Three Kings Day: A Spanish Christmas Tradition

Throughout Spain tonight, millions of little children will fall asleep and dream of the wonderful gifts that the Three Kings will leave in their shoes for when they wake tomorrow morning on Three Kings Day (Dia de Los Reyes).  

Three Kings Day (January 6) which falls twelve days after Christmas, celebrates the arrival of the Three Kings (Los Tres Reyes Magos - Three Wise Men), Caspar, Melchior and Balthasar into Bethlehem on the night Christ was born.  

However, the celebration begins in early December when children write letters to the Three Kings asking them for gifts and telling them of their behavior throughout the year.

On the eve of the 5th, however, the Three Kings parades are held throughout Spain, and this evening we, along with a few thousand Americans and Spanish joined in the celebration in the town of Rota.  

At 5:00pm precisely the marching band started playing and then continued to lead the spectacular array of adorned floats complete with HARD candy pelting children, throughout the streets of Rota.  

Each float blasted out Spanish Christmas music while adorable children dressed in traditional costume pelted and I mean pelted from above, that hard candy Grandma's like to hand out, into the eager crowd.  I took at least five or six to the head.  

I immediately retracted my 'look at the crazy woman with an upside down umbrella' statement!

The parade of floats and musicians itself was small, however, as it continued to weave throughout the streets of Rota, the moment that it passed one area and bags were full of candy, stuffed toys and balls, people would high-tail it across the block and wait for round two, three, four....  

We made it to round two.

The Spanish, as I've seen before, are, lets just say committed when it comes to obtaining free goods. And I truly mean committed in a crazy a*s will beat down a three year old or grown man, in WWF style wrestling technique to get their hands on a 50 cent plastic beach ball or toy car!   

It was bloody fabulous though in a crazy a*s kind of way - what man will do for a piece of sugar or plastic!

The atmosphere, the music, the floats, the bruises, and the bag full of candy we hoarded was unbelievable, but by far the most exquisite part of the evening was yet to come.

Of course it has to be food, this is me!

'Roscon de Reyes' (King's Ring) an unbelievably light sweet bread cake filled with fresh cream, drizzled with a sweet citrus-like glaze and adorned with brightly colored candied fruit and sprinkled sugar, that we devoured in minutes.

  

Inside each exquisite cake is hidden a dried fava bean (my bite) - which means that I have to buy the cake next year- and a king figurine (Chad), which means that he's King for the Day!

So, now as the parade has ended, and the last piece of candy is picked up off the street, as it falls just after midnight, most children should (this is Spain) be asleep by now and their shoes be left by the door let the Three Kings know how many children live there.

And just as I leave Vegemite sandwiches, a glass of milk and some carrots for Santa and his reindeer, the children in Spain leave grass and water for the camels and something to eat for Caspar, Melchior and Balthasar.  

Remember the Three Kings have travelled all the way across the desert to reach Spain.

Then, come tomorrow morning, the 6th (Three Kings Day), the children will excitedly run to find presents in their shoes and while they play with their toys, the families and friends gather to celebrate another year.

I love Spain!

Crikey!