Postcard 33 features "Cigarróns", Verín's best known Carnival figures.
"Cigarróns"
wear trousers with pompoms, white tights, a jacket, a tie, agirdle and a thick
belt with hanging bells. The mask is made of wood and pictures of animals are
hand-painted in the front. At the back there is a piece of leather. The whole costume weighs 25 kilos
approximately, so you have to be very fit to wear it!
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| Cigarróns. Panoramio |
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| Cigarrones. Wikipedia |
Wearing this costume is very special and the feelings of wearing it can be seen in the awesome and moving video below by photographer Borys Martínez:
Verín is a small
city in the autonomous community of Galicia, Spain located in the southeast of
the province of Ourense. The population of the concello (municipality) is about
14,433. It is located 70 kilometers east of the provincial capital of Ourense
and 15 kilometers north of the Portuguese city of Chaves.
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| Ubicación de Verín. Wikipedia |
The Tâmega River
flows through the town. In the Middle Ages it was known as Santa María de Verín.
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| Verín. Josealimia.com |
Verín has one
major tourist sight, which is Monterrei Castle, a huge complex looming over the
rather non-descript urban area. There is a parador next to the castle.
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| Castelo de Monterrei. Galiciaunica.es |
Monterrei Castle
played an important role throughout the Portuguese-Spanish wars, having been
strategically built on the frontier for the purpose. It was more than a castle
since included within the perimeter were a monastery, a hospital and a small
town which was abandoned in the 19th century. The castle itself is more
impressive from afar than at closer look, but the view from the heights is
worth the drive up. At night it is lit up and you can see it for miles on clear
nights, even from the hills of Chaves in neighboring Portugal.
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| Castelo de Monterrei. Wikimedia Commons |
Verín and the
region of Monterrei are famous for the wine
and known as the land of water. There used to be quite a few thermal springs
with mineral-medicinal waters. Unfortunately, nowadays, there is only bottled
water taken from three springs: Cabreiroá,
Sousas and Fontenova.
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| Manantial Cabreiroá. Postal antigua. Todocolección |
In 2007, Verín and a neighbouring Portuguese town, Chaves, came together to form the Eurocity Chaves-Verín, with the river Tamega functioning as a natural corridor to join the 2 towns. It was a great initiative to bring together municipalities that, despite belonging to different states, share many cultural traditions.
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| Eurocity Chaves Verín |
Sources:
So happy to read about Verín in English, thanks!
ReplyDeleteThank you for disseminating such interesting information about Galicia. Greetings from Santiago de Compostela.
ReplyDeleteThank YOU!
ReplyDelete