Habelas Hainas

Habelas Hainas is a story about Vikings, medieval warriors, forgotten monasteries inhabited by Cistercians monks, sirens and sailors. It is a story about aloitadores, those brave men and women who stage spectacular battles with wild horses in order to cut their manes and the fishermen who capture strange sea creatures like those featuring two eyes, three hearts and four pairs of arms. It’s also a story that embraces legends, myths, folktales, history and, of course, traditions. It’s the everyday of a region and its landscapes that possess the ability to transport you through time – dolmens, castros that belong to the Celtic culture, graves, castles, enchanting forests, mysterious rivers, hidden beaches, magic islands… This is a story about life and death and everything that navigates around these two terms. Faith, religion, beliefs, incredulity, paganism, witchcraft, mystery, superstition… It’s the representation of a place where everything, even the supernatural, can be possible. As the popular saying goes: ‘Eu non creo nas meigas, mais habelas, hainas’ (I don´t believe in witches, but they exist). In the end, this is an enigmatic and poetic tale of a marvellous tiny land where the real turns magical and the magical becomes real. Reality and fiction seem to have merged together to form a new perspective. Or perhaps it is simply a very personal account of my home, Galicia, and its people.