Christmas in Finland In Finland, Christmas is very important because Santa Claus lives there. On 13th December: The Finnish start buying the food, the cakes… and before Christmas they make ginger biscuits call “Piparkakku or Piparit”. These biscuits are very popular in Finland and they eat them on Christmas day. They decorate the houses with traditional Christmas things and they write Christmas cards. On the morning of 24th December: That time of the day the Finnish family get up early and they go to buy the Christmas tree. After buying the Christmas tree, they decorate the Christmas tree with little balls of flags of different countries, with symbols of friendship and many other things. On the night of 24th December: They receive the presents and they have a huge dinner with many types of food but especially they have fish. After having that huge dinner, they have the dessert with different delicious cakes and biscuits. They usually dress up the children with gnomo costumes. In that night the Finnish family usually goes to the sauna. On 25th December: They meet their family and they stay all day with their family. On 26th December: They meet their friends and they aren’t at home that day. On 6th January: Christmas finishes in Finland. That day they collect Christmas things.
Christmas at my grandmother’s house In my family Christmas is very important. One weekend before Christmas my grandmother, my cousins and I make ginger biscuits call “Piparkakku or Piparit”. My family can’t wait to eat that ginger biscuits, so we eat them the same day or during the week. On the morning of 24th December, we meet all of my family and together we clean my grandmother’s house. While we are cleaning, my grandmother is preparing the dinner for that night. After cleaning the house, my cousins and I decorate the Christmas tree. My family doesn’t buy a Christmas tree because we use a fake Christmas tree, since few years, as they say it´s more ecological. When we finish, we all go back to our own houses. On the night of 24th December we go back to my grandmother’s house and we have a huge dinner. Some years my cousin and I sing carols or we play the recorder for my family. Around one o’clock in the morning we go back to our houses. On the morning of 25th December we open our presents at my grandmother’s house. And the rest of the day we are with our family and friends and at lunch we eat stuffed turkey with baked potatoes and vegetables. We collect the Christmas’ decoration on the 6th of January and we don’t celebrate the three kings because it is my grandmother’s birthday. Nerea
Christmas in Australia Hello my name is Paulina and I will tell you how people celebrated: New Year´s Eve, Christmas, New Year´s Day in Australia. In Australia New Year´s Day is one of the first celebrations. celebration The weather temperature is between 25º to 40º , because they have Summer in January. Many people go swimming to the beaches dressed up as Santa Claus. They have a similar Santa Claus, but he is dressed with a hat, a blue brace and a loose short trousers. His name is Swag Man. On O New Year´s Eve, people meet to sing carol with his family on the light of the candle, and they celebrate it in parks, beaches, garden or picnics. They eat seafood, salad, cold meat and for dessert a pudding. In New Year´s Eve, when it is twelve o´clock on the 31th December, people celebrate it making noise, and there are a lot of fireworks behind the famous Sidney Opera House. ----------------------------------I have celebrated New Year´s Eve with my parents, we met et my sister and her husband, we ate at a banquet, then we had a talk in the afternoon. On Christmas Day, in the morning I opened the presents and later we visited a friend. On New Year´s Eve all my family helped help to cook Kau-Chi, it is a Chinese food made with flour flour and inside there are meat and vegetable. At nigth, we had a dish with pomelo leaves, because they bring good look. Then we ate a lot of food. Next, we ate the twelve grapes and we had a party to celebrate 2012. On the day of the three kings I opened the the presents. At night, we went to Benalmadena Centre to collect sweets.
In Holland there are two traditional Winter figure : Sinterklaas and Kerstman.
*Sinterklaas or also known as Sint Nicolas or de Goedheiligman is an elderly and serious man with white hair and a long beard. He wears a long red cape over a traditional bishop’s alb and sometimes red stola ond a red mitre and holds a gold-coloured crosier , a long ceremonial shepherd's staff with a fancy curled top and also has a ruby ring. He carries a big book that tells whether each individual child has been good or naughty in the past year. He traditionally rides a white horse. Sinterklaas has got a servant, called Zwarte Piet (Black Pete). A Zwarte Piet is usually an adolescent in blackface with black curly hair. He is dressed up in a colourful dress. Sinterklaas and his Black Pete usually carry a bag which contains candies for nice children. Sinterklaas traditionally arrives in the Netherlands each year in mid-November by steamboat from Spain. At his arrival, Sinterklaas parades through the streets on his gray/white horse, Amerigo, welcomed by cheering and singing children. His servant throw candies and small,round, gingerbread , like cookies , called “kruidnoten” or “pepernoten”. After this arrival , all towns with a dock celebrate their own “intocht van Sinterklaas” (arrival of Sinterklaas). In places where a boat cannot reach, Sinterklaas arrives in train,horse or even fire truck or carriage. Traditionally, in the weeks between his arrival and on the 5th of December, before going to bed, children put their shoes next to the fireplace chimney or fireplace. They leave the shoe with a carrot or some hay in it and a bowl of water for Sinterklaas horse, and the children sing a Sinterklaas song. The next they will find some candy or a small present in their shoes. On the evening of
the 5th of December, Sinterklaas brings presents to every child who has behaved well. This is often done by placing a bat filled with presents outside the living room, after which a neightbour or parent bangs the door or window, pretending to be a Zwarte Piet. On the 6th of December Sinterklaas goes again in steamboat to Spain. I celebrate Sinterklaas with my family and with sweets and presents . *Christmas: In the Netherlands the people celebrate two days Christmas.These are always on 25 and 26 December. People decorate their houses and many people have a Christmas tree. On 25 December there are presents under the Christmas tree. My family celebrates Christmas with the whole family and we have a big dinner on 25 and 26 December.
