The Joining of Two Paths: christmasing

here in basque country, we do Christmas a bit differently. depending on your family, you would either celebrate Olentzero on the 25th, Three Kings Day on January 6th, or BOTH. but no matter what you celebrate, there's loads of things to do. at first, i was a bit disappointed because it seemed to me that i was missing out on a lot of Christmas celebration-ing, but i was wrong. while there's not as much pre-Christmas hype here as there is in the States, they sure make up for it between December 24-January 6. during this time i don't think it's possible to be without something to do. we kept busy and have the pictures to prove it! enjoy!!

first, every year on Christmas Eve, my choir inaugurates the gigantic nativity area followed by caroling at the nursing home. here are some of the ladies in my soprano section as well as one of the lady's daughter. singing carols in Basque was fun, but i had a hard time keeping up - especially since we DIDN'T EVER PRACTICE. everyone else knows the carols by heart... i just had to learn fast. at least i had the words in front of me!

Then, on Christmas morning, Jonny and i opened all our presents that made their way over the pond to us. we were very excited and grateful, though we missed our families very much.

our new basque book from our student, Bixente!

after Christmas morning mass (with my choir), Jonny and i headed over to our friends' house to have Christmas lunch with them. it was awesome to be able to share Christmas with them. below is a picture of my good friend, Sarah, who has recently moved back to the States to prepare for her wedding in May.

Once we had satisfactorily celebrated Olentzero, we had to gear up for new years. every year in Zarautz, there is a 4.5km race. practically the whole town comes out to cheer on the runners. this year my student, Maialen and i decided to run it together. little did we know that several other of our students ran as well!

the flash threw them off! (from L to R: me, Mikel, Maialen, and Mikel's friend)

just when you think it's all over, IT'S NOT. don't forget about Three Kings day!! for many people, this is their gift-giving holiday. the night before 3Kings, there is always a HUGE parade. the three kings and all their 'servants' parade around the entire town, stop for a short theatrical performance with Herod half-way through, and then top it all off with a big presentation ceremony where each of the kings sing baby Jesus a song and present him with a present! this year it rained the whole time, but we made the best of it and scooped up as much candy as we could!!