We stayed in Santa Cruz de Tenerife for Christmas and discovered the elaborate nativity scenes that institutions and neighbourhoods make, each outbidding the other in size and complexity. The Canarian belén portrays imagined street scenes and trades of Bethlehem, and potters are often included. I liked these, with their small, perfectly made terracotta and maiolica pots, in the belén in the parliament building.
MARSHALL COLMAN 