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5 a klas
In Argentina the weather is warm at Christmas. Preparations for Christmas begin very early in December and even in November. Many people in Argentina are Catholic and they also celebrate Advent.

House are beautifully decorated with lights and wreaths of green, gold, red and white flowers. Red and white garlands are hung on the doors of houses. Christmas Trees are also very popular and they are often decorated by 8th December (the feast of the Immaculate Conception - when Catholics celebrate when Mary was conceived). Some people like to put cotton balls on the Christmas Tree to represent snow! Any tree might be made into a Christmas Tree - not just the traditional fir tree!

The Nativity scene or 'pesebre' is also an important Christmas decoration in Argentina. The pesebre is put near to the Christmas tree.

Christmas Cards aren't common in Argentina and although some people give and receive presents, it's normally only between close family and friends.

The main Christmas celebrations take place on Christmas Eve. Many Catholics will go to a Mass in the late afternoon.

The main meal Christmas is eaten during the evening of Christmas Eve, often about 10pm or 11pm. It might be served in the garden or be a barbecue! Some popular dishes include roasted turkey, roasted pork (in northern Argentina, some people will have goat), stuffed tomatoes, salads and Christmas bread and puddings like 'Pan Dulce' and Panetone.

At midnight there will be the sound of lots of fireworks! People also like to 'toast' the start of Christmas day. Some people like to go to midnight services, but other prefer to stay at home and let off fireworks and then open their presents under the tree.

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Christmas in Mexico

In Mexico, Christmas is celebrated from December 12th to January 6th.

From December 16th to Christmas Eve, children often perform the 'Posada' processions or Posadas. Posada is Spanish for Inn or Lodging. There are nine Posadas. These celebrate the part of the Christmas story where Joseph and Mary looked for somewhere to stay. For the Posadas, the outside of houses are decorated with evergreens, moss and paper lanterns.
In each Posada, children are given candles and a board, with painted clay figures of Mary riding on a donkey and Joseph, to process round the streets with. They call at the houses of friends and neighbors and sing a song at each home. The song they sing is about Joseph and Mary asking for a room in the house. But the children are told that there is no room in the house and that they must go away. Eventually they are told there is room and are welcomed in! When the children go into the house they say prayers of thanks and then they have a party with food, games and fireworks.
As well as the posada's, there is another type of Christmas play known as Pastorelas (The Shepherds). These tell the story of the shepherds going to find the baby Jesus and are often very funny. The devil tries to stop the shepherds by tempting them along the way. But the shepherds always get there in the end, often with the help of the Archangel Michael, who comes and beats the devil!

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Барие Демирова 

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Барие Демирова 

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X клас
Israel - Christmas traditions & customs

Bethlehem, the little town where Jesus is said to have been born is the site of the Church of the Nativity, which is ablaze with flags and decorations every Christmas. On Christmas Eve natives and visitors alike crowd the church's doorways and stand on the roof to watch for the dramatic annual procession. Galloping horsemen and police mounted on Arabian horses lead the parade. They are followed by solitary horseman carrying a cross and sitting astride a coal-black steed. Then come the churchmen and government officials. The procession solemnly enters the doors and places an ancient effigy of the Holy Child in the church. Deep winding stairs lead to a grotto where visitors find a silver star marking the site of the birth of Jesus.

Christian homes in Bethlehem are marked by a cross painted over the door and each home displays a homemade manger scene. A star is set up on a pole in the village square.

Christmas in Israel, is truly Christmas in the Holy Land, a magically meaningful experience for Christians. Less commercialized than in much of the Western world because Judaism and Islam are the two main religions of Israel, Christmas in Israel is meaningful for its historic significance as the land where the Christmas story took place. Whether visiting Bethlehem for Christmas, experiencing Christmas in Nazareth, spending Christmas in Jerusalem or Christmas in Tel Aviv-Jaffa, it is sure to be a memorable experience.

Christmas in Israel generally coincides with Hanukkah, the Jewish festival of light which diffuses a festive spirit across the land. However, beyond this festive spirit icons of Christmas will not be seen so much across the country. In areas with Christian populations such as Haifa, Nazareth the Old City of Jerusalem, and many Russian neighborhoods, symbols of Christmas will be seen, however, as these groups bring with them the traditions.

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 been playing a theatrical play on the nativity story. Every home also features a small Christmas decoration of Dolls.

The Christmas tree is not particularly popular in France. In his place is traditionally prepared a special Christmas cake, called buche de Noel - the shape of a tree.

