Christmas marks the day of celebration of the birth of Jesus where the Christians around the Earth will enjoy. Though this tradition is from long time ago, the way that people festive the days are quite different.
Thence How is Christmas around the world celebrated?
Countries like South Africa or Australia, Christmas is celebrated quite differently. They go to the beach and do all kind of outdoor activities since most schools are having summer holidays.
In other countries though, you will see an "old school" white snowy Christmas. For example, you can see white Christmas in most part of Europe such as Italy, France, Britain, Denmark and so on and they mark the day of Christmas on December 25th, but the preparations start as early as from the 6th of the same month, which is Nikolaustag (Saint Nicolas Day). On the eve of that day all the kids place their shoes and boots, sometimes filled with carrots or straw, outside by the door. They believe when St. Nicolas walks pass by, the horses will be fed by the straws or carrots and Nicolas will rewards the kids with nuts and apples. Christmas in Germany is also marked by houses decorated with advent wreaths, the smell of bratwurst (German sausage), lebkuchen (savory cookies) and Stollen (fruit loaf). The Germans are smart group of people where they will do their shopping in the beginning of the month to avoid any crowds or expensive price after wards. One of the special gifts that the Germans will buy during Christmas is the prune man which is made of dried fruit and nuts. The kids write letters to Christkind (Christ Child), asking for presents and leave them on their windowsills.
But how other part of the globe enjoy their Christmas holiday? The Christmas celebration of Chinese is quite different to the Europeans or North Americans. Since Christians in China is a small group of people. For those who follows the Christmas holiday or called Sheng Dan Jie in Chinese, they will hang the paper chains lanterns and evergreens everywhere inside their houses or apartments. Families that follow the Chinese Christmas traditions put up a Christmas tree called "Tree of Light" and also decorate it with paper flowers, lanterns, and chains. The kids hang up muslin stockings, hoping that Dun Che Lao Ren (the Chinese Santa Claus) will fill them up with wonderful gifts. Even though the Chinese Christmas traditions are followed by relatively small group of people, most of the big cities are decorated during that time of the year and the atmosphere is festive.
Christmas around the world is celebrated in many different ways, the customs and the traditions are different, the food served is of great variety. In some areas the summer heat is on and the thermometers can go as high as 90 degrees Fahrenheit while in others kids play outside, making snowmen and other snow crafts. However, this is the time of the year to be with your family, have fun, play games, exchange gifts, and hope for a better tomorrow.
Wondering what to give for your friends or relatives this year Christmas? Visit christmas gifts 2009 now where we have compile a list of top 10 gifts so that you can rest your mind totally for the holiday seasons.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment