Crafty in the Med

I am here to enjoy meeting other bloggers and to share my love of craft ,mostly crochet, my thoughts and my daily happenings here in Alicante,Spain, my adopted country. I belong to a local choir because singing and music makes me happy. Flea markets and book shops are two of my favourite places to be. I read lots......sci´fi/fantasy,buried treasure, and off world adventures. I have a passion for history! I walk and walk and walk for about 10 months per year during the hot months I swim.

Wednesday 23 December 2020

The spirit of Christmas

Lost but now it is found

 Big sigh of relief!!    I thought I had lost it!  

I was so happy to find Gracie's snowflake which I couldn't find last year when rapidly setting up my Christmas tree the day before Christmas Eve. This year as I have all the time in the world I was determined to find it.I searched high and low among the boxes and bags which I use for the Christmas decorations and finally I found it scrunched up in a corner of a box. I have washed it and blocked it and it looks as pretty as a picture. Gracie from One Saylor's Log sent this to me in the Snowflake swap we shared back in 2012.   

"I found it Gracie and as you can see from these photos taken today it is there on my tree once again 🌲😁"


Christmas with a few differences.

Understandably every country celebrates Christmas in their own way .In the case of Spain the religious influence is very evident throughout. Spain is traditionally a country of Nativity scenes more than Christmas trees. 

 

The Nativity Scene set up in the town of Villena, Alicante province.

 I have in the past posted about the different customs here but there are a few other customs the Spanish enjoy over Christmas and are very much a part of their culture too.

 

 

 The National Christmas Lottery 



Millions of Spaniards buy a lottery ticket or two,  all eager to try their luck to win the big jackpot, known as El Gordo (which literally means “the fat one”).  If you’re thinking that the Spanish Christmas lottery seems to be a much bigger deal than most other lotteries you’re familiar with, you’re not wrong.One important thing about this lottery and the reason why it is so popular is that it is shared. It becomes very much a family affair, one coupon can be bought per family and each member of the family pays their part of the coupon. Businesses or groups of friends also do the same they buy a cupon which is divided out between all, again each person paying their share. Everyone is glued to the TV on 22nd December to hear who has won the first prize which is "The Fat One"   

 I have just checked my two lottery coupons and we weren't lucky this year but that is the way it goes. Next year we will try our luck again!😁

 

The sweet stuff 

 

Pastelitos de Gloria   

Delicious Gloria cakes,full of marzipan.

 

Roscon de Reyes

The traditional sweet roll with little gifts inside eaten on the Night of the three Kings...Twelfth Night.

and

Turron (nougat) famous the world over. I even saw it for sale in Brisbane when I was visiting my sister in Australia.

 

Sr P absolutely loves it and always buys for Christmas.

 

Main dish

It  has to be of course the traditional "Cocido" main meal chicken soup which is served on Christmas Day.   I posted about this dish way back in 2014. You can see the recipe for it here.  


 

 

 Ms Christmas Angel:

 She continues to be with us. She was sent to me by a friend in the UK about 10 years ago. You can read more about her here in this post I wrote in 2015. She does look a little worn after all this time so I have cleaned her up cut off some of the straggles and added a new sparkling halo (I cut if off an old Christmas card ages ago and kept it thinking it would come in use ...and it has!

 


The Christmas spirit 

 

                 Merry Christmas                

wishing you all peace,health and happiness.

 

 

and at the same time I am posting this very christmassy photograph of Minehead, my home town in England. 


Church steps up to St.Michael's Church,Minehead,Somerset,England




FABULOUS VOICES!!





 

            Amanda :-)


 


33 comments:

  1. A couple of years ago we were in Cheste, close to Valencia, and whilst walking around the town, we saw people setting up these scenes, our Spanish friends asked if we could come in and look, we were allowed, they are fantastic. I loved Christmas in Spain, they celebrate until the 12th night, so no boxing day sales, it's still family time. Enjoy your Christmas.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Christmas is so different here but its special too. It took me a little while to get used to but I love it now...so very family orientated :-) The nativity scenes are exquisite so much detail. Have a good Christmas A x

      Delete
  2. Lovely post Amanda, have a peaceful Christmas - wishing a safe and loving time x

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you Kate. Wishing you and your family too a very happy Christmas xx A x

      Delete
  3. Beautiful Post Amanda, I really enjoyed it very much.
    Thank you for sharing your traditions there. the foods look so good too.
    Merry Christmas

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you Kathy! Merry Christmas and have a wonderful time! A x

      Delete
  4. What a gorgeous post. I'm so glad you have found the Spirit of Christmas AND the snowflake. Wonderful.
    The food looks amazing.
    xx

    ReplyDelete
  5. Thank you for sharing some other customs/food etc. It is so interesting to find out about other countries and how they celebrate.
    Have a lovely Christmas
    Best wishes
    Ellie

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you and you too Ellie. Happy Christmas :-) xxx A.

