Merry Christmas! Nadolig Llawen! Joyeux Noël! Frohliche Weihnachten! Feliz Navidad!
Ever wondered how other countries celebrate Christmas? In collaboration with travel bloggers around the world, PackThePJs has compiled this A – Z to give a taste of festivities across the globe. Today we are focusing on J – L: Jordan, Kazan in Russia, and London, UK.
J: Jordan
Although a Muslim country, Jordan has a large population of Christians representing about 10% of its 9 million people. December 25th is a public holiday in Jordan. This allows Christians to celebrate. Malls, hotels and streets are decorated with Christmas trees and lights allowing all to get into the holiday spirit. Some Muslims put up a Christmas tree in their home and exchange gifts with loved ones, like their Christian friends. Many churches in Amman will allow parents to register to have Santa deliver gifts to their homes on Christmas Eve! There is a very small fee (less than USD4) for this. Santa will also pass small gifts and candies to other children on the street.
Amman has plenty of Christmas Bazaars where Christians and Muslims will visit to celebrate the season. While there is no Arabic version of Merry Christmas, they say “kol sang wa into Salameen” which translates to “every year, I wish you good health”.
Thanks to Carpe Diem OUR Way
K: Kazan, Russia
Kazan is the 6th biggest city in Russia, however, it’s probably the third most important city after Moscow and St Petersburg. Kazan is a very multicultural city: two of its biggest population groups are Russians and Tatars. While the majority of Tatars are Muslims, Christmas is still celebrated in Kazan, as half of the population are Russians (who traditionally are Christian Orthodox). Russian Christmas is celebrated on the night of 6-7 of January, so the 7th of January is the Christmas Day. The families usually stay at home and celebrate Christmas together having a nice dinner. Often, families go to church and light a candle for the health of the living and peace of the gone family members. While Christmas is an important holiday in Russia, the most important holiday is still New Year.
Russian New Year is the most similar holiday to a Western Christmas. Santa Claus (Ded Moroz) comes through the chimney to bring presents to good kids and puts them under the Christmas Tree (in Russian – New Year’s tree). The family gathers together to celebrate New Year and family members give presents to each other. Kazan always has a very lovely New Year celebration: the city is beautifully decorated and there are many events as well.
Thanks to Tripsget
L: London, UK
Nowhere does Christmas quite like London. Visiting the UK’s capital during the festive period means that you’ll often be greeted with freezing temperatures, but the city fully relishes in this and creates a cosy atmosphere which is bursting with excitement about the holidays. All over the centre, there are beautiful lights and Christmas decorations. Shops like the world-famous Harrods and Hamleys are nothing less than Christmas explosions!
If you’re looking for festive things to do in London, ‘Winter Wonderland’ comes out at number one. Set in Hyde Park, Winter Wonderland is a Christmas fun fair with rides, games and plenty of bars to enjoy a mulled wine or cider in. If you’re more into shopping, there are Christmas markets all over the city, with unique festive present ideas and al fresco drinking and dining spots – be sure to wrap up warm!
There are pop up ice skating rinks all over the capital, from Somerset House to the Natural History Museum. Once you’ve enjoyed all of London’s Christmas activities, you can enjoy one of the many festive menus in the capital, alongside a Christmassy cocktail!
Thanks to Claire’s Footsteps
We hope you have enjoyed reading this post of our A – Z Series. Please come back tomorrow for the next three letters of the alphabet!
