Christmas in Tata

I came home to Tata after Thanksgiving, and things had gotten significantly more Holiday-ish.  I live near the roundabout that is in the center of town, and the fountain in it had been turned into an Advent wreath in four days.  The first candle was “lit” and everything.  There are now Holiday lights – oh what the hell, they actually are Christmas lights so I’ll call them that, all around town.  In my school, there are advent wreaths in every room – though it’s a surprisingly secular school.  When I asked the kids about the religious decorations everywhere, they told me that the Advent wreath is not a religious decoration, it is just a tradition and a symbol that people associate with Christmas. Hopefully later I will get some pictures of all the different wreaths at school – they are quite interesting.  Interesting – it’s a hugely Catholic country, though when I asked my kids how many go to church on a regular basis, four out of my total student body (of over 200) do.  I asked if their parents do, no more added to the total count – when I asked about grandparents, that’s when the numbers started to pick up.  Anyhow, it was an interesting conversations to have – about the lack of religion in Christmas.