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The lights are up, the trees are decorated, the shoppers are out in abundance and the cookies are baking. It's that time of year again in the U.S. of A. The holidays have arrived ACK!

Here in the US, this time of year is associated with cold weather and snow, even in the southern states that hardly ever see snow. Santa's always bundled up in his thick winter suit, and people start to dream of a white Christmas.

Here's my question: What does this time of year look like south of the Equator, where the holidays fall during the summer? Does santa run around in a Hawaiian shirt and swim trunks on a surf board? Are songs like Jingle Bells, Winter Wonderland, Let it Snow, and the like, popular holiday favorites like they are here? I really am curious about this. Whetu already gave me some ideas about it.

If you live in Australia or New Zealand, what do your decorations (if you celebrate) look like? What are your Christmas/holiday traditions? I'd love to see some pics!

Maybe I'm crazy for wondering all this, but I'd like to know

><>Dani<><

Funnily enough, Australians seem to keep on pretending that it's winter at Christmastime. We sing mostly the same carols, have the same decorations (often we'll even use fake, spray-on snow!), Santa wears a heavy suit (pity all the people who have to play Santa over here!), and we eat hot food for lunch. Of course, there'll always be some Australianisms like a christmas bbq or having seafood, there's always stone fruit and instead of drinking egg nog, we're more likely to go through gallons of cordial and soft drink. And you can bet that christmas lunch will be held at the home of whichever family member has a pool in their backyard.

Of course, that's a big generalisation, so I'd be interested to hear how other Aussies tend to do it as well. Personally I know my family has largely given up on the big cooked lunch, because it means some poor person has to cook all day in the unbearable heat. We'll sit around eating cold salads, fruit and dipping into the Esky for cold drinks.

The only way to get rid of a temptation is to yield to it. - Oscar Wilde

In the same vein as the previous post I would like to know if people go to the beach on Christmas day. I often hear this cited but am still to meet one single person who's family packs up and goes to the beach for the day.

Of course if you are a local & your day often starts with a surf that is different.

However, I have not met anyone who says on Christmas day they go to the beach for the day with kids, gifts, and a bbq. Mostly it is a family day with visiting and gifts and church (on the day or midnight mass) for some.

There are a few other threads talking about this theme...

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~~~ My fish blow kisses at me all day long ~~~

OK what else can anyone tell us about Christmas down under? I'm interested my self...be great to share with the kids on Friday before we go on winter break...Heidi

"I've got a great ambition to die of exhaustion rather than boredom." Thomas Carlyle

..."Six white boomers, snow white boomers,
Racing Santa Claus through the blazing sun,
Six white boomers, snow white boomers,
On his Australian run."...

Well it is true that the family member who has the pool is the lucky one to host! YES that is so true.

Someone times it is a big lunch thing sometimes it is a big dinner thing. This year we are having the big lunch. We will have both hot and cold dishes. Turkey, Chicken....

Triffel will be on the table as well for desert. A little bit of seafood as well and salads as well.

Softdrink will be on the menu as well as alcohol for those who can drink it! Then an afternoon swim and we all jsut hope we don't sink from all the food we have eaten.

Then the next few days we just eat leftovers! There is always lots of them!

My Sis has invited me to spend an "X-treme X-mas" with her this year. It seems this will consist of boogie-boarding, rock goggling (snorkelling around the rocks at the front of her place), mountain biking and feasting. Last time we spent Christmas together we had a back yard BBQ with locally-collected seafood and lots of salads.

A fairly normal Christmas for me involves a BBQ or a picnic, back yard or beach games, and lying around in a hammock or on a blanket under a tree. Next year's going to be an abnormal Christmas building mud brick houses in Ghana, but that's another story.

As for the decorations, the really wintery ones seem to be commercial. Shopping malls have the snowy tinselly thing going on and poor old Santa in his winter woollies!

Also the older generation tends to stick to the English Christmas idea, sending out cards with pictures of snowy pastures, reindeer, mittened-up children..... but the younger ones are more likely to decorate their homes with Pohutukawa blossoms and if Santa visits he'll be dressed in board-shorts and sunglasses

The pohutukawa - the New Zealand Christmas Tree



whetu attached this image:

We get that wintery experience by visiting the air conditioned shops. I was FREEZING last night, wish I had taken a cardy with me.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~ My fish blow kisses at me all day long ~~~

Gee, its not Xmas unless its AT LEAST 35*C!

