As the rowdy and imaginative open air nativity plays of the 16th century were phased out and banned, people tried to compensate for this loss by introducing their own "paradise" in their homes. The "Paradise Tree" was born and was decorated in elaborate ways to symbolise the Garden of Eden. In the shared spaces (condo) of the city's apartments today, the Christmas Tree is designed to reflect the social status, wealth and power of its inhabitants, capture the annual ritual, allowing us the opportunity to guess te identity of the condo residents.
