Skip to main content

Featured Posts

Andalusia or Andalucía?

The autonomous region of Andalusia (Andalucía in Spanish) is in the southern part of Spain. It spans from Atlantic coast in the west to the sheltered coast of the Mediterranean Sea in the east and from Málaga's Costa del Sol to the borders of Castilla – La Mancha the famous flat lands and Don Quixote windmill country.  With an average of 300 plus days of sunshine a year the coastal area is an all year round destination. Not so in the inland provinces of Cordoba, Jaen and Sevilla which ha ve baking hot summers that can reach +40c and cold winters which can be 0c or less overnight. The Mezquita, Córdoba Andalusia is divided into eight provinces, each with a provincial city of the same name. Some of them are far more famous than others: Almería , Cádiz, Córdoba, Granada, Huelva, Jaén, Málaga and Sevilla. The three land-locked provinces are Córdoba, Jaé n and Sevilla, the rest are coastal. Each province and city is full of culture, history, traditions, fabulous monuments and cre...

Why do they Eat Grapes at Midnight in Spain?

Instead of dancing around singing Auld Lang Syne the Spanish tradition is popping a grape into your mouth at every stroke of the clock. Twelve strikes, twelve grapes. It may sound easy but pop in, eat, swallow and then pop in another one isn't as easy as it sounds. But why do they do it? I asked many Spaniards and nobody actually knew but the some had a rough theory.



Grapes at Midnight Tradition


The most popular story dates back to the early 1900s when a bumper harvest of white grapes led to producers sharing them out to one and all, and so began the tradition of popping grapes on New Year's Eve. Of course these days you can buy them prepacked, 12 to a tin or tub all ready for the countdown.

So why not give it a go? Large white seedless grapes and preferably a large mouth make for a quieter New Year's Eve as everyone is busy chewing, swallowing and popping. You have a few days to get in some practice before 31st December.



Happy New Year.

Popular Posts