This is probably the biggest party I have ever attended for Christmas: Thomas McEntee's Advent Calendar of Christmas Memories. : )
Since we were a plain family not prone to partying, this is a stretch.
I haven't any pictures for this post, but I know many of you have Polish, Bohemian, or Czech backgrounds and will be able to visualize.
The year 1959, my parents and I went to my aunt's house in Albuquerque for Christmas. There, I had my first experience with a Wigilia Christmas Eve Party. My Uncle Stan's family was Polish. They were bigger than life. I had never been to a boisterous family gathering before. In my dad's family, it was relatively quiet other than chatter while working in the kitchen and children running around. Uncle Stan's family had great discussions, and loud speaking...I think to overwhelm the person they were "talking" with. If I had not know better, I might have thought there were a lot of disagreements going on.
The food was a traditional Wigilia Christmas Eve event. What I remember the most is the two dishes, Uszka and Barszcz. The taste was exotic to my mid-western fried foods taste buds. Not to mention the coloring. Beets were a side dish usually, sliced and/ or pickled for us. The Barszcz was pink! I had never had pink soup before. The taste was great.
52 years later, the Polish party at my Aunt's house stands out in my mind. Can't believe it is just now being written about.
Since we were a plain family not prone to partying, this is a stretch.
I haven't any pictures for this post, but I know many of you have Polish, Bohemian, or Czech backgrounds and will be able to visualize.
The year 1959, my parents and I went to my aunt's house in Albuquerque for Christmas. There, I had my first experience with a Wigilia Christmas Eve Party. My Uncle Stan's family was Polish. They were bigger than life. I had never been to a boisterous family gathering before. In my dad's family, it was relatively quiet other than chatter while working in the kitchen and children running around. Uncle Stan's family had great discussions, and loud speaking...I think to overwhelm the person they were "talking" with. If I had not know better, I might have thought there were a lot of disagreements going on.
The food was a traditional Wigilia Christmas Eve event. What I remember the most is the two dishes, Uszka and Barszcz. The taste was exotic to my mid-western fried foods taste buds. Not to mention the coloring. Beets were a side dish usually, sliced and/ or pickled for us. The Barszcz was pink! I had never had pink soup before. The taste was great.
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| Picture from Wikimedia Commons. |
52 years later, the Polish party at my Aunt's house stands out in my mind. Can't believe it is just now being written about.
What a nice memory to share and who would have thunk it....Pink soup!
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