowds parade past, each taking their turn to visit the church.
We had already decided not to stay for the climax of the Romeria. this was due to take place at 2am on Monday morning when more than a million people would crowd outside the main church to watch the Virgen de El Rocio be carried from her church and taken around the various casitas. We had seen video clips of it before and the scale of it cannot be comprehended. It would be impossible to move about with a video camera and most of the prime positions had been secured by Canal Sur for the last 10 years or so. We managed to keep busy until around 7pm. I had just over an hour of video and Sandra had managed to snap over 1,000 photos. The sun was just setting through the clouds of dust as we drove away at 8pm. There was no let up with the Spanish. There were more people pouring into the town, walking and on horseback. Horse drawn carriages also ferried people in on a ten minute interval and the police were frantically trying to keep the traffic flowing in and out. We set off in the direction of Seville where we would spend the night before spending Sunday morning in the city.
The Romeria would continue untill Tuesday when everyone made their way home again and El Rocio would return to its normal, tranquil state for another year. All in all this had been a life changing experience for me and had left images of Spain with me for life.
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See our video of the
Romeria de el Rocio
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Useful contacts for el Rocio
Oficina Plan Aldea - 959 442 020
Ayuntamiento de Almonte (Town Council) - 959 430 260
Tourist Office Almonte - 959 430 086
Emergencies - 112
Guardia Civil - 062 |
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