Semana Santa, (pronouced: Say-mah-nah Sahn-ta) or Holy Week, which celebrates the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, is one of the most important – if not the most important- holidays of the year in the approximately 90% Catholic country of Colombia. 

Growing up in the states, this  holiday is celebrated on Easter Sunday by a giant rabbit that hops around leaving plastic-grass-filled baskets full of candy, and candy-filled eggs to children. Yup, we have a giant bunny, Colombia has a week long religious ceremony. But the largest celebration takes place on the Friday before Easter.

On Friday, Colombians mourn the death of Jesus Christ.  According to the Bible, this is the day Jesus was led to the hill, dragging his cross on his shoulders, and nailed to the cross to die.  On this day, churches open early  in the morning, and at around 10 am, a colorful and solemn procession begins. The procession I went to was led by a marching band of children, complete with flag waivers and majorettes.

Behind the band comes the statues.  People carry a  statue of Jesus carrying a cross and being guarded by the Romans. (ok, there is just one Roman in this particular procession).  

This symbolizes Jesus’s long walk to death. In some towns, this act is portrayed in real life, and a chosen man carries a full sized cross down the streets. In Medellin, real men carry this giant (and obviously very heavy) statue.

People gather around this statue, following it, gazing upon it, and praying to God as they walk down the streets. Some families create their own statues of the disciples and the Virgin Mary,  and as the main Jesus statue pass by, these families lift their own statues onto their shoulders, and jump into the crowd, becoming part of the procession themselves. 

Having one of these disciple statues is commonly a sign of the families wealth and importance.  It is considered an honour and a burden to have and carry these life size, heavy figures down the streets. It is also a way to brag how much money you have.  Creating these statues is expensive, so only the wealthy can afford to make them.  To have one in a parade is a way of showing off your wealth to all your neighbours, under the pretense of humility and humbleness.  It’s a left-handed way of saying “Look at my money.  I’m better than you!”

The entire procession weaves in and out of streets, finishing in front of the main doors of the church.  These parades last a few blocks to a couple of miles.  

At the church doors, the ceremony climaxes with the nailing of another figure of Jesus to a cross and raising him up, just like the bible describes. I have been told that in some smaller cities this is also played out in real life, but the nails are fake, and a man either stands on a platform or is tied to the cross by his wrists.

Then, one by one, the figures, led by the Jesus-on-the –cross statue, are rolled down the center aisle of the church, and placed upon the altar. Then the band, which has filtered in to the outer aisles of the church, now moves in line towards the front, and silently march out of the church, down the center aisle, past all the parishioners.

It is quite a beautiful ceremony. 

After this elaborate ritual, starts a long and emotional mass.

I also noticed, quite a few people arrive to the church ahead of the parade and touch the wounds of Jesus on the cross (while he is propped up diagonally outside, before he is raised.)  They touch the wounds, then make the sign of the trinity on their forehead and murmur silent prayers to themselves.  Many people, especially the older ones, look truly sad. 

This is a day to mourn Jesus’s death, and many people look like they really are in mourning; while others seem to just enjoy the activities.  There are even food vendors outside selling popcorn and fried foods to the crowds.

The rituals of Easter Weekend in Medellin are far from the giant egg-laying, cavity-endorsing rabbit we have in the states.

Semana Santa 2013 will be celebrated on March 29, 2013.  If you are in Colombia, or any Latin American country, I recommend searching out a local celebration.

Cheers!

Also, you can now follow my blog with Bloglovin, a new RSS reader (to replace all those ones that are dissapearing)

Well 2012 is almost over, and since the world didn’t end, I’ve decided to do a recap of my favourite, worst, craziest memories from the past year. 

Where I was on Jan 1rst, 2012?

In Castilla, Medellin, Colombia with Diego, unwillingly listening to a wall of loud Colombian dance party music from the street while dodging citywide fireworks and watching people blow up life size dummies.  Pyro is awesome.

Favourite part of 2012?

Finding out my boyfriend is secretly gay for me.
(Diego happens to use Facebook in English.  Turns out, “In a civil union”  gets translated into “In a homosexual union” , when you put Facebook into Spanish.  Also, Danielle, is a boy’s name in Spanish.  It was 4 months before we found out Diego was gay for me!)

Least Favourite part of 2012?

Having to come back to the USA.  Damn lack of money and visas.

Most embarrassing thing?

Getting a bot fly in my back.  This also ties for grossest thing.  Stupid gringa should listen to the local workers and wear long clothes.  But I probably won’t next time I’m in the countryside either.  Because I don’t learn well.

Stupidest thing I did?

Became illegal in Colombia.  By accident.  But I got to go back to see friends in Ecuador for a weekend, and eat encebollado again because of it, so that was awesome!

Craziest thing I did?

Flew a helicopter.  With no doors.  I SO need to go skydiving now!

Most awesome thing I did?

Got my photo taken with The Muppets!  (the other girl is my friend and co-worker Bubbles, aka Jessica).  I have officially reached the pinnacle of my stagehand career.  I am now retiring and moving to Colombia.  Cheers!

Hardest Thing I did?

Migrant working.  Damn that shit is way harder than being a rigger!

Most Fun Thing I Did?

Going to the waterpark in Itagui, Medellin, Colombia was awesome.  I’ve never been to a real waterpark, or down one of the giant slides before!

Place I Will End 2012:

In Las Vegas running spot light for a casino show.  Yea, I’ll be working on New Years Eve.  I need money to go back to Colombia in less than 2 months!

