Christmas mysteries through the lights of Vigo

At the agreed time we will meet at the Praza Porta do Sol to begin our tour of the Abel Caballero lights that adorn the most characteristic streets of Vigo, we will begin by alluding to why we eat the 12 grapes today which are associated to celebrate life and joy, however, it was not always like this because the ritual of this fruit began in a burlesque way, where the middle class wanted to make fun of the upper social class. 

Next we will go to the Praza da Princesa to talk about an island in the Atlantic Ocean that appears and disappears at will, I will explain how you can see it, this story is closely linked to Christmas hope. 

Continuing along the illuminated streets, we go to the rúa Cesteiros, where of course we will gossip about how it was done in the old days and I will tell you the story of a regular tourist that the city of A Coruña boasts. This tourist is known as Lady Hester and was called the "Queen of the Desert" because everything she has been through in her life has led her to be a great traveller in order to forget her sad fate. 

Going down the street, we go to the famous Collegiate Church of Vigo where one night in April 1970 a neighbour went out to check what were those baby cries she heard from her house, when she arrived she realised that it was an abandoned child, who later received the surname "Expósito". His story is related to the Latin American country Cuba. 

Leaving this street, we go to the favourite place of all visitors, the street of the oysters, known as praza da Pedra, where we will talk about the project X that the Romans marked at this time, such as the Saturnalia. We will also refer to the Merdeiros, the day of the Holy Innocents and, of course, the carnival, as all these celebrities are more closely linked than we think. 

A walk? We go to the Jules Verne monument to talk about the Battle of Rande, which took place at Christmas in 1702. When the Anglo-Dutch troops were leaving the coasts of Cádiz with their heads down when they received a tip-off from the Portuguese, when they were informed that the largest shipment of treasure was going to arrive in the Ría de Vigo, and the rest is history... 

We cross the Christmas market and go to Pontevedra Street, where we will talk about the Yule, that is, the Celtic culture. If you look up this word on the internet you will find out that this celebration starts on the 21st of December and ends on the 1st of January. This festival is celebrated mainly in the deep Galicia where you can hear the sound of a bagpipe early in the morning and on that day, the only protagonists will be food and fun. 

We can't understand a good meal without a good dessert, so there we go, to the Policarpo Sanz street, where we will talk about the Saturnalia night, a night full of debauchery, jokes, alcohol, fun and food excesses. The problem came when the dessert was served, a sweet that had a round shape and a hole in the middle, where a small "agasallo", as we Galicians say, was placed. What happened to the one who found it? And to the others? 

But before the night of the Three Wise Men, we have to look for Santa Claus, so we are going to meet the Apalpador, and also the Pandingueiro and of course the trasnos trubincos, very scary creatures. 

However, the icing on the cake comes when we get to Rúa Progreso and I tell you what you have to do to become MILLIONAIRES this Christmas, or well, if you visit this tour after 22nd December, next year if you want. Do you know where I'm going? I'll tell you when the Christmas lottery started to be played, when the children of San Ildefonso started to sing it and a curiosity related to Christmas and the number 13. 

Once we finish we go back down and go to Sombrereiros street where we will talk about a church that has a curse in Galicia, which is half finished and anyone who dares to complete it in one way or another says CHAO CHAO, and that is where we finish our tour, in Chao street talking about old traditions and with a small theatrical performance. Does it sound interesting? Will you discover the lights of Vigo with me?