Christmas in Summer

28 December 2010
Buenos Aires, Argentina

This was my second year celebrating Christmas in Buenos Aires.  It's a bit strange preparing for the holidays with 85-90 degree heat each day in December!  To help get myself into the spirit, I spent an evening last week making Christmas cookies, drinking spiced wine, listening to cheesy holiday music, and watching "Love Actually", with some girlfriends. 

It's amazing the importance that traditions take on when you are away from the homes you grew up in.  I never realized all the things that mean "holidays" to me.  In Maryland it means cold, Christmas cookie making with mom, hot drinks and warm socks, homemade gifts, stockings and Christmas mornings, home cooking.  In Vermont it means extra cold and snow, visits to grandparents, decorating the tree, hiding out from the cold or alternatively, going on snowy expeditions, popovers and yummy homecooking with dad.

One thing that saved my Christmas spirit this year too, was putting out the decorations ("adornos") on the patio on Christmas Eve with Eze, in preparation for his big family dinner that night.  We spent about an hour decorating potted plants in 85 degree sunny weather with red bows, little bells, evergreen decorations and fake snowy angels.  But this small moment meant so much to me!  As I dug through the boxes and discovered his family's ornaments; the things that represent this season to them, I found lots of both similarities and differences to those that have made up my experiences of the holidays.

I explained to him how tree trimming had been done during my childhood.  I have discovered that funnily enough, I have expecially fond memories of tree trimming in Vermont!  I remember at a certain age, this tradition felt more like a pain in the butt than anything, so it's funny that I would now cherish those times so much.  But I suppose that's usually the way it goes!  Thanks parents for forcing these traditions on us, that at the time we don't want but will later be the memory touchstones of our youth and family moments!

I remember all the beautiful ornaments, some handmade, some fragile.  Some of Bert and Ernie from Sesame Street, and some handpainted with beautiful stories and history.  Each year rediscovering your favorite ornaments and passing them through your hands once more.  Discovering smooth glass or glittery texture.

So obviously, doing the decorations here really transformed the experience to one of holiday joy and all that!

Anyway, I wanted to share with you a bit about my Argentine Christmas.  The night's events looked something like this:

Christmas Eve
8:30pm   Guests meant to arrive.  No one comes to the door.

9:00pm  Last minute decorating and Cuca the dog gets a costume; a red Christmas ornament hanging from her collar

9:30pm   Notified that ice is on the way.  This means guests are on their way!

10:30pm  Guests begin to arrive, no ice. After greeting a few family members, Eze corrects me and says that I'm only meant to say "Hola" when greeting guests, not "Feliz Navidad" because they don't say that until midnight.  Eze's father has 6 siblings so the Christmas Eve dinner is usually quite large.  But this year we had a more intimate gathering because about 13 people were missing.  We "only" had 30 people around the dinner table!

10:30-11:00pm  Dishes brought by guests are put out and eating begins!  Many members of the family bring the same dish each year.  Each person has their classic, same in my fam!  My favorites were a salad of honeydew melon, fontina cheese and Roquefort cheese, and a dish called a "pionono" made by Eze's mom, that is a roll with fillings of sour cream, chicken, pickles, olives, apples, cheese, etc.

11:30pm  EATING!  The table is divided up into sections, intentionally or not.  At one end you have the prepubescent boys who are already bored and wondering about gifts as they all play games on their individual iPhones......  In the middle of the table is the "adult section" talking about life and children, and at the other end are the 20 and 30 something's, making fun of some of the uncles and chatting about other miscellaneous subjects.

12:00pm  Someone realizes it is midnight, the champagne comes out, we have a fake countdown and then a champagne toast!  Then everyone mills around until everyone has given everyone else a beso on the cheek (just one here!) and said "Feliz Navidad".

12:05ish   Fireworks and firecrackers begin in the streets.  Cuca the dog goes crazy and runs for her life into the back of the house.  The boys run outside to watch the fireworks, and to look for Papa Noel.  This year I also popped out to the street to see what all was happening.  There was a rather large family across the street setting off firecrackers in the middle of the street.  A steady stream of people headed out one by one to the middle of the street, ranging in age from 5 years old to 30, to set off firecrackers one after the other.  A car drove over one right as it went off.  It was.....exciting.  And also ridiculous and crazy.  One of the fireworks went sideways and flew inside a neighbor's house.  There was a small altercation as a result.  We went back inside.

12:30am  The kids come back in and there is a lukewarm....."ooooooh Papa Noel came!".  As the adults, we are supposed to make a big production when the kids come back in!  But noone was sure if any of the boys were still under the illusion, so it was a little weak this year.  Eze's famly does small gifts and each person will get one or two.  Instead of writing who the gift is from, for the benefit of kiddies who believe in Papa Noel, the adults have a number system so you can figure out who to thank afterwards.

12:45 - 4:30am   Guitars and singing!  Each year Eze's father brings his guitar and his book of songs.  There are lots of songs from the 60's-80's, and lots of the Beatles too.  The goal is to get everyone singing so popular songs are desireable.  Back by popular demand, Eze and I played and sang a couple songs too.  There was more wine and champagne and TONS of sweets.  Lots of "Pan Dulce" which is like fruit cake.  Chocolates filled with caramel and chewy sweets with peanuts.  I contributed the last of my fruitcake cookies, they were a big hit!

One good thing about summer in December, we are headed to the beach for New Years Eve with friends!  Normally, NYE is also a very family oriented holiday, at least until midnight!  After the toast, youngins are free to go out and party.

Happy New Year to you all!  Next year I have vowed to be home for Christmas!