more traditions

First of all, thank you very much for all your warm support!

Well, I didn’t tell you about some Christmas traditions originated from Spain. The first one takes place at New Year’s Eve.At midnight every clock strikes 12, and if you want to have good luck in the coming year, you have to take a grape seed at every ring of the bell. As it sounds twelve times, you’ll have to take twelve grape seeds. It’s seems pretty easy, but in fact the peals go one after another. So, you have to swallow fast! My trick is to remove the seeds beforehand :)

The second tradition is the Christmas Lottery. It shares out lots of good prizes, and it’s very usual to spend a lot of money on it. If the company where you work in play the lottery (every year the same number), and all of your colleagues buy a lottery ticket, you will be forced to buy a ticket. Imagine if that number would be the winner, and you hadn’t bought any ticket!

The last tradition is culinary and originated from the Alicante Region. It’s the “turrón”. It’s a kind of candy traditionally eaten at Christmas. My dictionary translates it as nougat-like candy. It’s made from toasted almonds mixed with sugar, egg white, honey and wafers (to cover each side). There are different sorts of “turron”. In the hard “turron” you can see the almonds in pieces, while in the soft “turron” the almonds are ground up with the mixture. There’s also chocolate “turron”…that's my favourite.
In fact, not only is typical the “turron”, also marzipan and “mantecados” are best-sellers at Christmas. They are made mainly from lard and almonds.
It’s also traditional the chocolate yule log….and, of course, it’s ‘typical Spanish’ the Spanish omelet and the “jamón serrano” (it’s translated as Parma ham….but I’m not sure of its reliability). Actually, the last two aren’t sweet things, but once you have tried them, you’ll get addicted!

I’d like to know more about your Christmas traditions, and the typical Christmas dishes of the country you live in. By the way, do you think that you are good cookers?.... If not, remember that it's the thought that counts. I’m beginning to feel really hungry!

Jonathan, I’ve just read your post. Tomorrow I’ll tell you more about the valencian dialect, my hobbies and my favourite film.

Now, some comments……

James, the Internet TLD of Spain is ES because it refers to “España”, not to Spain.

Ana Paula, We’re quite similar!… You seem to be full of energy and to be a person with a strong character, and so do I. Well, if I won the Christmas Lottery, I’d travel round the world. Be sure I’d visit Brazil. I’m a nature lover, and there are a lot of places to discover……

Leila, thank you very much for your posts and support! Finland is a great country. Its landscapes are incredible, and it’s said to be the first country in a ranking of culture diffusion. I know it has to be extremely cold there. I’ve ve a very good friend from Finland, Mikko, who has brought me up to date about Finland, its culture, its people and traditions. He lives in Helsinki and last spring came to Spain to visit me. I’m looking forward to seeing him again…this time in Finland!

Anastasia, it’s nice to get to know you!....I’m sure you’ll be a great teacher!

Wagar, yes! Granada is just 250 kilometers away (nearly two hours by car). Here are some good links to listen to Spanish radio online. I’ve chosen my favorite links (click on “escúchanos” (listen to us), or on play button).
http://www.los40.com/radio/40principales.html
http://www.europafm.com/
http://www.kissfm.es/web/home.asp (click on the left window “escucha kiss fm en directo” )

Andrey, how to summarize my final project in a few words? I’ll try it! It’s about broadband wireless technologies, focusing on WiMax standards, and the feasibility to plan a network based on that technology to connect nodes which require the use of industrial equipments, such as automatons (taking account of the existing protocols of communication, and of the driver of communications used by the control centre).

Antonio, you are right! The smell of the orange blossom is something else. However, the smell that I am most impressed of is the smell of jasmine. It brings to my mind the Summer time, the beach, the warm, the cool breeze, the sun….The reason for that is that my parents own a bungalow in a little town at the coast line where my family and I go every Summer, and there are always jasmine there.

Vital, to be honest, I cannot miss snow, because I’ve never seen a snowfall. Elche is a southern city, which is quite near the beach. It hasn’t snowed since 1983, and it wasn’t a truly snowfall. Also, the temperatures have never dropped under 0 degrees, even at night. In other parts of Spain,including the hinterland of the Alicante region frequently snows. So, the Mediterranean cities are a world apart! ….however, all those good things related to good weather conditions have a bad side. In this case is that it doesn’t rain so much. Although there are systems to save and purify water, it’s always a big problem. I do believe that we have to become aware of the water scarcity and the desertification that many countries suffer from, as a result of the climate change…and it’s a direct consequence of the human beings acts.

Teresa, I hope your students get addicted to this site! This blog and the whole learning English web are really helpful!

Nicolette, thanks for pointing out that Spanish Christmas traditions are different from the USA. Well, I would like to ask you if all those traditions that US movies shown are trustworthy. Not only Christmas, but also those related to the American lifestyle and the university life and traditions. By the way, how long will you be staying in Spain? Are you going to spend your Christmas holidays in here?

Ernesto, the Paella is a typical dish from this region, the Comunidad Valenciana. But what’s more typical from Elche is “arroz con costra” or “arroz a banda”. In both cases the main ingredient is rice. The first one is thicker, and is covered by scrambled eggs mixed with pieces of meat. The second one is a very thin one, has any pieces of meat or extra ingredients, and has a seafood taste. As you said, all of them taste delicious!. Tapas are small portions of food served in bars with a drink (typically sangria or beer). There’s a wide variety, including Spanish omelet, “montaditos” (a kind of sandwich but with bread), seafood, cheese, ham, cold meat, salads, different kinds of cooked potatoes, etc. A tapa is normally included when you order a drink. You will find lots of “ tapas” in Andalucia. “Irse de tapas” means to go from one bar to another to have have some “tapas”.

Naheed, you are right! The ingredients can vary a lot. There are Paellas that contain meat, seafood, vegetables….. really, it’s depends on the chef’s imagination!

Rosa, I’m writing a recipe of the paella, but I haven’t finished it yet….I hope you can cook a tasty paella following my instructions!

Christine, Hallo! Wie geht’s dir? I’ve been learning German for four years. I’ve some relatives living in Düsseldorf, and I’ve been there twice. I’m planning to go there again to improve my German skills…but I’ve already planned so many things, that I’m not sure if I’ll be able to cope with all of them! When I was there, I got impressed by the Köln cathedral, although there was a lot of mold in the façade, which made it look not so beautiful and bright as it actually is….and I went up the endless spiral staircase!

Paula, I didn’t know anything about the gastronomy of Venezuela. But it’d be nice if you could explain me how to cook “ Hallaca”, it sounds really good…..The “Gaita” is also a typical musical instrument from the Celtic culture. In the north of Spain is traditional, too. It looks the same as the instrument played by the Scotsmen. Am I right?

Sayaka, Children are wonderful. One can learn a lot from them. They are spontaneous and crystal clear. They never lose their energy, and make you fun. I see children as little scientist, because they are always questioning the whys of everything…..I’m a proud aunt, and my niece is my most valued treasure. She’s so little, but so cute and smart!

Filippo, ummm…I change my paella recipe for one of a typical Italian dish. I love Italian food!! I don’t want to be nosy, but do you speak Spanish?

Mariangela, yes! I like being active and keep fit. It also helps me to give all the stress away.

Eric, Wow! Taipei 101 is an impressive building! It should have a superb view from the top of the building.

Thanks to everyone who I haven’t mentioned and commented on the last posts! You're great!


Here are some photos. the first one of a beach of elche where I spend the summer. The second one was taken in Valencia. It's the 'ciutat de les arts i les ciències' built by the famous architect Calatrava. The last one shows my niece dressed up as a 'sevillana' and I.

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