Welcome
to a Greek-Norwegian Christmas on Skopelos!
When I moved here in 1983 I did not really know how life would
be! Specially when the summer season was ending!
The first Xmas was very quiet, it was hardly any celebration
or decorations.
We had our traditions and did our own Xmas, it was nice
but quiet!
Xmas day we were invited
to a Greek couple and had
a nice day!
They were not from here, but from Athens and Salonika, and for
them the pork steak was tradition. They did not have a proper
cooker in their house so he went and picked up his "tapsi"
at the local baker, Mitso, with the pork in it!
It was normal that when the baker had finished his
breads the
women in town came with their dinners to the "fournou"!
Our friends
lived inside of
own with little traffic.
Suddenly we heard
music
and a wedding procession
passed by. We saw them from
the
balcony at the 2nd floor.
It was many wedding that Christmas,
because 1984
was a leap year. It is bad
luck to be married
in a
leap year!
"Kalå Minna"
that is the greeting every 1st of the
month! It is good to hear, often we hear "Kalå Evdomada" on
Mondays; Good Week!
So remember in this Christmas
month to give a good greetings, learn from the Greeks - they have many good sides!
"Kalå Minna"
to you
wherever you
are
in the world!
The Christmas month is
here, yippee!
I love Christmas, I love
to start the decorations in my home, and I like for the second
time a year that the blue color has a rest;
Easter is yellow and Christmas is red and green for me!
I use some brass as well, that goes well with anything!
I feel safe with brass holders for my candles. Plus I have many
nice lanterns! This is the time for
"living lights"!
Christmas tree?
On top photo you can see what I had last year, yes all the
last years. A green plant in a pot on my roof terrace! I bought new lights for it last year, they should keep in any
kinds of weather, but just after the new year they gave up, so
also this year I will have to buy new!
I have to light my tree!
"So we light one light
tonight,
we light it for joy.
It stands there shining to itself
and for us who are present!
So we light one light
tonight,
we light it for joy."
That is freely translated from
a Norwegian poem by Inger Hagerup.
The poem has 4 verses one for
all the 4 Sundays before Christmas. The advent, as we call it in
Norway!
The
custom of lighting one candle for each Sunday of advent probably
comes from the Swedish bishop Nathan Søderblom who held a
sermon in Paris in 1886.