Easter in Córdoba
Easter Week in Cordoba means the public manifestation of the people's religious faith. In the "Cofradías", (Religious associations) we find the combination of different factors, cultural, artistic, historic, musical, anthropologic, etc, that have no meaning without the celebration of the mystery of the Passion of Jesus, death and resurrection. All these celebrations are organized around the different religious processions. Some of the "Cofradías" have a history that goes back centuries, founded to fill in social needs of certain areas or professional collectives. Other associations have been created around the devotion to images or some parish churches .
Those who go to spend Easter in Cordoba for the first time, will be able to differentiate two types of religious marches, the noisy ones and the silent ones. Although it is easy to differentiate between both of them, the first type wears bright colours and plays joyful music and the second type has more of a funeral air; but there are more subtle differences that keep evolving with time.
In the "Cofradías", you can find people of all ages and all social status; That is why every year the whole town joins in this celebration. Easter in Cordoba is a Festivity that all local people are proud off, and the "Cofradía" of each area is considered a small "embassy" marching all round the city.
One of the biggest characteristic of Easter in Cordoba is that it passes through the Old part of the city, that is, the Historic Center of Cordoba, part of which has been declared World Heritage Site. Cordoba is, an all year round, tourists destination for many people, but at Easter it becomes even more visited, since it offers, along with its monuments, a unique visual show.
The Official Course
The Official course at Cordoba consists of an itinerary that every Easter procession has to follow every day during the Easter week. The route itself has been changed through the years. Nowadays it only goes through a street, "Claudio Marcelo", and a square, "Las Tendillas". At both places there are boxes and chairs for people to watch the different processions, after paying a fee, established by the "Cofradías" Association.
Although this route is not the nicest for the processions, it is the one where they are watched by the biggest amount of people. It is also where the local Television cameras are situated to broadcast the processions in Cordoba.
Authorities Box
The "Authorities Box" is placed at the "Tendillas" square. It is presided by a Municipal Authority and an Ecclesiastic Authority, and also those who have an institutional job and have been invited.
Timetables control
The Official course is what the "Cofradías" Association uses to control the timetables to which every procession has to accommodate. This fact is of special importance, since a delayed procession, not only affects the people watching, but can also affect other processions that have to pass next, and it can naturally affect the city traffic too. If you wish to see these processions at the Official course, the tickets sellers will inform you of the seats that have not yet been occupied. To watch them from a box is more complicated.
If you finally decide to see the processions in the official race, go to one of the ticket sellers who will inform you of the seats that are left free, as getting a box is a more difficult task.
