The festive season of Christmas coincides with a «return» to normality, with classic traditional activities such as decorating the Christmas tree and the house and preparing the festive table, which is dominated by melomakarona, kourabiedes, and tsikoudia.
However, in areas of western Crete, mainly inland, one encounters traditions that date back centuries.
The Christ Bread
Christopsomo dominates and in every home, decorated bread is prepared. The traditional Cretan sweet bread is sometimes decorated with aleuria, animals, birds, ornaments with elements of nature made from flour, while others are simple with a cross and a walnut. Tradition has it that while kneading the dough, housewives sing «Christ is born, the light rises, the leaven is ready.».
The «wind gods»
One custom that is gradually disappearing is that of the «winds.» From Christmas Eve onwards, farmers, herders, and fishermen would say, «How the weather is fighting, and the winds, who will be born and who will be baptized.» Whichever wind prevails on Christmas Day will be the one that lasts until Epiphany and for most of the new year.
