CHAPINADAS

MERRY CHRISTMAS
AND
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HAPPY NEW YEAR’S

Guatemalans eat tamales during the entire year but the tamales eaten during dinner on Christmas nighat are special.  Maybe it is the magic during this celebration, or maybe the sound of the firecrackers, or maybe the time spent with the family the make the tamales during Christmas night very special.  The tamales along woth the chocolate have prehispanic roots.  Some of the ingredients used to make tamales come from the Spanish and Egyptian culture.  The traditional food served along with the tamales are the fruit punch, chocolate, and manzanilla water.  Even though the way of making tamales have changed with time, it has kept its traditional way.  Depending on what area you go to, the tamales are made in different ways.  In Quetzaltenango for example, the tamales have the traditional ingredients and some non-traditional like rice and potato.  There are different king of tamales like sweet, green and paches.  In the east part of Guatemala the tamales are eaten with tortillas and cheese or cream.  In the highlands of Guatemala, it is a costum to bless the pot and the comal where the tamales are cooked.  In Coban, it is organized a Tamal Competition where people compite to show the more exquisite and exotic tamal.  Also in the Verapaces region, the tamales are cooked underground.  Hope you enjoy your tamales with your family.

The Nativity scene was brought to Guatemala by Hermano Pedro de Bethancourt 300 years ago.  In modern times, it is a christmas tradition combining creativity and dedication.  Making a Nativity scene with angels, sheep herders and Baby Jesus is a tradition inherited by generations.  Hermano Pedro de Bethancourt (1626-1667) introduced this tradition in Guatemala.  The makings of the nativity scene and the posadas that remain us of the trip Mary and Joseph took to reach Jerusalem and in doing so accomplished their objective of the Roman census and the birth of Jesus in Belem.

Since the beginnings of the XIX century, the nativity scene was not only seen in churches but also in houses.  The nativity scene is directed mainly by the mother of the house using sawdust from different colors, musk and mud figurines that are sold for this festivities in the markets across the nation.  The nativity scene is an spanish heritage but only in Guatemala has its distinctive characteristic.  It is a colorful display that incorporates Mayan pop art, spanish influence and catholic tradition.

Even though the most important purpose of the nativity scene is to remember the birth of Jesus, the Guatemalan ingenuity can not stand aside.  In the nativity scene of the Deeds of Brother Pedro in Antigua Guatemala, a water fountain, illumination and a house built with authentic adobe was built.  In this nativity scene, four months were spent to make and dress the images, to place the pine, to install the lights and to build the house.