Chocolate Has Risen – Easter Info About Spain

Chocolate Mona for People In Spain

By Nancy Todd

The Easter Rabbit does not hippety-hop down the bunny trail for people in Spain so the godparents tote the load.  Godparents rank high on the Easter priority list as they bring  gifts to the children.

To add to the Easter celebration, or Semana Santa, schools close for a week.  Few people in Northern Spain attend church these days.  It is also the custom for families to gather for tapas or a light meal on Easter Monday.

In Granada, Seville, Madrid, and most cities in Spain, there are two traditional gifts that Godparents buy.   Elaborate cakes called monas, which are made of chocolate, can be huge.  Some are pirate ships or castles.  Other themes exhibited in the bakery windows are Mickey Mouse, Spiderman, fat chocolate eggs, motor cycles, and Obama images.

Easter - People in Spain

Flimsy, woven palm designs, called palmas, are you guessed it,  made of palm fronds.   Pale, beige palm designs can be as long as six feet and are usually bought at a florist or outdoor market.    Sometimes  you see these fronds twisted through balcony railings for weeks after Easter.  Chocolate cake or a palm thingy? I know what Regina and I, the Scoopette chocolate lovers would choose.

Heading out for tapas, after you eat chocolate,  to celebrate Semana Santa, Easter?  Check out The Spain Scoops suggestions on tapas restaurants:

Madrid Barcelona Bilboa Granada