Last night we trolley-hopped down to the "old city" to see "Navidad en el Sucre", a free Christmas concert at the Teatro Nacional Sucre. The show featured two children's choirs accompanied by professional musicians, including an Andean instrument ensemble and a guitar ensemble. The Andean flutes were particularly impressive, some being over five feet tall (only a few inches shorter than the musicians in most cases)! An Andean flute looks like this and produces a beautiful, soothing sound.
We enjoyed listening to Spanish Christmas carols, including classics such as "Rudolfo el Reno de Nariz Roja" (who, in some versions, has a nose like a tomato)and "Blanca Navidad." Here is Andrea Bocelli's rendition of "White Christmas" in Spanish:The Christmas concert was a great way to kick off our Christmas holidays, which started today. We're both looking forward to a relaxing break (not to mention sleeping in past 6 a.m.) and the chance to get a glimpse of a few Quiteńo holiday traditions. Here is some information on what Christmas is like in Quito.
Today, December 6th, marks the anniversary of the founding of Quito in 1534 by the Spanish conquistador, Sebastián de Benalcázar. It was interesting for me to see that while the country celebrates its independence from Spain every August, the city of Quito celebrates, with equal enthusiasm, the conquering of this city by the Spanish in the 1500s. We decided to stay in the city for this long weekend and check out the festivities - and I'm glad we did. Some highlights:
A 6-hour long parade along Shyris, one of the main avenues, featuring marching bands, Flamenco dancers, papier-mache giants and an endless number of merchants selling homemade ice-cream, potato chips, and cotton candy (on enormous poles, of course).
