And so far on this newscast - we've told you all about the secular activities happening this weekend, from Cross Country to Cancun, but, lest we forget, Easter is a religious observance.
And nowhere is that more celebrated than in Benque Viejo where there is an annual, elaborate, re-enactment of Christ's crucifixion.
In 2008 Jacqueline Godwin told us what it was about; we reprise this story from our archive:…
For the past 15 years in Benque Viejo – they've been spending their Good Friday's re-enacting the crucifixion of Christ. With instruction from the scripture and a keen eye for detail, they've made it into a compelling show and this year NICH videotaped it all. It took hours, but here's a very compressed version.
Jacqueline Godwin Reporting,
These aren't the streets of Jerusalem, but on this wet day it looked real enough when Jesus was taken to see Pontius Pilate who put him on trial with the mob calling for crucifixion.
[Video Footage]
‘Crucify him,' just creating the defining event of the past 2000 years in the west and played out in rich and fastidious detail on the streets of Benque Viejo. On the streets of a small western town but ready for any stage. As you can see from the emotional performance of this Mexican actress playing Mother Mary. Even the extras got in on it. Witness this man playing the part of Simon of Sirine, helping Jesus along.
And like the Jesus in the Bible, he stumbled and tumbled on the path to Calvary or Mount Carmel in this case and ended with a performance even Mel Gibson would applaud.
[Video Footage of Actor on Cross]
And from the non-fictional renactment of the crucifixion at noon to a procession through the streets in the evening. David Ruiz coordinated it all.
David Ruiz, Coordinator
"I believe it is a major attraction. We've kind of gotten to be good at it after a while and we start rehearsing early in the year and since many of the people play the same roles it has become an easier task. But none the less, I believe it is time for the younger people to take it on their own and get more involved so that this tradition can become a major attraction and also become better.
It is a lot of work and I think it is time for the younger people to start taking the leadership in all of this with us. We need the break.
Something that's been also happening over the last six years is the tradition of building sawdust carpets on the streets where the major procession will past at 6 and we see major organization on the people's part, the neighbors that come together and dye their sawdust and make the designs and lay it out and hopefully the rain will hold off so that we can see these beautiful works of art."
And as per tradition, the re-enactment will also be staged tomorrow with the crucifixion in the morning and the procession in the late afternoon.
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