A warm trip to Australia, all the Christmas traditions in the land of kangaroos, the Christmas holidays in shorts and flip-flops on the beach, read the post to find out how Christmas is celebrated in Australia and what are the typical traditions.
Right now I'm packing my bags in view of the departure for Perth, inAustralia Western, where for the second time I will spend the holidays and the first weeks of the new year.
In this period, preparations for a holiday in Australia are by no means trivial, since, while here in Europe, heavy scarves and woolen gloves are worn and the summer wardrobe has been neatly stored for months in boxes on the top shelves of the wardrobe, in Perth in December temperatures hover around 35-40 degrees.
Describe the Christmas atmosphere living in Australia is not at all simple: being in front of a Santa Claus inflatable when wearing short sleeves and flip flops is really an unusual experience and undoubtedly very different from the reality we are used to in Italy. Although European winter traditions (including reindeer and sledding) have been perfectly adapted and houses, shopping malls and streets are rigorously decorated with traditional Christmas trees and colored lights, the summer weather makes the Christmas atmosphere truly unique.
Of course, no one in Australia thinks that warm Christmas is a singular thing, but for me, who lived 24 Christmases in Italy, the day of the 25th, as well as the weeks before it, they left me a little disoriented. On Christmas day, in particular, I remember it as a sort of beautiful "mid-August day" but with decorations and Santas in shorts and slippers on the beach.
As happens in Italy, on the 25th families gather for a lunch together, but the day itself is lived in a totally different way. In fact, it is very common to spend Christmas and Boxing Day (Boxing Day) in national parks or on the beach, unwrapping gifts and grilling meat between a sandman and a swim in the ocean. Those who choose to stay indoors, on the other hand, often spend the day with their family in the garden and by the pool. Considering the scorching temperatures, one would think that the menu of this special day is light, perhaps based on fresh fish and vegetables.
On the contrary, Christmas lunches are often very abundant and particularly high in calories: it starts with various types of seafood and to follow the classic roast turkey with potatoes and vegetables, typical of the Anglo-Saxon culture. For those who spend Christmas away from home, however, lunch is often prepared on barbeque and accompanied by cold drinks. The most common desserts are the classic pudding, imported from the UK, and the Pavlova, a parfait made with meringues, whipped cream, strawberries and passion fruit that is typical of Australia and New Zealand.
Who has never been in Australia in December might think that a Christmas with hot temperatures and bathing suit is not a real Christmas, on the contrary I think it is a magnificent experience to do at least once in a lifetime, to really immerse yourself in what are the traditions of a people, that Australian, actually culturally not too different from ours.
Just one tip: if you find yourself in celebrate Christmas on the beach, remember to wait two hours before taking a bath!
