Merry Christmas Everyone!On this day, every Christian around the world celebrates this highly anticipated event with festivity, love and lights. It is the day when they celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ. Faces are aglow and hearts are warmed with an exchange of gifts and warm wishes. As we have shopping fans and blog readers all around the world, we’d like to take a peek at how they hold this winter holiday season and what makes each culture’s Christmas so special

Christmas is a national holiday in most places; it’s the perfect time to get a relaxing day off and spend some time with the family. In South America and Latin countries, they celebrate it with El Niño Jesus, the Baby Jesus, and Papa Noel, which is Father Christmas—another term for Santa Claus. Families gather together to pray novenasstarting on December 16 until the 25^th. On Christmas Day, they eat together and open their gifts at midnight.

In Central Europe, the local Santa Claus St. Nicholasdoes not arrive for Christmas. He visits earlier, on December 6, and gives presents for the well-behaved children. The legend says that St. Nicholas gifts good children candy bags and place it in their polished shoes left by their windows the night before. For those who were naughty for the whole year, they only received gold-colored birches.

Finland celebrates Christmas with the Declaration of Christmas Peacewhich has been a custom in many towns and cities. In Sweden, the Yule is the most important holiday in the country. This is the observance of the arrival of the winter solstice as well as the Advent and Christmas celebration. Saint Lucy’s Day is considered as the first major Christmas celebration before the Christmas Day. The Swedish people celebrates it with the eldest daughter arising early draped in her white robe, red sash and a crown with nine candles fastened on it.

Mince pies and Christmas stockings are quite common to see in the United Kingdom during this season. Presents are supposed to be delivered in the stockings by Father Christmas.

Unlike the white winter snow that arrives in the Christmas Season of the upper countries, the southern hemisphere nations like Australia has a summery Christmas. Boxing Day comes after the 25^th, making it a double dose of public holidays.

In China, Christmas is not a legal holiday, but they still celebrate with the whole world by putting up festive decorations in their communities. The same goes with Japan, and they romantically celebrate the season with sponge cakes and KFC meals.

Philippines may have one of the longest running Christmas celebration. As soon as the –Ber months kick in, people starts hearing Christmas Carols all around. The festivity ends in January during the Feast Of the Three Kings.Christmas is also a state holiday in India, where people give each other gifts.

So how do you celebrate YOUR Christmas? Have you gotten the right gifts to give, and have you received something from your very own wishlist?

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