20 January 2008

Christmas in Lisbon

For this Christmas we decided to stay in Lisbon, as it is the last with the people here. This year we went to the Romanian church (a Catholic chapel transformed in an Orthodox church). There are many Romanians established in Lisbon, their kids are already at school here; I heard about an impressive number of 70 Romanian children that are at school in the capital of Portugal.

At the Romanian church in Lisbon

I was glad that we went to the religious mess; I felt more the Christmas atmosphere. For the Romanians it's an important celebration, with a strong religious connotation, but for the Portuguese - at least here in the capital - it´s more focused on receiving presents, and that´s it. Everything is commercial, not quite the same with what happens in the villages, where I´ve heard that the Christmas tradition is better preserved.


We sang carols...it was so nice to sing carols (last year I din´t quite feel the Christmas), and to hear the people around me singing. There was also Santa Claus coming there, cause there were a lot of children, but a Portuguese Santa; the children gathered around him to receive their presents, thanking and wishing Merry Christmas to Santa Claus, in Portuguese.


As we didn´t quite have contact with the Romanian community in Lisbon (strangely, just now, around the end of my traineeship I started to search for "Romanian" events here), we didn´t know people. We just met Gina (Erasmus student that we previously met at the Romanian embassy at the vote) and her boyfriend, Bogdan, that came to visit her for the holidays.


After the mess, we walked a bit in the downtown - Baixa Chiado, which during the holidays is full of decorations and lights (in my opinion exagerately many in this central area, and in others - not at all), but without the gigantic Christmas tree, that is in Porto this year.

Arco Triunfal da Rua Augusta in Praça do Comércio

In Praça do Comércio

Rua Augusta, the main street of the city center

At home we ate the traditional "sarmale" :-) - it couldn´t be another way...

At home

At home, at the Christmas tree


The next day we went to Ruta´s place, also her sister, Giedre, was there, visiting her for the holidays, and a Portuguese friend of Ruta. It was a funny evening :D we played cards, among other things.

At Ruta´s


The less good part was that it was very cold in the apartment or iglu :D (the Portuguese don´t have central heating, but also she didn´t quite use the electric heater in the apartment - rarely I´ve seen people that are hot on a cold like that :P) and in the next day I was sick...me, that didn´t catch a cold since 2-3 years...and it´s a thing that I hate.

posted by Diana @ 14:22 Comments: 0