sure, putting a christmas tree in your house seems pretty arbitrary considering the true religious context of the holiday. but beating a smiling, hollowed-out christmas log until it ?defecates? in your fireplace takes the celebration in catalonia to a whole new level.in catalan, tió de nadal is roughly translated to christmas log and is a widespread tradition in many parts of spain. according to catalan mythology, the christmas log brings small presents on christmas (big presents come from the three wise men) in the same way presents are placed under christmas trees in united states. originally, the tió de nadal was just a piece of dead wood, but now the log is often given a face with an attached nose and two little legs, along with a little red hat similar to a barretina.if it stopped right there, it wouldn?t be that strange. just another present-delivering vehicle adopted by a different culture. but it doesn?t stop there, that's only the beginning. it all starts on the day of the immaculate conception, december 8. tradition states that households begin to ?feed? the log every night starting then. the log is also usually given a small blanket during this time to keep it warm during the chilly weeks before christmas.
