San Pedro Christmas

When you go downtown San Pedro there is a “town square”.  It is right on the Caribbean and has a small playground area for the children.

To prepare for Christmas the town built and decorated a large Christmas Tree in the square.

Many of the people who operate the stores downtown live above them.  So, in many cases, the Christmas decorations are above the stores.   It seems the more lights the better.

 

At the north end of the square is the Catholic Church.  One night when we were downtown they had a parade down Front Street to the church.  The people were carrying candles and singing songs in Spanish. 

When they came to the courtyard of the church they formed a large circle and the priest said something in Spanish, the people responded in Spanish, and then all went inside.  It did not seem right to take pictures right then so I went back later and took pictures of the church.

Another evening the church had a bazaar to raise money for new pews. 

They had many games for the children like fishing, and throwing balls to knock over the pins, breaking balloons with darts, etc

They had all kinds of food and we had a chicken tamale and a bacon wrapped hot dog.   They also had a large table of baked goods

The large plate of red stuff at the front of the picture had a sweet, coconut flavor and was the consistency of jello made with milk.   The desert table was a favorite of the children.

The downtown area has many restaurants and bars for the tourists. 

However, the people seem oblivious to this and continue to use this area for family activities.  There are always children present.  I can’t recall ever seeing a policeman.  And you feel completely safe.  At night, with all of the lights turned on, you can feel the Christmas spirit even though the weather is warm and you have on shorts and sandals.

We ride our bicycles home after dark and have never had an incident of any kind.  When we got home last night our neighbors had decorated their home.

It is a good feeling.