CPR
poniedziałek, 24 grudnia 2012
poniedziałek, 10 grudnia 2012
niedziela, 9 grudnia 2012
Christmas in Poland
CHRISTMAS IN POLAND
In Poland,
Advent
is the beginning of Christmas Time. It's a time when people try to be peaceful
and remember the real
reason for Christmas. People try not to have excess of anything.
Some people give up their favourite foods or drinks and parties and discos are
not widely held. Some people also go to Church quite frequently. There is the
tradition of the 'roraty', special masses (or communion services) held at dawn
and dedicated to Gabriel. During Advent, people also prepare their houses for
Christmas. There's lots of cleaning and people wash their windows and clean
their carpets very thoroughly. Everything must be clean for Christmas day!
Poland is
a largely catholic country and Christmas Eve is a very important and busy day.
Traditionally it's a day of fasting and abstinence (not eating anything) and
meat is not normally allowed to be eaten in any form. A special Christmas Eve
meal called Wigilia (pronounced vee-GHEE-lee-uh) is eaten after the first star
has been seen in the sky. It's also all meat free and might consist of Barszcz
(beetroot soup), Uszka (mushroom ravioli), Pierogi (Pasta dumplings filled with
either cheese and potato or cabbage and mushroom) and fish dishes (normally
carp and herrings).
If the Christmas Tree
hasn't been put up before hand, it's also brought in and decorated with
tinsels, lights and glass balls. Gold, silver gold and white chains resembling
long, silver and glittering hair is also hung on the tree and a star is placed
on the top.Nativity
Cribs are also common decorations and Children take part in
Nativity plays at schools and in Churches. People in Poland also like kissing
under the mistletoe!
After that
the house is cleaned again and everyone also gets cleaned up and puts on their
festive clothes. People are normally very hungry on Christmas Eve, as it is
traditional that no food is eaten until the first star is seen in the sky! So
children look at the night sky to spot the first star!
At the
beginning of the meal, a large wafer biscuit called an 'Oplatek', which has a
picture of Mary, Joseph and Jesus on it, is passed around the table and
everyone breaks a piece off and eats it. Sometimes a small piece may be given
to any farm animals or pets that the family may have. A place is often left
empty at the meal table, for the Christ Child, as in the Czech Republic.
Sometimes
straw is put on the floor of the room, or under the table cloth, to remind
people that Jesus was born in a stable or cow shed.
The meal
consists 12 dishes of mostly fish (as meat used to be forbidden), mushrooms,
puddings and cake. Common dished include pierogi, bigos and karp (carp). Like
in many Catholic countries, Christmas Eve is often a 'fasting day' meaning that
some people don't eat anything until after sunset (when the Church day
officially ends). So that's where the custom of the first star come from.
Later
children check the presents under the tree and give them out.
After the
meal, the candles on the Christmas Tree
are lit and people eat, talk and sing carols. Children sometimes dress up as
characters from the Christmas story and go carol singing.
Christmas
Eve is finished by going to Church for a Midnight Mass service.
The days
after Christmas are often spent with family and friends.
Polish Children
also often get dressed up and go carol singing on Epiphany, January 6th.
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