School Mircea Eliade Pitești MERRY CHRISTMAS! CHRISTMAS AROUND THE WORLD IRINA DUMITRAȘCU School Mircea Eliade Pitești

GREAT BRITAIN Father Christmas is the name of the gentle old man who brings gifts, and the wish at that time of the year is Merry Christmas! The English people enjoy singing carols, playing games and decorating their houses. Children get their presents in stockings by the fireplace or under the tree.

AUSTRALIA Santa comes on a surfboard or riding a whale! Christmas comes at 30˚C. The Australian people decorate their houses with greenery and the Christmas tree is a specific plant called the Christmas bush. Santa comes on a surfboard or riding a whale!

JAPAN Children get their presents by the bed, not under the tree. Santa Kurohsu is the one who brings their presents. The Japanese are Buddhist or Shintoist, not Christian, so the holiday is just a commercial one.

EGYPT The Egyptian people celebrate Christmas on January, 7th. Santa Claus is called Baba Noel. As there are no fir trees in Egypt, they adorn palm trees and their traditional dishes are fata (rice and meat) and kaik (cookies). During the religious service, the Christians get Qurban (a loaf of bread that has got a cross in the middle and it is surrounded by 12 dots, the symbols of the 12 apostles.

RUSSIA Santa Claus is called Father Frost (the bringer of cold weather and the protector of those who lose their way in the forest). Christmas is celebrated on January, 6th, according to the Julian Calendar. Kutaya is the cookie that is eaten on Christmas Eve (cereals, honey and ș and poppyseed).

THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA Santa Claus is the one who brings presents to the children and the wish is Merry Christmas! The traditional Christmas meal / dinner contains roast duck / turkey and Christmas pudding. Americans decorate their houses with a lot of lights, garlands and wreaths. They even have contests about that.

Nothing compares to Christmas spent in the Romanian villages Nothing compares to Christmas spent in the Romanian villages. Christmas carols talk about the Birth of Baby Jesus. Did you know that boys are the ones who first step into someone’s home to make the wishes? It is thought that it brings wealth and good luck for the year to come. On Christmas Eve, people have to return the things they have borrowed and the cattle are oiled with garlic to chase away evil spirits. If the animals sleep on their left side on Christmas Eve, there will be a long and harsh winter. The fire in the stove cannot be put out on The Holy Night. That is why people burn a thick log. ROMANIA

FINLAND Finland is Santa Claus’s homeland . Finnish people live in harmony with nature and they are jolly and talkative during the summer and quiet in winter. Besides the gifts he brings to the children, Santa leaves them a letter, too. He signs Joulupukin, his Finnish name. They eat ham, liver pate, turkey and fish at Christmas.

MEXICO Mexican children get presents twice: in December and on January, 6th when the presents are brought by the Three Wise Men, not by Santa. At Christmas, Mexican people have ceremonies, religious services and processions that remind of Mary and St Joseph’s journey. Children sing Ave Mary.

SPAIN Hola, amigos! Spanish people call Santa Claus Papa Noel, Christmas is called Navidad, meaning birth. Children go out in the streets and sing around the mangers and their neighbours’ houses. For their effort, they get money and sweets. Christmas Eve is called Nochebuena, The Good Night.

Merry Christmas to you all!