PILGRIMS GATHER AT RIVER CROSSING DURING ANNUAL PILGRIMAGE TO SHRINE OF EL ROCIO, 2003-06-04 (photo)

Pilgrims from the Rociera de Sanlucar brotherhood gather at the Guadalquivir river crossing as they head to the shrine of El Rocio, during the annual pilgrimage in which hundreds of thousands of devotees of the Virgen del Rocio converge at the village of Almonte, June 4, 2003. Every spring, in the biggest romeria, or pilgrimage, in Spain, the devotees of the Virgen del Rocio take part in the celebration which combines religious fervor and festive colour as pilgrims make their way to the shrine on horseback or in brightly decorated carriages, in multi-coloured caravans that wind across the Andalusian countryside. REUTERS/Anton Meres PH/AS