Le reveillon is the tradition of the special late French Christmas table. It is set after midnight and contains turkey, duck, necessarily garnished with chestnuts, pates, ham and other dishes, depending on the region.

Даниела Чонкова
Даниела Чонкова
Christmas in Serbia

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Santa is here called Pere Noel.

The churches have traditionally been playing a theatrical play on the nativity story. Every home also features a small Christmas decoration of Dolls.

The Christmas tree is not particularly popular in France. In his place is traditionally prepared a special Christmas cake, called buche de Noel - the shape of a tree.

Le reveillon is the tradition of the special late French Christmas table. It is set after midnight and contains turkey, duck, necessarily garnished with chestnuts, pates, ham and other dishes, depending on the region.

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Михаела Петрова

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Михаела Петрова

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Most people in Spain go to Midnight Mass or 'La Misa Del Gallo' (The Mass of the Rooster). It is called this because a rooster is supposed to have crowed the night that Jesus was born.

Most families eat their main Christmas meal on Christmas Eve before the service. The traditional Spanish Christmas dinner is 'Pavo Trufado de Navidad' which is Turkey stuffed with truffles (the mushrooms, not the chocolate ones!), although it's not commonly eaten now. In Galicia (a region in north-west Spain, surrounded by water) the most popular meal for Christmas Eve and for Christmas Day is seafood. This can be all kinds of different seafood, from shellfish and mollusks, to lobster and small edible crabs.

After the midnight service, one old tradition was for people to walk through the streets carrying torches, playing guitars and beating on tambourines and drums. One Spanish saying is 'Esta noche es Noche-Buena, Y no Es noche de dormir' which means 'Tonight is the good night and it is not meant for sleeping!'

A few different languages are spoken in different regions in Spain. In Spanish Happy/Merry Christmas is 'Feliz Navidad'; in Catalan it's 'Bon Nadal'; in Galician 'Bo Nadal'; and in Basque (or Euskara in basque) 'Eguberri on'. December 28th is 'Día de los santos inocentes' or 'Day of the Innocent Saints' and is very like April Fools Day in the UK and USA. People try to trick each other into believing silly stories and jokes. Newspapers and TV stations also run silly stories. If you trick someone, you can call them 'Inocente, inocente' which means 'innocent, innocent'. 28th December is when people all over the world remember the babies that were killed on the orders of King Herod when he was trying to kill the baby Jesus.

New Year's Eve is called 'Nochevieja' or 'The Old Night' in Spain and one special tradition is that you eat 12 grapes with the 12 strokes of the clock at Midnight! Each grape represents a month of the coming year, so if you eat the twelve grapes, you are said to be lucky in the new year.

Apart from Christmas, there is another festival that is celebrated in Spain that is about the Christmas Story. It is called Epiphany and is celebrated on 6th January. In Spanish, Epiphany is called 'Fiesta de Los tres Reyes Mages': in English this means 'The festival of the three Magic Kings'. Epiphany celebrates when the Kings or Wise men brought gifts to the baby Jesus.

Children have some presents on Christmas Day, but most are opened at Epiphany. Children believe that the Kings bring presents to them at Epiphany. They write letters to the Kings asking for toys and presents. And on Epiphany Eve (January 5th) they leave shoes on windowsills or balconies or under the Christmas Tree to be filled with presents. Gifts are often left by children for the Kings, a glass of Cognac for each King, a satsuma and some walnuts. Sometimes a bucket of water is left for the camels that bring the Kings! If the children have been bad, the Kings might leave pieces of coal made out of sugar in the presents!

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In Germany, preparations for Christmas start in November. Walking areas and shops are decorated. And in Germany, Christmas is above all a family holiday. The whole family gathers on it, and the young come to the old, far from living. They all sit together around the rich
table to eat from the traditional German specialties - goose with apples, pfeffer and louboutin, and last but not least. The special of this sweet with raisins and a lot of fat in its preparation. It can be done months in advance and eaten at Christmas while preserving its taste qualities.

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Десислава Борисова

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Десислава Борисова

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In Argentina the weather is warm at Christmas. Preparations for Christmas begin very early in December and even in November. Many people in Argentina are Catholic and they also celebrate Advent.

House are beautifully decorated with lights and wreaths of green, gold, red and white flowers. Red and white garlands are hung on the doors of houses. Christmas Trees are also very popular and they are often decorated by 8th December (the feast of the Immaculate Conception - when Catholics celebrate when Mary was conceived). Some people like to put cotton balls on the Christmas Tree to represent snow! Any tree might be made into a Christmas Tree - not just the traditional fir tree!

