|
|
|
| |
SEND FLOWERS
IN ROMANIA - CHRISTMAS FLOWER GIFT
|
| Christmas
in Romania |
| |
Christmas Day
in Romania
is on the 25th of December. Romanians
celebrate Christmas in much the same way as many people do around the world.
They decorate their houses, go shopping, bake cookies and cakes, send
Christmas cards, and decorate the Christmas tree. Relatives and friends who
no longer believe in Santa Claus send flowers and gifts to each other. Children go out skiing or
sledding. They like to make snowballs and snowmen, but most they like to
wait for Santa Claus to give them presents. Christmas is a family time.
It is traditional, in Romania, for children to travel from house to house on
Christmas night singing carols and reciting poetry. Ancient legends are told
and retold. According to custom, the leader carries a large wooden star
called a Steaua, which is covered with shiny paper and decorated with bells
and colored ribbon. A picture of the Holy Family is pasted in the star's
center, and the entire creation is attached to a long pole. A lighted candle
is placed inside to give the effect of a heavenly lantern.
A special cake, the delicious Turta, is made for Nasterea Domnului Isus, or
Christmas Eve. It is composed of thin layers of rolled dough which
represents the swaddling clothes of the Christ Child.
For your amusement:
Five days
before Christmas, a pig is cut with a very sharp knife. This custom is
called, "Ignatius" which comes from Saint Ignatius. Straws are put in the
pig snout and then the pig is covered with more burning straws. The pig is
nicely washed and then covered with a piece of cloth for ten minutes. The
man of the house comes and makes a sign of a cross on the pigs head, and
then says, "Let's eat the pig!" After the pig is cut, they eat the pig.
(However, they do not eat it all at once.) This
tradition is called the "Pig's Funeral Feast", or "Alms". All of the local
friends and family is involved. They usually eat the pig with wine or plum
brandy. |
|
| |
|
|
| |
