Before our STINT Briefing in August it never occurred to me that I would be spending Christmas in Venezuela..away from my family. I knew I wouldn't be home for a year, but somehow I never put the two together. After the initial shock I decided to set the thought aside and not dwell on it until the holidays arrived. This did not take long. We got to Venezuela at the end of September and before Halloween had even arrived there were Christmas decorations in most of the stores. If it wasn't clear then, it definitely is now: Venezuelans love Christmas. They love celebrating, decorating, eating and dancing. There is an energy that builds from the beginning of October all the way up to New Year's Eve!
Here are some of the highlights of Christmas in Venezuela:
"Gaitas"-popular type of Venezuelan Christmas music . Anytime I was with a student and some gaitas came on they would tell me and get so excited. They are played everywhere from church to the buses to choir concerts. They are very lively and enjoyable.
Fireworks-every night in December. Fireworks are a big part of celebrating the holidays here. Anyone can buy them and set them off so they can be heard at all hours all over the city. It should also be noted that fireworks are usually accompanied by car alarms going off. It was a noisy month in Venezuela.
Christmas Eve-the major night for celebrating Christmas. For many Venezuelans, Christmas Eve is the big day. The whole family stays up until midnight and they celebrate the birth of Jesus with lots of food, music and fireworks late into the night. My team spent Christmas Eve at our Campus Director's house with his family.
"Pan de jamón"- ham bread. This is a popular Venezuelan Christmas dish made by rolling ham, raisins and olives in bread and baking it. It is usually ordered from the local bakery and picked up the day you need it.
"Hallacas"- a mix of cornmeal, meat, olives, raisins and capers, wrapped in plantain leaves and steamed or boiled. These are another very popular Venezuelan Christmas dish. They take a long time to make and can either be bought or made at home.
It was really fun to be able to celebrate Christmas in Venezuela. I did miss my family but I was blessed with a family here to celebrate with. My team and I were able to take part in Venezuelan traditions as well as share our own traditions from home.
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