Easter is a special time for us Christians. And even more so in the Catholic parts of Europe. We had the privilege of being near Óbidos on Good Friday, when a procession takes place between the different churches in Óbidos. They bring Jesus body and Virgin Mary and the participants enact different figures from the time from Roman soldiers to mourning Jewish women. All of Óbidos street lights are turned off, so the whole town is in darkness, just lit by the candles from the processions.
And Óbidos itself is of course a very special town. I told about it in my previous post. A settlement existed already before Roman time and its location was due to the lagoon that made it possible for shipping to find a safe harbour below the walls of Óbidos. The Moors fortified the town and built the first castle and after the Christian reconquest the castle and fortifications were much enhanced.
Óbidos is a magnet for tourists at any time with its well preserved medieval town and castle, but around Easter it is a magnet for thousands more arriving for the Good Friday procession. Jennifer and I stayed with our friends just outside Óbidos and could visit a couple of times. Although it was lovely to be part of the Easter procession, the crowds made it more difficult to capture any meaningful photos.
The photos above are all from a daytime visit during Easter (apart from the very first one). The atmosphere was entirely different during our evening visit on Good Friday. All lights were turned off and only candles and torches illuminated the town.
