Moving The Statue in Moron de la Frontera

These people walk in front of the statue of Jesus that is housed in his home church throughout the year, until he comes out, is carried to the Cathedral and back at Easter time. I know the outfits seem weird to us, but remember, Spain had this ritual dress LONG before the KKK thought to steal it from them. So these gentlemen, and children dressed the same, precede the statue.

See those young men with the white bandanas on their heads? They actually carry this puppy on their backs! And it is heavy, so they rotate positions. And they work out on the off season to prepare. It is hard work, and a privilege to be able to do this.

And here is the statue! This gentleman in the suit is guiding the men under the it, (see their white feet?) to turn the corner. They can't see, and they are carrying this heavy thing. I was amazed.

And finally, the band. I am a sucker for marching bands, they make me cry. So between the statue, the men that carried and look so tired, and the band, I was pretty weepy.

Isn't she cute? A drummer.

Bebes

"Hola, soy de los Estados Unidos and estoy estudiando espanol aqui. Puedo hacer una photo de su bebe?" " SI"   Big smile. (Hello, I am from the United States and I am studying Spanish here, can I take a picture of your baby?" "Yes") BTW in South America one takes a photo, tocar una photo, but in Spain, they make photos, hacer una photo. So these are some of the kids I saw when I went to Moron de la Frontera, on Palm Sunday, today, and watched the statue of Jesus travel from his home church Iglesia de Maria Auxiliadora, to the Cathedral, or el tiemplo.

Nerja Spain

On my way to Granada for a weekend retreat where I gave a presentation on partent/child communication, I stopped in Nerja, an old favorite of our family. It reminded me of why Nerja is so popular; beach on one side, mountains on the other. No high rise hotels either. But it was still full of tourists, and still wonderful to remember.

This is the view looking toward the mountains.

This is the view from the Balcon de Europa looking South.

The Balcon de Europa.

And this is the view looking North.

Another look South.

East from the Balcon.

Dicso where I parked my scooter and went in to party the previous night.

That guy is looking at a sketch book. How often do you see that?

View from further down the beach.

So I ate a tortilla on bread, had a cup of coffee con leche, and headed to Granada.

Viento in Spain (wind?)

The Rain in Spain

It's been raining all week, and today it was thunderstorms, with a base wide warning via loud speaker that lightening was a danger within five nautical miles of the base. I had plans for a hike, but stayed home and finished reading "Gone Girl" I give it a 5. Here is my life over the past several days in one second blurbs. Pretty self explanatory. Weather, exercise, and at one point I went shopping.

Hasta Luego

Singers in Cadiz

The deal with Carnival in Cadiz, is that people dress up, of course, but it is also a time to make fun of public figures with whom you disagree. So much of the singing is irreverent and sarcastic. The streets were empty when we arrived, and as we started to leave they became PACKED, with hundreds of people arriving. Here is just a taste of the fun, which I didn't totally understand. There is a widely attended competition, and winning is a big deal.

Potato Chips!

Signe and her husband went to Moron, 17 KM, with me last night to help me buy a Spanish pre paid phone that I could send to BBB. Now when he gets off the plane in Madrid, he can call me because my number is in his contacts. You can call me too when you get to Spain.
722-416-103. You can call me from the States too if you want, or buy a new car, they cost about the same.

Anyway, how does one repay the kindness I am receiving here? These people gave up a Friday night to help me.

Oh for Pete's Sake!

Rachel's (who works with Signe and Pastori) parents own this potato chip stand. They slice fresh potatoes and fry them in the best olive oil in the world, (did I mention that I am in the middle of thousands of acres of olive trees?) then remove all the calories and sell them to me!!

Rachel (rhymes with what the hell) is just as cute as they are.

Thanks Signe and Alexandro.