Italians Celebrate Festival of La Befana
- 12 years ago
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Italians celebrate the festival of La Befana, where a mystical old lady on a magic broom flies down chimneys and gives presents to children. The good ones get candy, the naughty ones get a lump of coal. Let's go to our correspondents in Rome.
An old lady flying on a broom comes down the chimney on the night of January 6th and fills the socks hung up by children. The good ones get sweets, the naughty ones get coal.
And the day after, the festival of La Befana is celebrated in Italy.
[Resident of Rome]:
"She flies on her magic broom across the starry skies also those of Rome, and brings children good and no-so-good things. Because the children have to learn to be good and approach the world with kindness. If they behave badly, la Befana will bring them coal."
[La Befana]:
"It is the story of the Magi, replaced with la Befana. It is a celebration of expectation and receiving a gift. It is a great rebirth of everyone in the heart."
A week before the festival children try to be good, they go to bed early and prepare a woolen sock attached to the chimney. The day of the feast the children are very happy and pleased with the gifts received.
[Francesca]:
"Sweets! Because even if we were a bit naughty, certainly with my brother Eduardo we managed to resolved many of our differences."
In times of great poverty, the figure of La Befana assumed a national character, where institutions or employers gave out packages containing basic necessities and toys to families in need.
NTD News, Rome, Italy
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Italians celebrate the festival of La Befana, where a mystical old lady on a magic broom flies down chimneys and gives presents to children. The good ones get candy, the naughty ones get a lump of coal. Let's go to our correspondents in Rome.
An old lady flying on a broom comes down the chimney on the night of January 6th and fills the socks hung up by children. The good ones get sweets, the naughty ones get coal.
And the day after, the festival of La Befana is celebrated in Italy.
[Resident of Rome]:
"She flies on her magic broom across the starry skies also those of Rome, and brings children good and no-so-good things. Because the children have to learn to be good and approach the world with kindness. If they behave badly, la Befana will bring them coal."
[La Befana]:
"It is the story of the Magi, replaced with la Befana. It is a celebration of expectation and receiving a gift. It is a great rebirth of everyone in the heart."
A week before the festival children try to be good, they go to bed early and prepare a woolen sock attached to the chimney. The day of the feast the children are very happy and pleased with the gifts received.
[Francesca]:
"Sweets! Because even if we were a bit naughty, certainly with my brother Eduardo we managed to resolved many of our differences."
In times of great poverty, the figure of La Befana assumed a national character, where institutions or employers gave out packages containing basic necessities and toys to families in need.
NTD News, Rome, Italy