Christmas, Is That You?

December 26^th, 2019

8:34 P.M. Montevideo, Uruguay

Merry Christmas from the southern hemisphere!

This holiday season was definitely unusual, but it was a good unusual; a new experience to say the least.

You don’t even have to be a close friend of mine to know that I absolutely love cold weather. Spend five minutes with me during spring (not even summer) and I will be complaining about how hot it is. Well, what a shock to my system to leave the United States during summer and come to Uruguay when summer was just beginning, resulting in a very sunny holiday season.

The last few months of the year are usually my favorite for a few reasons:

1.     Cold weather resumes and insects go back to hell where they belong. (I’ve had quite the “experience” with cockroaches here.)

2.     School usually begins, and I absolutely love school.

3.     There’s at least 1 holiday in each month. (October has Halloween, November has my birthday and Thanksgiving, and December has Christmas and New Years.) It really is the best time of the year!

This year I was in a position where almost none of these things happened, or at least they happened in ways unfamiliar to me.

I’ve learned that cockroaches are a regular occurrence in summer, and I’ve been told to “relax” many times, to which I respond, “Yes, but I don’t think you understand just HOW terrified I am of any bug, let alone a large, crunchy, indestructible, flying satanic creature sent from the depths of hell. (Have I made my point?)

Cockroaches aside, I didn’t start school this year, and Halloween, comparatively, isn’t much of a thing here, as it’s only become popular in the last few years due to the influence of Halloween movies from the United States.

Even though Halloween was a bust, I had one of the best birthdays I’ve ever had in my whole life. Everyone here made it so unbelievably special, and I am so grateful for the community that cares so much about me. I attempted to cook a nice vegetarian Thanksgiving dinner for my friends here, but if you’re not watching the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade or the Annual Dog Show afterwards, followed by every Thanksgiving episode of Friends, is it even Thanksgiving?

Needless to say, I walked into the grocery store the first week of December and saw that they had put up Christmas decorations and were starting to sell fake Christmas trees. My first thought was, “Isn’t it a little early for Christmas?”, not realizing that it was, in fact, not early in the slightest.

While the United States probably goes a little overboard for Christmas, I actually found myself missing the hustle and bustle of the season, not to mention the snow! Plus, I never got to watch my favorite Christmas movie of all time, Home Alone 2: Lost in New York. Very important.

It didn’t really feel like Christmas until I went to a Christmas concert at the Central Methodist Church of Montevideo where I got to listen to wonderful music sung by the Gay Men’s Choir of Montevideo.

Live Noche de Paz

 (If you have Facebook, here’s a link to “Noche de Paz” [which is Silent Night, but strangely was sung in German?], and it was absolutely INCREDIBLE.)

Leading up to the big day, which in Uruguay is the 24^th, not the 25^th, I spent my days at the beach, just a few blocks from my house.

For Nochebuena, or Christmas Eve, Ivette (a fellow GMF) and I were invited to the home of Pablo and Adriana, the most wonderful and caring people, whom I like to think of as my Uruguayan parents. We spent the evening with a lovely dinner, played board games, and at midnight we went outside to watch the fireworks.

I really like this tradition. We just stayed outside for a little bit watching the sky, giving out hugs, and wishing one another, “Feliz Navidad!” After, we came inside to open presents and listen to music, and by the time we ended it was very early in the morning! 

When I woke up on the 25^th (after quite the late night), I facetimed my family as they continued our tradition at home opening presents on Christmas morning. Even though I’m thousands of miles away, it actually didn’t feel that different. I felt like I was there with them. Christmas music was playing in the background, my dad was attempting to save the wrapping paper so he could use it for next year like he does every year, and my mom was temporarily getting up every 10 minutes to check the Christmas dinner she probably spent days preparing for. (Also, let it be known a Christmas miracle occurred, and Tobi, our dog, recognized me through the phone. Yes, I think I was more excited than him.)

The afternoon was spent at Ruth and Diego’s house with tea and cake. Their house has become a bit of a refuge for me during these past few months. Diego is from Uruguay and Ruth is from England, so both of them are fluent in English and Spanish. Not to mention that Ruth is an incredible cook/baker! Whenever I walk in the door, I yell, “I’m home!” and then Ruth usually puts me to work grating the carrots, a job she’s convinced I’ll get tired of by the time I leave. 

Every year they also have a choir come to sing at their house for Christmas.

And she has a new kitten!

In the evening, I went to the house of my German friends where we cooked dinner, listened to music, and talked for the rest of the evening! 

(And apparently we were having a lot of fun because I only got this photo of my friend Kari and I waiting for the bus in the rain!)

Even though it was a strange holiday season, and it didn’t really feel as “Christmas-y” as it normally does, I am so incredibly blessed to be in this beautiful country and be surrounded by people that love me like family.