We were invited to spend New Year’s Eve with our American friends Paddy and Rebekah in nearby Moritinos. We had a good evening of conversation and sharing stories of our lives. As midnight approached, Rebekah suggested that we go back to Sahagún to join the locals in the Spanish traditional way of passing the midnight hour. In Spain, it is a tradition that one eats one grape for each time the bell tolls at midnight. Rebekah had laid in a good supply of grapes and we piled into their car to join the teaming crowds of New Year celebrants here in our new hometown.
Imagine our surprise when we discovered the main plaza (el plaza major) completely deserted—not one soul in sight. Surely, they must all be in the bars. But no, the bars were all closed. We walked around town not seeing anyone and ended up at the ancient city gate that is part of the ruined monastery from the ninth century. Finding no one, we decided to await the bells and observe the tradition among ourselves. Right on time, the bells tolled and we laughingly tried to keep up with eating twelve grapes in the space of twelve seconds. Rebekah took pictures to record the event and we wished each other Feliz Año Nuevo with hugs, handshakes, and kisses. Just as we finished, we began to hear the explosions of fireworks around town and the sound of many voices coming out into the streets. The party was just beginning! (To see the photos, go to http://moratinoslife.blogspot.com/ where you can read Rebekah's account.)
We are foreigners with imperfect understanding of our adopted culture. It appears that New Year’s Eve is a family affair here in Sahagún, and the party begins after midnight. This is in keeping with what we have observed in previous visits to Spain. There is a tradition called transnochar, which means to party all night. The matriarch of our Spanish family says that the more you sleep, the less you live. Spaniards will party all night, eat some breakfast, and go to work. Being foreigners and unaccustomed to Spanish culture, we had Rebekah and Paddy take us to our apartment where we drifted off to sleep accompanied by the sounds of fireworks and parties. Happy New Year everyone!
When I toured Spain our girl guide told us the Spanish people love to party. We saw an example of that in Morocco. A group of Spanish students used their table ware and danced around copying the Moroccan entertainers. They were more fun to watch than the real show because they were so exuberant.
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