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Greece is a country where traditions and customs are a part of everyday life. Most holidays in Greece are celebrated traditionally, and Christmas in no exception. Christmas caroling is very popular, and although you might hear them being sung at any given moment during the holiday season, there are actually three "official" caroling days. The custom is that children go from house to house singing the carol, with the accompaniment of a triangle, and residents of the houses give them a small amount of money. Greek Christmas carols (calanda) are sung on the mornings of Christmas Eve, New Year's Eve and January 5,the Eve of the Epiphany. According to tradition, during the Greek 12 days of Christmas (December 25 to January 6), goblins come out to tease people and eat their food. This tradition is based on the legend that the "waters aren't christened" since Christ has not yet been baptized. The goblins are renowned for their ugliness and their impishness. They are not very intelligent and can't really hurt anybody. It is said that they enter houses through chimneys, and this is the reason people, especially in villages, keep the fireplace lit during the 12 days of Christmas.
by Mania & Maria T.

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If you come to Greece at Christmas, you will have the opportunity to attend a wide variety of events and festivities. In the country's major cities, such as Athens, Thessaloniki, Patra, Heraklion, etc, the municipal authorities organize music concerts, theatrical performance, and a number of other cultural events. Christmas in Athens is a fantastic time of the year.  The largest Christmas tree in Europe is lit in Syntagma Square, the location of the capital's Christmas village, where little elf houses sell candy and children can take part in a number of activities. There is no limit to Christmas fun in Greece!
by Mania & Maria T.

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Oneiroupoli ("Dream Town" in English, Santa's village) is an event that is organized in our town, in the centre of our town with lots of happenings, concerts etc. taking place and transforming our town into a magical place for small and bigger kids.  It lasts from 6th December to 7th January.

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O Mikros Tympanistis ("The Little Drummer Boy" in Greek)

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O Mikros Tympanistis ("The Little Drummer Boy" in Greek)

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Μικρός Τυμπανιστής - Παιδική Χορωδία Δημήτρ

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The 1st is sung on Christmas Eve, the 2nd on New Year's Eve and the 6th on 5th January.

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Γκίκας Βασιλείου

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Τα ωραιότερα Χριστουγεννιάτικα τραγούδια

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χριστουγεννιάτικο τραπέζι

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Melomakarona (Greek traditional Christmas honey cookies)

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Melomakarona (Greek traditional Christmas honey cookies)

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They're THE most popular Christmas & New Year treat, and you can find them in every home here in Greece during the Holiday season.
Here's the recipe:
Ingredients

For the dough

- 200g / 7oz ( 1 cup) vegetable oil (we used sunflower oil)
- 200g / 7oz (1 cup) olive oil
- 250ml (1 cup), orange juice
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon clove powder
- 3 teaspoons cinnamon powder
- 110g / 3.9oz (1/2 cup), sugar
- 1 teaspoon orange zest
- 100g / 3.5oz (1/2 cup) semolina
- 1kg / 2.2lb/ 35oz all purpose flour
For the syrup

- 625ml (2 ½ cups) water
- 550g / 19.4oz (2 ½ cups) sugar
- 150g / 5.3oz (1/2 cup) honey
- 2 teaspoons (1 orange), orange zest
- juice from half orange
- 2 cinnamon sticks
- 4 cloves

For the topping
- honey
- coarsely crush walnuts

Instructions

It’s better to start with the preparation of the syrup, in order to allow it to cool, while you make and bake the dough for the cookies. Better off, prepare the syrup the night before.

For the syrup

Place in a saucepan: the water, the sugar, the orange zest, the orange juice, the cinnamon sticks and the cloves and put it on medium high heat.

When it starts simmering, remove from heat and add the honey. Whisk until it dissolves. Leave the saucepan next to an open window, or outside, to cool down.

For the dough:

Preheat the oven at 200 degrees C / 390 F .

Place the ingredients for the dough in a large bowl, following the order given from the ingredients list.

Whisk well when you add the baking soda, for about a minute, to allow it to blend with the orange juice.

When you have added all the ingredients except the flour (cinnamon, sugar, zest, semolina) , remove the whisk and then add the flour on top. Mix gently with your hands, by “folding” the dough from the bottom to the top. No rush here.
This way all the ingredients will blend perfectly, creating a soft dough. This kneading process should not take more than 2 minutes. The more you knead the less fluffy the dough gets.

Shape small oval cookies with your hands, in the size of your palm.
Place them on a grinder on the side of the circular shapes, and slightly press them against the grinder, creating the decoration on top. You can also create another shape on the surface (like lines or a grid), using a fork (optional).

Place the cookies on the lined baking sheet, with a small distance between them. The dough is enough for about 3 batches of cookies.

Once the first batch is prepared, put the baking sheet/pan in the middle rack of the oven  (there should be 4 lines with about 6 cookies per line / around 24 cookies per batch).

Bake for 30 minutes.

Once you remove the cookies from the oven, immediately dip them (using a slotted spoon) into the syrup for about 20-30 seconds to soak. You can dip up to 6 cookies at the same time. You have to be a little careful with the cookies though, because they are oven hot.

Then place them on a wire rack to drain, for a few minutes. Once drained, place them in a large plate.

Drizzle with a bit more honey, using a small fork and add some crushed walnuts.

Continue the exact same process with the next batch of cookies, until they are all baked, dipped into the syrup and drained.

Always remember, the cookies must be placed in the syrup right after they come out of the oven (hot cookies in cold syrup).

Enjoy!

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Kourabiedes (Greek Snowball Christmas Cookies)

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Kourabiedes (Greek Snowball Christmas Cookies)

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Another traditional Christmas treat here is kourabiedes.
Here's the recipe:
Ingredients

2 1/2 cups or 500 grams of butter, room temperature

3 cups or 400 grams unsalted almonds, roasted

1/2 cup sugar

3 egg yolks

1 tbsp cinnamon

4 cups or 480 grams of flour

1/2 cup cognac or brandy

3 cups or 375 grams confectioner's/powdered sugar
Instructions

Roast the almonds if necessary.

Preheat the oven to 300 F (150 C).

Beat together the butter, egg yolks, and sugar.

Add the cognac (or brandy), cinnamon and almonds.

Add the flour one cup at a time and mix everything together.

If the dough is too sticky add a little flour and if it is too stiff add a little water.

Place the dough on a floured surface and knead for 1-2 minutes.

Roll it into balls, crescents, or other shapes and place on a cookie sheet.

Bake the cookies for 25-30 minutes, checking to make sure they do not burn.

Place the baked cookies on a plate.

Take the confectioner's/powdered sugar one cup at a time and place in a sifter and dust the cookies until the tops are completely covered. You really can't have enough sugar here so dust generously!

Place the rest of the confectioner's/powdered sugar in a bowl and roll each cookie around until its entire surface is completely covered.

Enjoy!