Christmas: its aura and its lights 🎄

Christmas is a December celebration that encompasses much more than lights and garlands. It's a time that can vary according to the beliefs of each country and person, but it has a common denominator: it embraces the world with a message of hope, unity, and love.

Following @mipiano's suggestion for this month to talk about the theme and capture in photos the places that have captivated us, I intend to offer a variation. I will add to my photos and words images of this beautiful festive season in two other European countries that resonate with me: Poland, as it is my second nationality, and France, as it is the country of origin of my first surname: Brunet.

Cuba

In our country, Cubans spend this time of year in festive gatherings with their families. Those who can, put up a Christmas tree and some lights; others simply enjoy dinner, music, and drinks.

Right now, due to the long power outages we're experiencing, seeing those beautiful lights illuminating the day and feeling the music caress the surroundings is like playing Russian roulette.

I was able to write this very post using a power inverter because I've been without electricity for more than six hours.

Outside of homes, it's the hotels and private businesses that most prominently display the visible aspects of Christmas.

But Christmas has several facets beyond the sparkle of its lights, which can be summarized as follows:

Religious: Includes nativity scenes, carols sung by live choirs and accompanied by music, messages about the birth of Jesus and related themes. Masses are celebrated, such as the legendary Midnight Mass in churches, and the exchange or reception of Holy Communion is part of the celebration.

Creative and Cultural: Represents hope, renewal, and light in the darkness. Luminous decorations on small trees, with lights and garlands, symbolize renewal and hope, transforming darkness into light.

Family and Social: Includes gatherings, traditional dishes, and dinners in a family atmosphere, where peace and love ❤️ are palpable. The exchange of gifts can be a gesture of solidarity.

Every year, the Embassy of Poland in Cuba invites the Polish community and other guests to share 🫂 a delightful Christmas gathering in the days leading up to December 24th.

I'm sharing some photos taken a few days ago at that event, which graphically summarize what I just said:

For hundreds of years, Poles have shared fragments of the white Christmas host called "oplatek" as a gesture of reconciliation, love, and spiritual communion before Christmas Eve dinner, as shown in the following photo.

Traditional dishes and dinners are also an important part of this holiday. In Poland, beetroot soup or barszcz czerwony, pierogi, herring, bigos, żurek, pork, and other dishes are staples at this time of year.

In hotels, the decor will always be distinctive and creativity is paramount, where the Christmas tree is a must-have.

Poland

Now, let's fly to Europe to see real photos of the Christmas atmosphere in Warsaw.

France

Strasbourg

Hivers, now we're going to the place where Christmas has its roots, where the magic and Christmas spirit have been alive since its beginnings. We're going to Strasbourg, the capital of Christmas, with the oldest Christmas markets in France, dating back to 1570.

Among tourists and locals, Bredele biscuits and mulled wine sweeten and warm the palate, making Christmas a fascinating atmosphere where imagination makes you feel as if you were in a mythological fantasy film.

It is one of the most illuminated cities in Europe, where the air carries the scent of spices, stirring memories. Where the lyrics of Christmas carols fill the air from the churches.

In Kléber Square, the decorations and lights magnify the tradition, and the majestic 30-meter-high Christmas tree stands as the epicenter of attention and of the shots that immortalize the city.

Paris

Well, friends 🤗, thank you to those who read to the end. I wish you all: