Christmas in La Paz
You won’t see Christmas lights adorning most homes and buildings. As in Peru, which we’ve written about a number of times before, in Bolivia the manger scene is the center of celebrations rather than a Christmas tree or other decorations. Family mangers may have clay or wooden figurines, while community mangers may even use real sheep, donkeys, and people. The Andean Christ, more often referred to as the niño manuelito, appears in the manger on midnight of Christmas Eve.
The traditional dinner, and the explosion of 
booming fireworks and large firecrackers known as mata suegras (mother-in-law killers) knowset off throughout the cities, also take place on midnight on Christmas Eve, as this is the main day for South Americans, rather than the 25th. The day is mostly celebrated at home with family, though the most devout will attend midnight mass, perhaps bringing the baby Jesus an offering representative of their profession (little shoes from a cobbler, a little bread loaf from a baker). Aside from the Christian elements, there is also a pre-Columbian side to the celebrations that are reminiscent of a harvest festival of thanksgiving to the mother earth.
Despite the rising popularity of turkey, 
the most traditional dish for Christmas Eve is picana, which is a stew of varied meats, vegetables, and potatoes cooked with wine and beer. The next morning, Bolivians traditionally tuck into some hot chocolate and perhaps some bunuelitos fritters or the fruitcake standard, panetón. In Pirwa La Paz, we’ll be celebrating together on Christmas Eve, so feel free to stop by if you’re an orphaned traveler looking to share a Bolivian Christmas Eve dinner!