Christmas Caroling

Unless you've been Christmas caroling in Romania (or elsewhere in Eastern Europe), just forget whatever mental picture you might have based on the title of this post. I promise the experience here is different than anything you've experienced.

This is my third Christmas in Romania, so I've learned some important lessons. First of all, Christmas caroling here is an all-night experience (for the purists, at least). The first year, I showed up at church at 6, expecting to be home by 8, 9 at the latest. Since it had been a busy day, I figured I would eat dinner when I got home. Big mistake! This year, I made it home by 2:30 am (we're a little bit older and have a little less stamina than the purists!).

I've also learned to dress in lots of layers. Two years ago, I wondered if I would ever warm up after a long night of caroling. Last year we had a very mild winter, so it wasn't so bad. This winter is FREEZING! I was as prepared as possible...boots, scarf, gloves, long wool coat, 2 pairs of socks...and I still felt like an icicle. I came home and shivered for several more hours. Not sure if I can call that a lesson learned or not???

So, here's the night in pictures:

We drove around a lot in our caravan of 6 cars,



...we did some singing,




...and we were served lots of Christmas goodies and drinks.






I walked around all night with my big camera bag & alternated between the digital camera, the video camera, and my mp3 player (which makes decent audio recordings). Once in a while, I even put all 3 away and actually sang. I love Christmas caroling Romanian-style, though I must confess that one night a year is sufficient for me!