Have you ever wondered how Christmas is celebrated in other countries? Do they put up Christmas trees and sing carols? Do they hang their stockings on the mantle?

Children from the Bernadotte School in Copenhagen designed A World Wide Christmas Calendar, where you can click on numbers 1-25 to learn of Christmas traditions from different countries. In Portugal, the traditional Christmas supper is boiled codfish from Norway. In Newfoundland, "mummers," people dressed up to disguise themselves, go to friends' homes to sing and play musical instruments. Then, everyone plays a guessing game to try to discover the identity of the mummers.

Visit Christmas Traditions, How Did Christmas Start, to learn that the custom of sending Christmas cards started in Britain in 1840. Besides learning the true meaning of Christmas, you'll also discover that Father Christmas, or Santa Claus, is based on a real person, St. Nicholas, who was a Christian leader from Myra in the 4th century AD.

In Poland, Christmas Eve is a time of family gatherings, but it is also a night of magic, when animals are said to talk in a human voice and people have the power to tell the future. Visit Christmas in Poland to learn that the main Polish Christmas dish consists of 12 courses! And WE thought WE had it bad!

At Christmas Traditions in France and in Canada, you'll discover that, "The focus of the Celebration of Christmas is on the gift: the gift given and received, the gift celebrated, and, the gift of meaning."

The earliest account of a Christmas tree in a Finnish home was in 1829 when a nobleman had 8 of them indoors. At Christmas with Virtual Finland, you'll learn that women's organizations get together to plan their Christmas bazaars in October. These meetings, called Pikkujoulu, are considered the first Christmas parties.

Learn about Aussie Christmas traditions at the Christmas Down Under website. Though an Australian Christmas is never white, people from that country enjoy foods such as Frozen Fruit Pudding and Christmas Stars, which sound absolutely delicious!

We'll close with Christmas Around the World, an excellent site where you can click on an area of the world to learn how that country celebrates Christmas, including their music, food, symbolism, origins, and Santa beliefs.

Robin Nobles is a freelance writer who can be reached at robinnobles@robinsnest.com.

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