Dia del Amor y Amistad -- Colombian Valentine's Day

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Tomorrow is Colombia's Valentine's Day. Actually, it is called the "El Dia del Amor y la Amistad" the "Day of Love and Friendship". It is a traditional celebration in which friends, lovers, couples, etc. express their love for each other.

In Colombia, the Dia del Amor y la Amistad, is celebrated on the third Saturday of September. It was establish by law in 1969.

There is an interesting reason why September was chosen over February 14. Traditionally, Valentine's is celebrated around the world on the day that Saint Valentine was decapitated. So, in order to better reflect a day of LOVE rather than a day on which a tragedy occurrred, Colombia chose to celebrate on a day other than February 14.

As in most places, this day of Love is celebrated with cards, music, flowers and if you are lucky a serenade. Below is a link to a song that my husband dedicated to me on our first Día del Amor y la Amistad. It was chosen as the most beautiful song in Colombia during a contest held by RCN back in the early 1990's. It is called "El camino de la vida". It talks about love and family over an entire lifetime the lyrics are beautiful.

Comments

Tom & Carrie said…
Wandering the streets of Bogota this weekend I kept scratching my head trying to figure out what Dia de Amor y Amistad was! The first I saw it was at a restaurant so I was thinking it might have been a wedding party or something similar. Then it started popping up everywhere! Thanks for the explanation and history. Your blog is a wealth of information as always!
Carrie
September 22, 2009 at 6:46 PM
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