This year I had a very merry Christmas, Czech style. Tana, one of my fabulous coworker-friends here, very thoughtfully invited me to spend Christmas with her (adorable) family. Czechs do Christmas a little bit differently than we do in the States, with the most obvious one being that they celebrate on Christmas Eve rather than Christmas Day. But, they also have a vast collection of special traditions for the occasion. I'll try to give you the highlights in this post.
Above, you can see the nutshell boats. Each family member launches one (we did it in a bucket on the table, but the river is a popular place for this activity as well) and its a good sign if the boats all stay together... it means the family will too. All our little ships were rigourously tested by Daniella before use. Apparently its bad luck if one of them sinks!
Cutting the apples is another divination-oriented X-mas activity. You cut an apple in half, and if there is a star in the middle you will have good luck next year. (Spoiler alert: everyone gets a star).
Christmas cookies are a special favorite of mine. The white crescent shaped ones are perhaps the most iconic. Named "rolicek" (or little rolls, for the rolik bread they resemble) they are buttery and delicious and I don't even want to know how many I have consumed over the past week. Seriously, any numerical count would only horrify us all. I think "a lot" would be a safe estimate.
Melting lead is also traditional, although I think it was done mostly for my benefit. Playing with lead is probably not highly recommended for those at home in the States, but with a gift box this festive how can you not want to try? We melted the little bits of lead in the fire, then when its nice and melty you pour the hot metal into a bowl of cold water. The resulting shapes are then examined for (you guessed it) clues about your future. My results are below.
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