The Nativity scene or 'pesebre' is also an important Christmas decoration in Argentina. The pesebre is put near to the Christmas tree.

Christmas Cards aren't common in Argentina and although some people give and receive presents, it's normally only between close family and friends.

The main Christmas celebrations take place on Christmas Eve. Many Catholics will go to a Mass in the late afternoon.

The main meal Christmas is eaten during the evening of Christmas Eve, often about 10pm or 11pm. It might be served in the garden or be a barbecue! Some popular dishes include roasted turkey, roasted pork (in northern Argentina, some people will have goat), stuffed tomatoes, salads and Christmas bread and puddings like 'Pan Dulce' and Panetone.

At midnight there will be the sound of lots of fireworks! People also like to 'toast' the start of Christmas day. Some people like to go to midnight services, but other prefer to stay at home and let off fireworks and then open their presents under the tree.
Another Christmas Eve night tradition are 'globos', paper decorations with a light inside that float into the sky (like Chinese Lanterns). The sky is filled with them on Christmas Eve after midnight.

Some people stay awake all the night chatting and seeing friends and family and then spend most of Christmas Day sleeping.

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Даниела Чонкова

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Даниела Чонкова

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Christmas in Serbia

In Serbia, the main Church is the Orthodox Church and they still use the old 'Julian' Calendar, which means that Christmas Eve is on 6th January and Christmas Day is on the 7th January! Advent in the Orthodox Church starts on 28th November and last for six weeks. During Advent, some people fast and they don't eat food that comes from animals (meat, milk, eggs, etc.).

The countries of Serbia and Montenegro share many Christmas traditions.

On Christmas Eve (called 'Badnji dan' during the day and 'Badnje veče' after sunset), families gather and many people fast and don't eat food that comes from animals. It is the last day of the Christmas fast. Christmas is a very religious holiday and most people go to the Christmas Services.

There are a lot of old Serbian traditions associated with the countryside, which have now lost their meaning because more people live in towns and cities. On the morning of Christmas Eve, the father of the family used to go to the forest to cut a young oak called the 'Badnjak' (Christmas Eve tree) but today people just buy one. The Badnjak is then burnt like a Yule Log.

There are sometimes large bonfires outside churches where oak branches and Badnjak are burnt.

On Christmas Day the dawn is greeted with church bells ringing and sometimes people firing guns into the air! The first person to enter a house on Christmas Day is called a polaznik and it's thought to bring luck to the house and family. The polaznik is often pre-arranged. But if the family don't have a good year, they don't ask the same person back!

Early on Christmas morning, girls traditionally collected water to bring to their family. This was called 'strong water' and was meant to have special powers. People would drink some strong water and wash their faces in it before having breakfast!

At Christmas a special kind of bread is eaten. It's called 'cesnica' and is made in a round shape. Sometimes it's made using some of the 'strong water'. Each member of the family gets a piece (and the house does too). There is a coin hidden in it and whoever gets the coin will be particularly fortunate in the next year!

Other popular Christmas dishes include pecenica (roast pork), sarma (cabbage stuffed with rice and ground meat) and lots of cakes!

Under the dinner table there should be some straw as a symbol of the stable/cave where Jesus was born. When the straw is spread out, some people make the noise of a chicken! Clucking like a chicken symbolises that Jesus wanted people to follow him like one big family (like chickens gather together!). It's also common for a handful of walnuts to be spread on the straw.

In Serbian Happy/Merry Christmas is Hristos se rodi (Христос се роди) - Christ is born Vaistinu se rodi (Ваистину се роди) - truly born (reply). Happy/Merry Christmas in lots more languages.

People in Serbia also celebrate St. Nicholas' Day, but on the 19th December. During the time when Serbia was under communist control (after World War II until about 20 years ago), the communist government didn't like St. Nicholas or Santa Claus, so they had their own version called Grandfather Frost (Дедa Мрaз / Deda Mraz) or Christmas Brother (Божић Бата / Božić Bata), who came on New Year's Eve.

Traditional Serbian customs have also mixed with western customs. For example people also have Christmas Trees but they are decorated on New Year's Eve, not at Christmas!

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Kristiyan Spasov 6”b” class
On Christmas Eve, children, especially boys, often go out singing 'kalanda' (carols) in the streets. They play drums and triangles as they sing. Sometimes they will also carry model boats decorated with nuts which are painted gold. Carrying a boat is a very old custom in the Greek Islands.

If the children sing well, they might be given money, as well things to eat like nuts, sweets and dried figs.

