Christmas Around the World - Spain

"Felices Pascuas" (fay-LEE-ses Pahs-koo-ahs) from Spain!

At the beginning of the holiday season, some people dress in costumes and
dance to celebrate. The Nativity scene is also important to them. They
also celebrate with fireworks. We blow painted pictures to represent the
fireworks.

People in Spain do not eat all day until after midnight on Christmas Eve.
First, they go to church for a special service to welcome Christmas Day.

The Three Kings are the gift givers. They arrive on January 6th because
that's when the people believe the wise men gave gifts to Jesus. The
children fill their shoes with straw and carrots and leave them by a
windowsill or under their beds for the camels of the Three Kings. In the
morning, the straw and carrots are gone and presents are left in their
shoes.

Another tradition in Spain is the Urn of Fate. Everyone writes his/her
name on a piece of paper. They put the paper in an urn. Someone draws
out names two at a time. Each pair is supposed to be best friends in the
new year. We had fun doing this in class.

We also learned that many people in Spain enjoy eating sponge cake as a
holiday snack. This was the first time many of us had ever tried sponge
cake. Do you think we liked it?