This page is dedicated to the celebration of Christmas throughout South America

~ Venezuela ~

In Venezuela, most people between December 16th and 24th will attend a daily early morning church service called Misa de Aguinaldo, or Early Morning Mass.

In the capital city Caracas it's customary to roller skate to this daily church service, and in many neighborhoods the streets are closed to cars until 8 a.m. for safety reasons. After Mass it's tradition that everyone gets and enjoys tostados and coffee.

On Christmas Eve before the children of Venezuela go to bed, they tie one end of a piece of string to their big toe and hang the other end out the window. The next morning, roller skaters that pass by give a tug to any string they see hanging to wake them up and announce its Christmas morning.