viernes, 30 de octubre de 2015

Halloween in Spain and the first day of November, All Saints Day


When I was a child, there wasn't "Halloween" in Spain. I used to go to the cemetery  with my family in NerjaIt really impressed me to feel the presence of the death. It was like a trip to the past and the future, where I began to ask myself great questions about my existence. A great lesson for life.


The first day of November is "All Saints Day" in Spain. We celebrate a Christian practice to remember the dead. Many Spaniards visit cemeteries, especially in the villages, they carry flowers and clean the graves of relatives and friends. Most people are buried in niches. They are like little apartments. 


These holidays come from pagan autumn festivals, they announce the proximity of the winter. During the autumn, the field after the joy of vintages is waiting for sowing. The Earth, a female symbol, appears barren at this time of the year, but after receiving seed, male symbol, this land becomes hope.


This celebration represents a reunion between the world of the dead (arid land) and the world of the living (life). In the past, after dinner, we used to eat: la castañada, it was a family food dedicated to the dead, which was a souvenir of the ancient funerary meals.

VOCABULARY


Child
Niño-a
Cemetery
Cementerio
Dead
Muerto
To carry
Llevar
Grave
Tumba
Relatives
Parientes
Joy
Gozo
Vintage
Vendimia
Sowing
Siembra
Barren
Estéril
Seed
Semilla
Male
Masculino
Female
Femenino
Land
Tierra
Hope
Esperanza
Chestnut
Castaña
Meal
Comida

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