Semana Santa

Almost all Nicaraguans identify as Christians, with the divide being between Evangelicals and Catholics. The country is traditionally Catholic, so many traditions are based on Catholic Holidays. This week is the biggest holiday of the year-Semana Santa or Holy Week. Unlike the US where Easter is the big day celebrated by Christians, here it’s Jueves Santo and Viernes Santo, Holy Thursday and Good Friday. The whole country is on vacation the whole week, and it’s the time when Nicas actually go on vacation. I was in the bus station for the North in Managua on Wednesday and it was INSANE. I’ve never seen it so full of people(and I travel through there a lot).  If you can’t afford to visit relatives in other parts of the country, then you go swimming in the river or the pools that open for this week only. There are usually at least a few deaths all over the country because Nicas generally don’t know how to swim, and then some go swimming drunk.

In Yalagüina, we do lots of processions. On Friday, I walked around for two hours with a procession, Vías de las Cruces, visiting different spots in town marked as the various stations of the cross. A cross is carried by an altar server and two figures, one of Jesus carrying a cross and one of Mary. Later in the evening, we walked around for El Entierro, or the burying of Jesus, with a figure of Mary and Jesus’s tomb. Each day I’ve been in Yalagüina during Semana Santa, there has been at least one procession. Saturday night, there was a 3 hour mass from 9pm-12am(there was also a fiesta from 7-10pm). A 5am procession on Easter day, and a mass at 10am.

As with all holidays, specific food is prepared during Semana Santa. Tamales, either with beans inside or with nothing, dyed red or no, are abundant. Many families that don’t normally make them will make a big batch during the week and regalar or gift them to other families. Sopa de pescada(or sopa de torta pescado), fish soup is popular too. Since we live about 5 hours from the water, fish is not common here. But during Semana Santa, people come to sell fish and we buy it up. Fish soup is milk-based and has the full fish in it, bones, skin, eyes, and all. Torta de pescado is just ground up fish and bread made into a patty that is then fried and put in soup with veggies. Almibar is a dessert made from whatever fruit is available. Here we have lots of mangoes and jocotes(small, apple like fruits). You boil the fruits until they are pretty soft, cut them up a bit so they absorb the sugar, and then add a lot of sugar or dulce(cane sugar), cinnamon, and some other kind of spice(not always necessary). It creates a syrup and saturates all the fruit. Really sweet and very tasty(I’ve also heard it called jalea which just means jelly).

While most people get to enjoy Semana Santa and rest, I noticed that still the amas de casa(literally “souls of the house) or mothers were still working the most, making all the special food for the family, making special arrangements for relatives in town, etc. Women here never really catch a break(as they don’t in the US, either. Thanks Mom for everything). Most men don’t make their own food or do their own laundry. That sounds reasonable for the States, but here, remember everything requires a lot more effort. So if you are religious or like sending out good energy, try to think of the amas de casa and the working mothers once in a while and send some good energy their way. They really are the backbone of this country.