      Delete
  6. A very interesting post, thanks for sharing. The message is the same wherever - Peace and Love. Wishing you a peaceful, happy and safe Christmas, and the end of Covid in 2021. xxx

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Many thanks HH. It is a good message though!! Have a wonderful Christmas :-) xx A.

      Delete
  7. An interesting post Amanda. We have so much happening here in the UK right now with the virus issue I'm finding it difficult to concentrate so I shall read your blog post slowly and enjoy each section. Glad you found your Christmas snowflake that was a gift. Have a very blessed Christmas.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Happy Christmas Amanda! I found your post to be very enlightening as I didn't know about most of it. As a Christian, I was happy to read that Spain puts a large focus on the Nativity, as that is why we celebrate. The food photos have now made me very hungry as I haven't had my breakfast yet. :-) And the lottery is pretty interesting too. I always find it so interesting to read about the different customs around the world. Alex has shared Japanese customs and we're learning about the UK too, although they are very similar to the US aren't they? The photo of Minehead is so beautiful too.
    I'm so glad you found sweet Gracie's snowflake. She is as wonderful and loving in "real" life as she appears on her blog. I just love her dearly.
    Wishing you a Christmas full of peace, love and for this year especially, hope.
    Blessings and hugs,
    Betsy

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Merry Christmas Betsy! Indeed I can't imagine Gracie any other way :-) I have learnt so much since I have been blogging. It gives me the chance to travel virtually,gain knowledge about the culture and customs in other countries and to meet lots of people from different walks of life. wishing you and your family a very happy Christmas xxx A x

      Delete
  9. How lovely! the Spanish celebrate Christmas the way it should be done, I would much prefer to see nativity scenes than Christmas trees they look beautiful. The food and the sweet stuff look good too. Gracies snowflake is lovely and so the Christmas Angel. I hope you have a wonderful Christmas and a safe and Happy New Year.xx

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Linda. In all it is a very emotive time, more so this year! Wishing you Linda a safe and cosy Christmas...enjoy! xx A.

      Delete
  10. The angel's halo is perfect!
    Yout home town is beautiful in that photo. Merry Christmas!
    And much luck for next year's lottery.🎄

    ReplyDelete
  11. It is always interesting to read how others celebrate Christmas. I love the look of Gloria cakes, is there a recipe?
    Unfortunately your home town will not look like the picture this year, snow is something we just don't seem to get any more. Normally I hope that we don't get any, as we usually need to drive somewhere, but this year it could really do what it wants, as we staying put......
    Have a good one!
    xx

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Radka! It has indeed snowed very little in Minehead this year when I remember as a child at times we couldn't get to school because it had snowed so much. That was real fun!! Wishing you and your husband a safe and cosy Christmas xx A x

      Delete
    2. Sorry I don't have the recipe for Gloria cakes. Will keep a lookout for one in English. A x

      Delete
    3. No problem I have found this: https://londoneats.wordpress.com/2019/12/06/3-pasteles-de-gloria/

      Delete
  12. Hello my friend, I enjoyed learning of your customs there in Spain. You're lucky to have the experience of two countries during the holidays. You sound very upbeat and happy and that is good. We are making the most of our holiday time, one must thing positive, yes? Sending you a...

    ❉ ❉ ❉ ❉ ❉ ❉ ❉ ❉ ❉ ❉ ❉ ❉ ❉ ❉ ❉ ❉ ❉
    *M*E*R*R*Y* *C*H*R*I*S*T*M*A*S*!*
    ❉ ❉ ❉ ❉ ❉ ❉ ❉ ❉ ❉ ❉ ❉ ❉ ❉ ❉ ❉ ❉ ❉

    ((hugs)), Teresa :-)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Many thanks Teresa! As positive as possible....I cant let this dreary year drag me down. Blogging has been a lifesaver! Have a wonderful Christmas. xxx A.

      Delete
  13. Merry Christmas dear Amanda, so glad you have returned to us this year. Stay safe.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you Mere! I was longing to return...I just got back a little earlier than I thought. A x

      Delete
  14. Thankyou for sharing the traditions of a Spanish Christmas, I had no idea about any of these! So thanks for educating me 😊 I found you whilst blog hopping, I’m at emeraldcottage.blogspot.com, would be lovely to see you over there xxx

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. many thanks Jill for stopping by and commenting. I'l pop by to see you soon. Merry Christmas :-) Amanda

      Delete
  15. Merry Christmas Amanda!

    I have a lot of crochet snowflakes on my tree, including some from blog friends. It's wonderful that blogging brings us so many friends around the world.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Merry Christmas! I am so glad I am back blogging again! Totally agree...friends from so many places...I love it!! A x

      Delete
  16. Good morning Amanda, I wanted you to know I found the quilt Pattern yeah

    ReplyDelete
  17. Hi Kathy....that is excellent....didn't take long either A x

    ReplyDelete

Thank you for your comments. I do read them and try to reply to all as well.Please keep them coming. Amanda :-)