We do Xmas trees (the cone-shaped ones)

We are BIG into lighting displays and there are many awards for best decorated house.
[link=http://www.loxtonlights.com/]http://www.loxtonlights.com/" style="COLOR: #000000[/link]

We do have the traditional foods, but usually we have them cold, as hot ovens really arent brilliant. cold seafood and BBQs are popular

We have native Xmas plants (Christmas Bush -red/pink one- is the one I'm most familiar with)
[link=http://www.anbg.gov.au/christmas/]http://www.anbg.gov.au/christmas/" style="COLOR: #000000[/link]

MORE LINKS:

[link=http://www.rochedalss.qld.edu.au/xmas/austchristmas.htm]http://www.rochedalss.qld.edu.au/xmas/austchristmas.htm" style="COLOR: #000000[/link]
[link=http://www.global-christmas.com/scripts_en/world/australia/main_australia01.html]http://www.global-christmas.com/scripts_en/world/australia/main_australia01.html" style="COLOR: #000000[/link]

OH, and the BEST Xmas song
(to the tune of Dashing Thru the Snow)

Dashing through the bush,
in a rusty Holden Ute,
Kicking up the dust,
esky in the boot,
Kelpie by my side,
singing Christmas songs,
It's Summer time and I am in
my singlet, shorts and thongs

Oh! Jingle bells, jingle bells, jingle all the way,
Christmas in Australia
on a scorching summers day, Hey!
Jingle bells, jingle bells, Christmas time is beaut!,
Oh what fun it is to ride in a rusty Holden Ute.

Engine's getting hot;
we dodge the kangaroos,
The swaggie climbs aboard,
he is welcome too.
All the family's there,
sitting by the pool,
Christmas Day the Aussie way,
by the barbecue.

Oh! Jingle bells, jingle bells, jingle all the way,
Christmas in Australia
on a scorching summers day, Hey!
Jingle bells, jingle bells, Christmas time is beaut!,
Oh what fun it is to ride in a rusty Holden Ute.

Come the afternoon,
Grandpa has a doze,
The kids and Uncle Bruce,
are swimming in their clothes .
The time comes 'round to go,
we take the family snap,
Pack the car and all shoot through,
before the washing up.

Oh! Jingle bells, jingle bells, jingle all the way,
Christmas in Australia
on a scorching summers day, Hey!
Jingle bells, jingle bells, Christmas time is beaut!,
Oh what fun it is to ride in a rusty Holden Ute.



For animals, the entire universe has been neatly divided into things to (a) mate with, (b) eat, (c) run away from, and (d) rocks. - Terry Pratchett

A Kiwi Christmas

Twas the Night before Xmas and all through the bach,
Not even a weta was making a scratch.
Woolly socks were hung by the pot belly with care,
In the hopes that Santa soon would be there.

The children were snoozing in a light summer's breeze,
Whilst dreaming of spongy pud and lime green cream freeze.
And dad in his walk shorts and me in my jandals,
Had just settled down for a couple of handles.

When out on the lawn I heard such a ruckus,
I sprang from my Lazy Boy to see what the fuss was.
I ran to the sliding door, gasping and wheezing,
Threw open the curtains and upped the venetians.

The moon on the sand and the Trailer tarp,
Lit the beach up just like Eden Park.
But still when I saw, I thought I was asleep,
A miniature Kingswood, pulled by eight tiny sheep.

With a little old driver, sipping a Fanta,
I knew in a moment, it had to be Santa.
Faster than Phar Lap on steroids they came,
And he coo-eed and shouted and called them by name.

Now, Kevin! now, Sharlene! now, Rangi and Beck!
On, Darryl! On Shazza! on, Bilbo and Shrek!
To the top of the Pagoda, to the top of the wall,
Get in behind, Get in behind, Get in behind, All!

As sandflies around a bar-b-que fly,
When they sniff the sizzlers and take to the sky.
So up to the top of the bach they flew,
With a boot full of toys and Santa Claus too.

With a handbrake stop, they arrived on the roof,
Four Goodyear tyres and 32 hoofs.
And as I quickly turned and ran to the lounge,
Out from the chimney Santa came with a bound.

He was wearing boardshorts, and gumboots on foot.
And his Mambos were covered in six-month-old soot.
A bundle of toys he had on his back,
As if on OE with a brand new Macpac.

He looked like he'd come from the beauty parlour,
With rosy red cheeks like pohutakawa.
A gorgeous big grin and white as white hair,
With wee little tufts growing out of his ears.

He had a broad chest and a round beer gut,
That shook when he laughed like Jabba the Hutt.
He was chubby and plump, a right jolly hobbit,
And I laughed when I saw him, I just couldn't stop it.

He gave me a wink and a bonza thumbs up,
And I quickly realised he wasn't a nut.
He went straight to the socks without saying a thing,
And filled them with barbies and Shrek 2 keyrings.

Then giving his nose a jolly good scratch,
He flew up the chimney with an almighty flash.
He jumped in the Kingswood and cranked the ignition,
And then they took off, like some NASA mission.

But I think I could hear, as he drove out of sight
"Merry Christmas to all, have a bloody good night!"

*hogs thread*

oooh Calla I've been to Loxton in winter! Crikey it was cold! My other enduring memory is that they have pelicans in the Murray River.

Please note that the Australian Christmas tree is described as "parasitic." In the spirit of Christmas I will refrain from further comment

and its usually hazy from the fires.

A miniature Kingswood, pulled by eight tiny sheep

This is neat! I'd love to spend a Christmas down under just to experience it. Sounds fun.

><>Dani<><