Christmas Trees are popular in Greece. But an older and more traditional decoration is a shallow wooden bowl with a piece of wire suspended across the rim. A sprig of basil wrapped around a wooden cross and hangs from the wire. Some water is kept in the bowl to keep the basil alive and fresh. Once a day someone, usually the mother of the family, dips the cross and basil into some holy water and uses it to sprinkle water in each room of the house.

This

Every December, in Aristotelous Square in the city of Thessaloniki (which is the second biggest city Greece) a huge Christmas Tree and three masted sailing ship are put up. It's a popular tourist attraction.
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Cristmas in Germany

Светлин Гаврилов

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Cristmas in Bulgaria

In Bulgaria, Christmas is celebrated on December 25th.
Christmas Eve  is a very important day and the main Christmas meal is eaten in the evening of Christmas Eve.Christmas Trees now popular in Bulgaria and towns are decorated with Christmas lights.

The meal should traditionally have an odd number of dishes in it (normally 7, 9 or 11) and an odd number of people sitting around the table.
Walnuts are especially popular. If your walnut is delicious you will have a good year, but if it's empty or has a small nut you'll have a bad year.

Cristmas in Greece
In Greece, presents are often brought to children by Aghios Vassilis  on the 1st January.
People in Greece also celebrate Epiphany on the 6th January. The main Christmas meal is often lamb or pork, roasted in an oven or over an open spit. It's often served with a spinach and cheese pie and various salads and vegetables. Other Christmas and new year foods include 'Baklava' (a sweet pastry made of filo pastry filled with chopped nuts and sweetened with syrup or honey.

Epiphany-Богоявление
Lamb or pork- агнешко или свинско месо

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Илиян

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Christmas in Romania

In Romania, Christmas and mid-winter celebrations last from 20th December to 7th January. The 20th is when people celebrate St. Ignatius's Day. It is traditional that if the family keep pigs, one is killed on this day. The meat from the pig is used in the Christmas meals.

Sfantul Nicolae's Day (St Nicholas) is celebrated on the 6th December. On the evening of the 5th December children clean their shoes or boots and leave them by the door and hope that Sfantul Nicolae will leave them some small presents! Sfantul Nicolae might also be called 'Moş Nicolae' (Old Man Nicholas) and although he is celebrated in December, it's not part of the Christmas celebrations! A tradition says that if it snows on December 6th, Sfantul Nicolae has shaken his beard so that winter can begin.

The Christmas celebrations really begin on Christmas Eve, 24th, when it's time to decorate the Christmas Tree. This is done in the evening of Christmas Eve. In Romanian, Christmas Eve is called 'Ajunul Craciunului'.

Carol singing (known as 'Colindatul') is also a very popular part of Christmas in Romania. On Christmas Eve, children go out carol singing from house to house performing to the adults in the houses. They normally dance as well. The children get sweets, fruit, traditional cakes called 'cozonaci' and sometimes money for singing well. Adults go carol singing on Christmas Day evening and night.

A traditional Romanian Carol is the 'Star Carol'. The star, made of colored paper and often decorated with tinsel, silver foil and sometimes bells, is put on a pole. In the middle of the star is a picture of baby Jesus or a nativity scene. Carol singers take the star with them when they go carol singing. The words of the Sta
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🎄🎉🎆🎁
😆
Many people in the United States celebrate the Christmas holiday on December 25th. The day marks the birth of Jesus Christ. It is often combined with the customs of pre-Christian winter holidays. Many people raise Christmas trees, decorate their homes, visit family or friends, and share gifts.

Много хора в Съединените щати празнуват Коледния празник на 25 декември. Денят отбелязва раждането на Исус Христос. Често се съчетава с обичаите на предхристиянските зимни празници. Много хора издигат коледни елхи, украсяват домовете си, посещават семейство или приятели и споделят подаръци.

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Валерий-Юлиен Богданов

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Мирослава Атанасова 6б

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Мирослава Атанасова 6б

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In Germany, preparations for Christmas begin before December falls. But the real celebration starts from 6th December, St. Nicholas Day, known here as "Nikolaustag". On the night of 5th December (St. Nicholas Eve) children put their shoe or boot outside the door, a tradition practiced in many other European countries. According to a German legend, the spirit of St. Nicholas, the patron saint of children, goes from house to house on this night carrying a book of sins in which all the actions of the year of all children are written. It is said that St. Nicholas fills the shoes of all good kids with delicious treats and places twigs in the shoes of all naughty children.

image: http://www.theholidayspot.com/christmas/worldxmas/images/christmas-celebrations-in-germany.jpg

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by all my students :)
Анелия Кирчева-Любенова