Christmas is just around the corner.
Read away if you want to find out more about how Christmas looks like in Romania!
Read away if you want to find out more about how Christmas looks like in Romania!
Christmas is my
favorite holiday.
Ever.
I love everything about
it. I love the snow, the warm fluffly sweaters, the carols, the decorations and
I just love it how people get together from far away distances to spend time
with their families.
My favorite memories
from childhood are those that involved me and my sister, in our pajamas, under
the blanket, eating my mom’s cookies and watching Christmas movies that we’ve
seen a million times before.
Or my grandparents’
countryside house, with a glass of hot wine in our hands, listening to their
stories from the old days.
A big part of Christmas
when I was a kid was going around my grandparents’ village, in the first hours
of the Christmas day, “colindând”
- singing carols from house to house and people giving us “colaci” and “nuci”.
I liked it how the
village seemed sound asleep, the snow would crack under our boats and the cold
seemed almost blissful. The voices of the kids would echo in the valley while
the sun was waking up and the world seemed at ease with everything.
I love
Christmas because it reminds me of a time without worrying, when time was
passing without hurrying.
Growing up, I realized
that Christmas opens the door to an entire folkloric universe of meanings that
overcomes the borders of today’s consumerist approach to the holiday.
In Romania, Christmas
and mid-winter celebrations last from 20th December to 7th January.
The 20th is
when people celebrate St. Ignatius's Day. The Christmas celebrations begin on
“Ajunul Craciunului - Christmas Eve, 24th, with the decoration of the Christmas
Tree.
Still present in some
parts of Romania, the dance of the goat is part of the Christmas celebration.
The goat is known as 'Capra' and it jumps and dances around getting up to lots
of mischief.
Traditional Romanian Christmas foods include
roast gammon and pork chops, 'ciorba de perisoare' which is a slightly sour
vegetable soup made with fermented bran and pork meatballs; 'Sarmale' - cabbage
leaves stuffed with ground pork and served with polenta; 'Cozonac' - a rich
fruit bread.
In Romania Santa Claus is known as 'Moş Crăciun'
and Merry Christmas is 'Crặciun Fericit'.