So anyone who knows me, knows how much I love Christmas! To start with, I continually am awestruck by a day that represents the God of the universe sending His son for our salvation. I also love the spirit of the season, the lights, the music and so much more! This year was my first chance to spend Christmas in Hungary, and although I dearly missed friends and family in the USA, I had a great time. So, I would love to share with you about some traditions.
Szent Miklós Day
In Hungary, Santa Clause comes on December 6th (Saint Nicholas Day) to bring presents. Children typically leave their boots on the windowsill on the evening of December 5th. By the next morning Mikulás(more common spelling) leaves candy and gifts if they have been good, or a rod (virgács) if they have been bad (most kids end up getting small gifts but also a small rod). In Hungary he is often accompanied by the Krampusz, the frightening helper who is out to take away the bad ones. This year, our kind landlord hung a little Mikulás on our window and left some chocolate.
Christmas Market
Another Christmas tradition in Europe, which I absolutely love, is the Christmas market. Most major European cities (including Budapest) host a market between Thanksgiving and New Years. Here you can find homemade crafts, pottery and authentic food. It is always fun to walk around Vörösmarty tér (the main square) with a glass of forralt bor (hot wine) and peruse the wonderful variety of treasures.
Gerbaud Advent
Gerbaud Cukraszda is a Viennese coffee house and confectionary in Budapest that has been around since 1858. Every year, they make an advent calendar out of their windows. Each day, at 5pm, they "open" the calendar. This year, I got to witness the opening of the 22nd window. It is a fun way to celebrate and count down the days to Christmas.
I am sure there are many more traditions that I am not aware of. There are few that I have been told about, but have never experienced first hand. For example, the Christmas Eve meal usually consists of carp soup. Also, Hungarians do not put up their Christmas tree until Christmas Eve in preparation for baby Jesus (who brings the presents the next morning). Overall, Hungary is a wonderful place to celebrate Christmas. Each year, there seems to be more and more decorations and traditions. Here are a few pictures I captured this year of the Christmas season:
 |
| Christmas Lights at the Christmas Market |
 |
| More decorations on the walking street (Vaci) |
 |
| Gerbaud in the backdrop of the Christmas Market |
 |
| An Advent Wreath |
 |
| The Gerbeaud Advent Calendar being changed |
 |
| The Gerbeaud Advent Calendar |
2 comments:
Carp soup? Seriously? That's nasty. :)
True story. They love it! I have never tried it...
Post a Comment