After Chistmas, we were learning about Spanish Christmas traditions: The three wise men parade and 'Las campanadas'.
1. Los Reyes Magos / The three wise men
According to Christian beliefs, a group of distinguished foreigners who visited Jesus after his birth, bearing gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. They are regular figures in traditional accounts of the nativity celebrations of Christmas and are an important part of the Christian tradition. Their names are:
- Melchior (also Melichior[7]), a Persian scholar
- Caspar (also Gaspar, Jaspar, Jaspas, Gathaspa,[7] and other variations), a Indian scholar
- Balthazar (also Balthasar, Balthassar, and Bithisarea[7]), an Arabian scholar
2. Cabalgata de Reyes
La cabalgata de Reyes / The Cavalcade of Magi is a traditional parade of kings coaches, practically in all Spanish cities and also in some cities and towns in Mexico. The Magi (of which tradition holds there were three: Melchior, Gaspar, and Baltasar) ride through the streets, as their page boys throw candies to children.
It is celebrated every January 5 (the day preceding the feast of Epiphany) in the evening. When the night comes the children must go to bed early after cleaning their shoes and the following morning they have the gifts of the Magi that they have requested before in a letter. According to this tradition, the children who have behaved badly during the last year receive coal candy rather than toys.
The great cavalcade of Madrid is retransmitted live on TVE 1 (the public Spanish broadcaster) every year. The cavalcade of Alcoy is the oldest in the world and is a major draw of international tourism for Spain.
La cabalgata de Reyes
