Merry Christmas to our esteemed IBIENE lovers.
For some people, this is the most joyous time of the year because it comes with the spirit of festivities and, of course, the end of a calendar year. For some, Christmas means cooking mouthwatering delicacies and sharing them with their loved ones, while for others, it’s the time to travel and explore new places.The festival of joy and togetherness is celebrated in a variety of ways. Traditions and customs vary from country to country, and if we dig a little, we will come across a variety of new customs that people have been abiding by for generations. People from around the world have gotten into the spirit of the festival and are celebrating it in their own way.Thanks to exposure and the internet, there are places where people celebrate this festival in the weirdest and most unique way you can even think of—from decorating Christmas trees with spiderwebs to hiding the brooms to keep them safe from the witches.
Norwegians hide their brooms:
Norwegians believe that Christmas Eve coincides with the arrival of evil spirits and witches. It is only logical then, that Norwegian householders hide all their brooms before they go to sleep. After all, nothing spoils Christmas quicker than finding your broom in broken pieces at the foot of a tree, trashed by some joy-riding witch.
Dear Japanese; Forget Turkey, It’s KFC Chicken!
A clever marketing campaign in Japan once convinced the population that fried chicken is an American traditional festive feast and, in all seriousness, many Japanese people tuck into Kentucky Fried Chicken for their annual Christmas dinner. Furthermore, KFC is such a popular Christmas treat in Japan that reservations must be made in advance to eat at any KFC restaurant on Christmas Day, and high demand spawned the birth of a KFC online delivery service allowing Japanese people to get their Christmas bucket of chicken delivered on the day of festivities.
Caracas: Gird on your skates:
In the week leading up to Christmas, Venezuelans attend a daily church service called Misa de Aguinaldo (Early Morning Mass). In the capital, Caracas, it is customary to travel to the church service on roller skates. Indeed, so widespread is the practice, many roads in the capital are closed until 8 am to provide Christmas worshippers with a safe passage.
Ukraine: Decorating Christmas trees with spiderwebs:
The Ukrainians take a different approach to Christmas decorations, swapping fairy lights for spiderwebs. The legend of the Christmas spider explains that a poor widow and her kids cultivated a Christmas tree from a pine cone but couldn’t afford any decorations. Then, on Christmas morning, they woke up to see their tree blanketed in cobwebs, which sunlight then transformed into gold and silver. Nowadays, trees across Ukraine are decorated with little spider ornaments called ‘pavuchky’ and fake spider webs, which are said to be the origin of the sparkly tinsel that shimmers at Christmastime all around the world.
Radish carving, Mexico:
Each year in the Mexican city of Oaxaca, the days before Christmas are marked with an event known as the Night of the Radishes– a vegetable carving competition. Participants get pretty creative, with everything from nativity scenes to fantastical monsters on display as thousands of visitors pour into the city to witness the fun. The radishes in question are grown specially and pumped with chemicals to grow bigger than usual. Unfortunately, these works can only be displayed for a few hours before the vegetables wither away.
This list is not exhaustive but will leave you surprised at the way people celebrate and commemorate a bit differently than others. That’s the beauty of diversity.
Do you have any question or comment? Do share with us in the comment section.