The city of New York inaugurated this Wednesday the Christmas time with the traditional lights on of the gigantic tree of the Rockefeller Center, although this year, for the coronavirusIt was a ceremony that only a handful of people could see live, and the rest of the fans of this event could only follow it through the television screen.
The protagonist of the night, a Canadian fir tree almost 23 meters high and 11 tons of weight that traveled to the Big Apple a little over two weeks ago from the town of Oneonta, more than 270 kilometers from the city of skyscrapers, It was illuminated with more than 50,000 multi-color LED lights. A huge star that was designed in 2018 by the architect Daniel Libeskind, and which is made up of about 3 million Swarovski crystals, also came to the fore, at the top of the treetop, so its weight amounts to about 400 kilos.
The Rockefeller Center Christmas tree after it was lit up during the 88th ceremony
To celebrate the lighting of the tree, several music stars joined in an event lasting about two hours, before the formal lighting, which took place at 22:00 local time (03:00 GMT).
Among the participants, the singer Dolly Parton, who performed the song Mary Did You Know, which is part of their new Christmas album, the band The Goo Goo Dolls, who sang the Christmas carol Let it Snow, Tory Kelly con Slay Ride, the a cappella singing group Pentatonix, with Amazing Grace, Gwen Stefani con You Make it Feel Like Christmas, and as a final culmination a performance of the famous Rockettes from Radio City Music Hall.
The curiosities of this year’s tree: a hidden owl and irregular foliage reflecting 2020
Despite the lack of public, there are several peculiarities that have led this Rockefeller tree to take over social networks this year, which took a long list of mocking comments for its patchy foliage in recent weeks, with jokes in the style that he has “cut his hair himself” and perfectly represents an abrupt 2020 marked by the pandemic and elections.
But above all, it caused a sensation due to the surprise it had hidden among its branches: a small owl that was found with the arrival of the fir tree in Manhattan after having spent two days traveling in a truck.
People try to take a photo of the Rockefeller Center Christmas tree under the watchful eye of the NYPD
Rockefeller O RockyAs the tiny 5-inch (12-centimeter) bird was baptized, it traveled more than 270 kilometers, despite which it was in good condition, “despite everything that had happened” when it was transferred to the Ravensbeard Wildlife for its recovery. Center, as reported by the center on its website.
The bird, an adult specimen of the Saw-whet species, was released a few days later after having been fed, and the video and photos of its arrival at the center in a cardboard box and then comfortably wrapped with a blanket, were shared by thousands of people and have helped raise more than $ 17,000 for the organization.
Ravensbeard Wildlife Centerse took care of the owl found in the Rockefeller Center Christmas tree
A tradition since 1931
The first Christmas tree to be installed at the site was erected in 1931 by construction workers on the site where Rockefeller Center was being built. The first formal Monday lighting ceremony took place in 1933, and the tradition has continued since then with some variations.
Sometimes there have been two pines in place, but in 1942 there were three, adorned with red, white and blue balls, to support the troops fighting in World War II.
The trees of that year and those that were placed on successive Christmases, until the end of the war, were not adorned with lights because of the regulations that governed the armed conflict.
The tallest tree that has been placed so far was the one that was installed in 1999, at 30.5 meters, originally from the town of Killingworth, in the state of Connecticut.
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