To undestand the novelty behind these tracks (oops, fixed link), you have to have been in Spain on Holy Week, watching the parades. Masses of people come out, crowding the sidewalks and palm-hung balconies. The hooded marchers carry candles that drip hot wax onto the pavement, miles of which they cover painfully in bare feet. The high pitched horns and marching drums add to the solemnity, urgency, somber mood of the event. Herds of sweaty young men with towels wrapped over their heads pile under the giant floats of the virgin Mary and crucified Jesus. It's been a long time since I witnessed the Semana Santa processions, but they impression they made on me still lingers: the sense of community, unity in mourning, the witnessing a passion unrivalled today.

(A few minutes later) Hmm, Micah, meet the internet; Internet, this is Micah. I suppose it shouldn't come as a surprise that there are websites/forums online for discussing things related to Semana Santa. These include some pretty graphic pictures of the floats. The forums are great, it's a mixture of topics like whether a certain type of candle should be used on a float (in moderation, because the view of the Virgin's profile should not be obscured), rumors that a certain brotherhood entirely replaced their statue of the Virgin rather than simply restoring it, and whether a certain Byzantine-style float is a highlight of the Holy Week in Seville; cultured posts like these, but the language is street-Spanish mixed with internet shorthand. Ah, nostalgia.