Literary Arts Magazine Spring 2017 | Page 51

Traditions and Customs: Food in Venezuela Venezuela is a beautiful place, full of many traditions and customs in terms of food. Usually you can be invited to a family or friend’s house. Food is an important part of any invitation. It’s important that you know if someone offers you something to eat or drink, it is impolite to say NO, but yet you do not have to finish everything. People usually bring food or drinks. In Venezuela, we usually serve appetizers before the main course. Our typical main course is called Pabellon Criollo. It has meatloaf, rice, black beans and fried plaintains. Sometimes we serve a dessert after the main course. The favorite dessert of many Venezuelans is a chocolate brownie with ice cream. Usually when people finish, they never leave immediately. People might stay 1 or 2 hours, it depends on the host. In Venezuela, there are several important fesitivities, but one of the most important is Christmas. We frequently get together with our family. We prepare a typical meal called Hallaca, which has meat, white onion, pepper, and green olives. We usually dance to a song called Gaitas and drink an alcohol called Ponche Crema. As you can see, Venezuela is a place full of many beautiful traditions and customs. by Julio Jerez Photo:Wikimedia Commons/bocotruvzla 51