Majorca marks Santa Lucia

The school held its 50th anniversary celebrations at the cathedral in 2017 and the event was such a great success they repeated it last year.

Vendela Mannberg is 15 years old and the oldest student at Palma Swedish School and she played the role of Santa Lucía.

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Getting ready for Santa Lucia in Palma

140 students took part in the event which ended with a concert which included Swedish songs, traditional Christmas songs, and Leonard Cohen's popular composition, Halleluja.

History

Santa Lucía was martyred for her faith way back in 304 and legend has it that she used to secretly feed Christians who were hiding in the catacombs under the city of Rome and wore candles on her head so that her hands were free to carry extra food.

Vendela Mannberg’s mother and younger brother followed the Santa Lucía Parade from Plaça del Cort to Palma Cathedral where at least a thousand Swedish people and hundreds of others watched the concert.

Santa Lucía Day is celebrated in Denmark, Norway, Finland, Bosnia, Croatia, some parts of Italy and of course in Sweden.