When do puerto rico celebrate christmas

While Maestro Casals was not Puerto Rican, he moved to the island in , organized the Puerto Rico Symphony Orchestra, and began this annual tribute to classical music. Over the years, it has drawn some of the biggest names in the industry to Puerto Rico.

Puerto Rico's grandest food festival takes place in April each year. This tremendously fun event brings internationally renowned chefs and TV personalities from around the world to "compete" with local culinary stars. Past Saborea! Chocolate himself, Jacques Torres. The Ponce Carnival is the most celebrated and colorful festival on the island. It's also one of the oldest, dating back to the s. Locals and tourists alike descend on the island for the occasion, and the main draw are the vejigantes, which are costumed characters donning wildly vivid demon masks.

It's a fun, raucous event marked by thumping bomba y plena music, massive crowds, and hordes of masked revelers. This is a nutty, mock funeral procession complete with a dummy in a coffin led by drag queens and fake mourners. Run by 15 Knots Kiteboarding, the camp introduces young people to the sport of kiteboarding. In addition to the sport, it focuses on interacting with nature in a responsible way, and of course, getting plenty of exercise. The camp runs on a weekly format during June and July and includes:.

One of the Caribbean's biggest Jazzfests, this annual festival is a Jazz lover's dream. The open-air Tito Puente amphitheater in San Juan's Hato Rey district is the ideal venue, and the four-day concert brings together contemporary Jazz masters. The festival, held in late May-early June, was headlined by the legendary Arturo Sandoval. There are also jazz workshops for serious musicians. People like to drink 'coquito' a drink like eggnog made with rum!

Guests often bring the desserts. It's a bit like April Fools day where people try to trick each other. But in the town of Hatillo there's an old custom of a carnival on that day. Men dressed as King Herod's soldiers 'kidnap' children and people have to give the soldiers sweets and candy to get the children back! When the clock strikes midnight, it's traditional to eat a grape on each chime for good luck! Then everyone hugs each other and people celebrate the new year letting off fireworks and firecrackers and honk their car horns!

People then like to listen to a traditional poem called 'El Brindis del Bohemio' A Bohemian Toast which is played on the radio.

Epiphany is also a popular celebration in Puerto Rico. Children also hope that they be left gifts by the Wisemen and leave fresh grass in shoeboxes under their beds for the King's camels to eat. Children wake up early to check out what the Kings have left them! It means that the Day of Three Kings is a tradition of more identity for Puerto Ricans and even it comes from Spanish Christmas, it has unique characteristics.

The first of these peculiarities is the Three Kings go on horseback, instead of on camels like in the rest of the world. It is precisely for these horses that children put small boxes full of grass under their beds. The third peculiarity is the name of two of the Kings is different with regard to Europe. The festival or parade of Kings is celebrated in several towns on the island, however, Juana Diaz is the place where the tradition is more rooted.

In this southern village took place the first celebration in and since then, every January 6, men, women and children group together in the streets of the village to attend the feast of Epiphany and the parade of Kings will be the starting point of a journey towards other villages of the island to bring the Good News of the birth of Christ. This town even has a museum dedicated to the Three Kings. The Three Wise Men are not only considered as Christmas symbols, but also as a symbol of a very popular cultural resistance for the rest of the year, that is a reason for making works of art or precious artisanal carvings of saints.

Puerto Rico is characterized by doing things big hence the undue amount of bulbs and strings of fairy light that give the whole country a blinding print. Usually the illuminations encendidos take place in the main squares of cities and towns and are accompanied by cultural and family activities, traditional music concerts and even in some cases fireworks.

In addition, light ornaments illuminate not only the public spaces but also private houses and shopping centers they also make their Christmas lights.

During those days the traditional handicraft bazaars take over the city and it is frequent to meet groups of typical music in squares and markets. Another Christmas customs among the funniest are the famous parties parrandas which, even they decreased a lot because of criminality, start in early December. Once inside the house, they keep singing and playing their music until dawn.