|
|
|
CHRISTMAS DAY IS COMING!
And when you hear the word “Christmas” what do you think of? Cold days, snow, Christmas trees, Christmas gifts and family? Or do you think of a sunny Christmas Day at the beach with friends? In Portugal, as in the Northern Hemisphere, December is usually a cold, dark month. Here Christmas means cold nights in the front of the fire and a time for family, of giving and sharing.
Learn about the Christmas traditions in Portugal and don't miss out on our wine suggestions for a typical Portugusese Christmas meal!
|
CHRISTMAS TRADITION IN PORTUGAL All over the world, Christmas celebrations reflect local culture and traditions. And with Christmas a mere few days away, Portugal is gearing up to celebrate the festive season in style. As a Catholic country, there is one thing that you will find everywhere at Christmas time in Portugal, and that is a nativity scene (called Presépio). Either at home, shops, restaurants or outdoors.
For the traditional Catholic believer, after dinner on Christmas Eve, people will go to church for the ‘Missa do Galo’ or ‘Mass of the Rooster’ service; where the image of the baby Jesus is brought out and everyone queues up to kiss it, before it is placed in the nativity scene.
Same as Celebrations, Christmas Dinner may differ from country to country but always presents a great opportunity to drink that special wine or try new ones.
The family dinner on Christmas Eve, known as the night of the “Consoada”, is celebrated with the traditional cod fish - Bacalhau - with boiled potatoes and vegetables. In some regions of the country octopus is eaten.
Both delicacies are perfect with  and 
Less traditionally, roasted turkey or lamb can also be served for dinner on the 24th or on Christmas day, around the country.  
The rich flavours of turkey and lamb pair wonderfully with elegant and complex red wines. Try it with:  ,  and 
After this feast, we welcome the desserts. The most popular are "Bolo Rei”, “filhoses or filhós”, “Sonhos”, “Rabanadas”, “Aletria” and “Arroz Doce”.  
 
This will pair deliciously with  or ![]()  In Portugal, Father Christmas is believed to bring presents to children on Christmas Eve. But there are some famillies that open the gifts in the morning, when they wake up.
Some people also say that the presents are brought by the Baby Jesus rather than Father Christmas. The presents are left under the Christmas Tree and open after midnight.
The decorations are maintained until January 6th, the Kings’ Day, when church or neighbours groups get together and walk around the neighbourhood singing and asking for a donation. That is called “Janeiras” and symbolizes the end of the festivities.
 Merry Christmas | Feliz Natal
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
