Celebrating Christmas and New Year in Spain

Christmas is celebrated with great zeal all over the world. It is the most wonderful time of the year where Spain is lit up with lights, Christmas celebrations happening all over the country, markets full of decoration items and Christmas gifts. Celebrate Christmas and New Year this year with holiday villa to rent in Spain.

 Rent a luxury holiday villa in Marbella and celebrate sparkling Christmas and New Year in style in Spain. Spanish people have their own traditions and customs of celebrating Christmas and New Year. The streets are filled with people of all ages singing songs, honking horns, and playing music.

Here are the unique Spanish traditions that show that how Spanish people celebrate Christmas and New Year-

1.       Christmas Meal is the biggest feast of the season. Spanish people enjoyed this meal on Christmas Eve. Pavo Trufado de Navidad which is a turkey dish stuffed with truffles is a popular dish of the dinner. Pularda asad which is a roasted hen is also common during the Christmas dinner. In addition to these, many people like to have fish stew soup, hams, pates, and other sea food items.

2.       Traditional sweets namely marzipan, made up of almonds and sugar and turron, made up of honey and toasted almonds) and 'polvorones' (made of flour, butter and sugar) are the popular dishes served as desserts at the Christmas dinner.

3.       One of the old traditions celebrated is El Dia de Santa Lucia, where a blind would sing Christmas carols on the streets in the night. Spanish people believe in old saying - 'Esta noche es Noche-Buena, Y no Es noche de dormir' which means 'Tonight is the good night and it is not meant for sleeping!' They do not sleep; they keep on wandering on the streets with torches and playing drums and guitars. Few people visit church after having Christmas dinner which is also known as misa de gallo; midnight mass in Spain.

  

 4.       The biggest lottery in the world is the Spanish Christmas Lottery, El Gordo which means the fat one. The lottery pays out more than 2 billion euros each year. This has been started in the year 1812 in the Spain. Everyone participate in this lottery. Every year, entire town purchase large number of tickets and won.

5.       A special cake, Kings’ Cake is a Christmas staple, called Roscon is eaten at Epiphany. The cake is made up of sweet brioche stuffed with cream and topped with candied fruit. Its crown shape is taken from the crowns worn by the three wise men.

6.       The tradition of celebrating New Year in Spain is called Nochevieja or The Old Night where Spanish people eat 12 grapes one by one, with the 12 strokes of the clock in the midnight on 31^st December. It is believed that eating grapes brig good luck and prosperity in the New Year. On this day, families have scrumptious dinner together and after that they have 12 grapes.