It’s not really planned, but we seem to find ourselves somewhere interesting during Easter every year. It started with Belgium and the Ronde… and then there was Spain’s Santa Semana and Aleluya de Toros.
This year we were in at Mission Dolores on Good Friday to walk the Mission and see the Santo Entierro Procession.
Surprise, surprise, the Mission District in San Francisco is named such because the community grew around the Mission San Francisco de Asís (a.k.a. Mission Dolores). This is the oldest surviving structure in the city and number 6 of the 21 Missions built in California (1776). It is a very important and vibrant part of the community and is still very much active.
The cemetery itself is a walk through SF history. Here are buried many of San Francisco’s early citizens, as well as Luis Antonio Argüello, Don Francisco de Haro, three Vigilantes victims, and Jocbocme and Poylemja — the only Ohlone who have a headstone. In searching for information about these two, I found lots of details about the Mission Mural .
On Good Friday, the Mission and Basilica (big cream coloured building next to the Spanish Mission) close just after lunch for prayer and preparation of both the Liturgy of Good Friday and Santo Entierro procession. The liturgy provides time to think about the crucifixion of Christ and the procession to and from Dolores Park is rather mournful… very reminiscent of old fashioned funeral processions from New Orleans.
There are no pictures or video of the procession below because I *ahem* filled my memory cards on Niña’s earlier Theatre Camp “Broadway” show.
