Venezuela

emily = __**Venezuela**__ =

Venezuela was named for Italy's Venice by 15th century european explorers that found native houses on stilts above Lake Maracaibo. It's located on the northern coast of South America. The country consists of a continental mainland, and many islands in the Caribbean sea. The capital city is Caracas, and it's a spanish speaking country. There are about 27 million people that live in Venezuela. Venezuelan climate varies due to factors such as topography, altitiude, and direction of winds. The climate ranges from alpine to tropical humid, with the rainy season being from May to October. map fromworldatlas.com = __**Christmas Custom #1 **__ =

Venezuelans attend a daily early morning church service between December 16th and 24th. In the capital city of Caracas, it's customary to roller skate to this service. In many neighborhoods, the streets are closed to cars until 8 a.m. Also in Venezuela it's customary to go to a least one of the nine carol services that are observed in the country. These services take place in the mornings. From the large cities to the rural areas, people wake up early in the mornings to go to theses services. The worshippers are awoken by the sounds of bells and firecrackers. The final service is on Christmas Eve. After the service the families return home, have a big dinner, and exchange presents.

video [] =    __Christmas Custom #2__  =

An authentic Venezuelan custom is to display a nacimiento (nativity scene). It is the most important Christmas symbol. A more sophisticated nacimiento is called the pesebre. The pesebre is made by all the members of the family with whatever material they have on hand. They begin working on the pesebre in December and add to it every day. Once finished, it stays in place until the Feast of Candelaria on January 2nd. The pesebre represents an entire area with mountains, hills, plains, and valleys. The main point of the pesebre is the manger at Bethlehem. The pesebre is a framework covered with canvas and painted. Figures are carved for the scene from lightweight wood called anime. In addition to Mary, Joseph, the infant Jesus, shephards, wise men, and kings, they carve people and animals from everyday life to put in the pesebre. Pesebres may be small enough to sit on a tabletop or big enough to fill the living room.

image from navidaddigital.com

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"Venezuela." //Novelguide//. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Dec. 2011. .