2500 years ago, on October 31st - long before Halloween appeared - the Celtic people were preparing to celebrate the end of another cycle. Samhain (pronounced “souen” and means “end of summer”) was a festival in which the Celts celebrated the end of the harvest, welcoming winter and difficult times ahead.
Observing this natural cycle of rebirth - in which nature “dies” to give way to Winter and is “reborn” again in Spring - made the Celts begin to reflect on their human condition.
It became a very spiritual and magical period for these people. Like nature, they believed humans could eliminate bad habits and begin a period of renewal and evolution of the soul.
This festival gave rise to the current “Halloween” which retains little of its original essence. Therefore, we feel it is time to recover a long-lost tradition.
On October 31st, we will celebrate life’s achievements and setbacks with those we love most.
The celebration begins at 7 pm. Dinner is at 8pm and reservations are required. The burning of the pieces of paper with what we want to leave behind at the bonfire will occur at 11:30 pm.
Some requests for those who come to Cerdeira:
- Come dressed comfortably and warm and feel free to dress up;
- Bring a pillow and a blanket to be comfortable during the ritual;
- Bring your mug or glass from home where you can drink throughout the celebration, and don't let it out of your sight! It has to withstand hot temperatures (clay, brass, or other resistant material);
- Collect a twig, stick, or piece of firewood in nature and bring it to Cerdeira so that we can all feed the sacred fire that will accompany us this night;
- Carpool to avoid crowds of cars in the Cerdeira parking lot;
- If you want to take a souvenir home or have a snack, please note that we will not have an atm or mbway service.
