The Hindu : Karnataka News : It's Christmas everywhere in Goa

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Saturday, Dec 25, 2004

Karnataka

Karnataka - Others

It's Christmas everywhere in Goa

By Our Staff Correspondent

PANAJI, DEC. 24. Goa is abuzz with weeklong festivities. This time it is Christmas. Houses and churches wear an elegant look with colourful lights while carols are sung on streets kindling the Christmas spirit.The nativity of Jesus Christ is celebrated with traditional joy and gaiety in Goa. The festivities cut across church limits and spill over to streets. It is the time for merry-making, exchange of gifts and savouring delicious cakes and puddings.

Christmas has been the most popular Christian festivals in this State, where Christians form 25 per cent of the population. The celebrations begin on the Christmas-eve with people attending midnight mass.

Market places are embellished with tinsel and buntings even as people masquerading as Santa stalk customers, particularly children, with gifts. Decorated and glittering Christmas trees are all over the place. A star made of wood and kite paper is hung outside the house.

Cuisine

Christmas means a lot of delicious cuisine too. Starting from fruitcake made of dry fruit and wine, the delicacies include a host of local sweets like neureos (stuffed dry fruit and coconut rounds), dodol (coconut and cashew squares) and coconut nest. The sweets are traditionally made at home and are sent in decorative baskets to relatives and friends a week in advance.

All members of a family gather at the house of the senior-most member on the eve of Christmas for a traditional dinner to strengthen the family bonds. It consists of turkey or chicken, pork sorpotel and pulao. Dessert consists of fruitcake and wine. The family winds its way to Midnight Mass after the dinner.

Christmas day is relatively silent and is spent with the family. Gifts for all the members of the family, visiting relatives and even family friends irrespective of their religion resemble the Christmas spirit.

Festivities

Festivities continue even after Christmas, sometimes beyond 10 days. Children sit with an effigy of an old man on New Year's night and collect funds from passers-by. Later, they burn the effigy at midnight, symbolic of putting the past behind and ushering in the New Year or the future. The Christmas season ends officially on January 6.

`Panaji Ablaze'

Entertainment Society of Goa and Primeslots Events have joined hands to set "Panaji Ablaze" for Christmas and New Year. Beginning on December 24, the programme features several cultural activities at the Corniche opposite the Old GMC heritage building. Renowned bands from across Goa would perform on the Corniche stage every evening from December 24 to January 5.

Panaji Ablaze, an event to light up the city, including houses, apartments, commercial establishments, streets, gardens, trees, etc., was launched on December 19 as part of Liberation Day celebrations. The State Bank of India has sponsored prizes for best lighting in three categories — houses, apartments and commercial establishments.

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