Christmas in Europe.

Europe Group.
Week 8: “How Santa Appear All Over the Earth? And What Are the Christmas Traditions?”

The Czech Christmas.

Christmas in the Czech Republic starts on 23 December, from that day majority of people are at home with their families decorating the Christmas tree. But even before that starts Advent. Exactly 4 Sundays before the 24 December, this is the fourth. The people create an Advent wreath with 4 candles, every Sunday one candle is lighted.

Christmas Eve 24 December. The Czechs starts the dinner approximately at 6 p.m. (it depends on family habit). Their first course is “Kuba” which is a hulled-grain with mushrooms. After that a special soup with nuts, apples, cloves and many other strange ingredients. The main course is a carp with potato salad. Then continue a tradition with cutting an apple. When is in the middle of the apple a star, it means a good luck in New Year. When there is a cross, it symbolise a death. After that some families eat sweets with tea.

After the dinner some family member rings a bell and entire family open presents. Some of the Czech traditions are not being held yet so often, so I haven’t mentioned it, but some 15 years ago it was really different, the importance of Christmas and its tradition.

By Patrik P., Czech Republic
19 years old

An Italian X-Mas.

The Christmas festivity, in Italy, it’s perceived and lived in very different ways in base of the family where it’s lived. It doesn’t exist common rituals for everyone but usually it’s the moment of reunion with the family. In the catholic world they attend the Mass of the Holy Christmas. A very important religious celebration that is attended also by those are believers that not follow religion so much.

The most important Italian decoration is for sure the nativity scene, mentioned also in a famous Italian play of Eduardo De Filippo “Natale in Casa Cupiello”, in English: Christmas in Cupiello’s House ( “Ti piace u’ presepe?”, Do you like the nativity scene?). But even if is an our symbol of the Christmas, create it can be really hard, compared to a common Christmas Tree, so not everyone realize the nativity scene.

Something where everyone work a lot instead is the cuisine. As I already said, it’s a family reunion and even if is the dinner of Christmas eve or the lunch of Christmas, the table must be laden and full of every type of food. The type of the plates change in base of the region where you live, but something never miss are the billions type of sweets! The Panettone, born in Milan, and the Pandoro, born in Verona, are two types of sweet, born since 1800 and that never miss on our tables.

And after have eaten what we do? We play! Like many others Christmas traditions, also that one born in Naples: the Tombola! An easy game that can be played from child to elder person and that is completely based on fortune, so don’t get mad if you don’t win anything, you will be more lucky next year!

By Michelangelo, Italy
21 years old