CHEERS,

MERRY CHRISTMAS,

&

HAPPY MAYAN NEW YEARS EVERYONE!

I received a cool info graphic in my email yesterday, about various gift giving traditions around the world.  I thought I would share it with you.  I would like to know what you think about these gift giving traditions.

  (more…)

Last year I spent Christmas in Colombia, where they have things like Baby Jesus, and fireworks; and lack things like Santa Claus and indoor Christmas trees.  

So for all my non-North American friends, this is what we do at Christmas.

First, usually in your pajamas, and often drinking eggnog (or wine, since we had no eggnog) you put a REAL tree in your house.  (Ok, sometimes a fake tree, such as this one.  But the fake trees here are still like 6 feet tall.  Also, I am disappointed in my best friend’s husband for not going out and getting a real tree, like a man.  Just saying.) 

Real trees are much better.  They smell like pine.  Yes, the needles fall off, everywhere, and you must vacuum them up constantly, but this process means that every time you vacuum, until about March, your whole house will smell like pine. It’s amazing.

So after you put up your tree, you grab your glass and start adding on lights and ornaments.  They more homemade, or hand-me-down the ornaments the better.  A Christmas tree is sort of a way to show off your history.  I still have a construction-paper ornament I made in kindergarten, that has my photo on it, and a story I wrote about how much I like vegetables.  This particular ornament shows off my awesome nerdyness.  

The same tree may also have an ornament from your great grandmother.  Or a token from a relative that has been turned into an ornament.   Candy canes are also quite common to hang on trees.  Basically, you can put anything on a tree.  Christmas trees are kind of like an extension of your personal history and familyness of the holiday season, and decorative style. 

Under this tree will go all the presents that Santa, NOT baby Jesus, brings us.  As soon as the tree is up, presents start to get piled underneath, to just sit there and taunt you until Christmas morning. 

I was so excited to help put up and decorate a Christmas tree with my best friend Sarah, and her family, this year.  You don’t have to be blood to be family where I am from, and getting to be a part of this was amazing.  The whole family gets into it.  It’s just really fun, and a traditional part of our Christmas culture!

CHEERS!

and

HAPPY HOLIDAYS!

Ps.  I want to  put a picture of my best friend, Sarah, in her pajamas – to show you the proper Christmas tree decorating attire, but she may kill me.  So I wont.  Merry Christmas Sarah.

Yes, I spent pretty much every major holiday at my friend’s house this year.   I already wrote about Halloween…so now I’m going to tell you about Christmas.

For Christmas, I had no idea that in Colombia they don’t have Santa Clause.  They think the idea of a fat dude, in red footy-pajamas, riding magical flying quadrupeds,  and free-falling down chimneys to eat our food and leave us gifts, is silly.  Instead – they believe Baby Jesus brings you presents.

They also don’t have gigantic evergreens indoors…at the most they put a small tree outside with lights.  Blinky lights.

Medellin LOVES their blinky lights.  On the tree, on the balcony, over the streets.  (Its actually really cool looking)  And the blinky lights all blink at different speeds (even on the same patio), so its all twinkly and stuff all night.  I love it.

So this Christmas, being my first Christmas ever out of the USA, I decided to teach my friend how to cook for Christmas (he wanted to learn, and I love to teach).  But instead of making traditional American turkey and stuffing, and fish, and the whole shebang…or well, I’m still not sure what traditional Medellin Christmas dinner is. 

(Pretty much what every other meal is here, fried meat, with fried plantains, beans, rice, and a tiny salad…just to be healthy.) 

There seemed to be some outdoor, impromptu fire pits, and lots of milk-based gelatinous desserts, some full of large chunks of wood (aka. cinnamon bark) and called (deceptively) Natilla…

(not to be confused with the ever so decadent chocolate hazelnut spread Nutella.)  Natilla is pretty good, if you don’t mind the day old pudding texture.  (Its like harder pudding….which the fact that I ate it and liked it shows how good it is considering my aversion to slimy foods.  I don’t even like Jell-O really.)

No this Christmas we had homemade meat spaghetti sauce and apple pie.  Yes, we went to the La Minorista (the indoor farmer’s market), and came back to spend hours slaving over the stove making homemade meat sauce.  Sauce with pork, and sausage, and a ridiculous amount of basil and fresh herbs. 

There was also my favourite holiday dish ever.. APPLE PIE  (ok, so I’ll make up a holiday if it means I get to have apple pie).

It is so incredibly American..but I love apple pie and actually get quite upset if it is not made for every holiday.  So I decided to make homemade apple pie (homemade the crust and all).  And teach my friend how to peel apples for his first time.

My friend never had peeled apples, let alone with a knife, yet this kid has some crazy savant knife skills. 

HE ACTUALLY GOT A WHOLE APPLE PEELED IN ONE PIECE! 

(I’ve been peeling apples for years and have only done that like twice!)

It was the most non-Colombian-American traditional Christmas I think either of us ever had, but I had so much fun being in another country, learning about Baby Jesus vs. Santa Clause

( I really thought Santa was universal, and I’m still pretty sure he’d win in a fight against baby Jesus),

and cooking all day in the kitchen to have, well, just really yummy dinner!

This was the apple pie the next day.  We devoured it.  Apple pie is not just great for holidays…cold apple pie also makes a delicious breakfast (its fruit, its healthy…as healthy as any other food in Medellin), and lunch, and midday snack….

I loved being in Medellin for Christmas, and getting to celebrate it with my friend and his family.   I want to spend more holidays in other countries to see how else these holidays are celebrated.

CHEERS!