Lieve
Christmas in Switzerland. Christmas in Switzerland is the most important religious festival. Advent begins the forth Sunday before Christmas Eve. It is traditionally the time when believers will prepare for the coming of Christ. For children to better withstand the waiting time before Christmas, gift-giving days, parents often buy a Christmas calendar with 24 windows, each one has a chocolate for 24 days before Christmas. These advent calendars are part of the Swiss Christmas traditions, like the other part as Advent wreaths with four candles, one for each Sunday of Advent. The tradition of Klausjagen ("go on the hunt for Nicolas") takes place on 5th December in catholic regions of Switzerland. It is not so much a simple game, but rather a living representation and noisy with lights, horns and whips. Up to two hundred men wear white shirts and beards. Christmas Eve is a family holiday in Switzerland. It is the day of the meeting of all members of the family. An indispensable part of the celebration is the Christmas tree. Christmas in my house. On 24th December, my family and I went to Sevilla to see my cousins, my granparents and my uncles. In the evening, we began to prepare the dinner. The dinner was very nice, there were a salad, some shellfish, eggs with mushrooms and a big cake for the dessert. The dinner was fantastic! After dinner, my cousins and I watched TV, there was a good film. At 12 o`clock more or less, we went to sleep because on 25th December, we had to get up early to see the presents. There were many presents. At lunch, we ate a lamb. After lunch, we went to the park and played. Christmas in my house is fun. Marta
Christmas in the United States USA has it’s own traditions, and the religion is very present. Christmas in United States reflects the values of freedom. The holiday season in the U.S. traditionally begins after Thanksgiving Day. This day is to give thanks to the people who had been living in America before and taught them how to live on their land. Christmas is the occasion for a family reunion and throughout the country it creates an atmosphere of generosity . During the Christmas season in the United States, families decorate their homes for the holiday season with lights adorning the outside and small trees and bushes on your property. In many churches and houses they place cribs to commemorate the humble birth of Jesus. Other tradition is the national Christmas tree, there is one in Reckefeller centre , another at The White House, where the president of the United States lives. Many people exchange Christmas cards. On New Year's Eve, many cities have large outdoor parties, ending with fireworks at midnight.
Africa
CHRISTMAS IN GERMANY
Christmas in Germany is different from Spanish Christmas. Althougth the Christmas spirit is the same, a religious and familiar holiday. We should emphasize two big differences: in Germany they don’t celebrate the Three Kinas and the Christmas dinner is different. The big day for German people is the twenty-fourth of December. They have got a family meeting to have dinner. After dinner they have a family talk around the Christmas tree where the children hang a big Christmas sock that they Hill find full of Christmas sweets like marzipan and chocolate figures the next day. Next to the Christmas present they enjoy with the family.
David
Christmas in Morocco isn´t celebrated, but the Hagusa´s day is celebrated. The day before people go to sleep earlier because, the next day they have to wake up earlier. First, when they wake up they find full of nuts, sweets and gifts. Then they open it and play with them. Next they eat a normal meal in Morocco, cco, but I don´t know this dish, it is hot, a soup and spicy. Finally everyone goes home until next morning In my house, at Christmas night my family go to my grandmother´s house, because that night my grandfather died , we eat some sweets, nuts and meat. At twelve o´clock pm,, my family go to a bedroom and at the photograph. On New Year Eve my aunts, uncles and grandmother come to my house to eat the grapes, When the clock stikes twelve, twelve they eat the grapes. After that, that at twelve o´clock pm, we say Happy New Year. When the people ple go back to their house, I, my brother, father and mother, go to our bedrooms. Nasser
Christmas in Brazil Christmas in Brazil is a very important date, December 24 is one of the family days throughout the year, when the family is more united and when family members are away, back at this time to be together. It is a date that mixes the beach, the samba with good food for Christmas. It is traditional to eat turkey for Christmas. The turkey is accompanied by other dishes. Other foods such as farofa and Panettone, the Christmas cake is of Italian origin but Brazilians adapted it to the ingredients they had at hand and such fruits and chocolate are the main ingredients of this Brazilian paneton . They drink different drinks, but the most traditional are the fruit juices. The end of the year is one of the great moments that Brazilians wait for. They throw fireworks and play very high music in clubs until the morning.
Christmas in my house Christmas is a very special day for my family and for me, besides my grandfather especially remembers my grandmother. On 24th December we have a family dinner, on 25th we also eat out, with the family, on 31st December we have dinner again with our family and eat the 12 grapes, and on 1st January we celebrate the New Year, also with my family and then we go to a restaurant to eat. Melania
VĂctor 2.B
My family and I celebrate Christmas on December the 24th. We open presents after having dinner. I like Christmas because it makes me feel happy and relaxed.
In Denmark, Christmas is celebrated with the family. They have rice pudding. Inside, there is an almond, if you find it, you get a present. Before opening presents they dance and sing around the Christmas tree.