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Advent

The word comes from Latin “Adventus”, meaning arrival. Indeed it is the arrival of Little Jesus, and the Czechs prepare for the magical occasion by buying or making wreaths with four candles starting four Sundays before Christmas Eve. . At the end of each week they light one more candle on the wreath until Christmas week.

Here you will find centuries old traditions that you will love, especially in Prague. A multicultural metropolis, rich in history, culture, and folklore around mythical dragons, golems, and alchemical legend. It’s no wonder that Tolkien became the rage in Bohemia with all the vengeance of a Hobbit attack.  Thanks to an acclaimed translation by Stanislava Posustova, a librarian at Prague’s Charles University’s English department, who is also an independent translator. The Fellowship of the Ring finds newer and newer audiences around the Czech Republic.

That you would expect nothing less than a medieval feast to match, you will not be disappointed by the rustic nature of traditional Czech food – warm, hearty with ancient influences from surrounding European countries.

American Christmas has its own basics: Tree, ornaments, stockings by the fireplace, Santa Claus, presents, and a turkey feast. While more traditional families  observe religious rites, most of these traditions are vaguely European. But there are plenty of European Christmas rituals that are less familiar to adherents of American Christmas.

A jumble of pagan-influences, combined with old-fashioned regionalism, eureka, out comes a very delightful mix of Christmas customs–many of them connected to the traditional feast.

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