Christmas In Australia

Christmas on Bondi Beach

Christmas in Australia is normally a very hot day, a high of 100 degrees is pretty normal. Christmas shopping is often done in shorts and t-shirts. At many beaches you’ll see lifeguards and surfers dressed up as Santa.

The warm weather allows Australians to have their Christmas dinner on the beach. It normally is turkey with ham and pork and a flaming plum pudding for dessert.

Because Australia is such a big mix of ethnic groups like European, Middle East and Asia, the traditions are wide and vast. Australian Christmas’ consist of the traditional candles, trees and gift giving but the differences come through the wide customs.

For many, Christmas will begin with families attending a mid-night mass. 70% of Australians are either Catholic, Anglican or Lutheran. After the mid-night Mass, a little sleep is attempted. For many, the children in various households, wake up the family at dawn. Gifts are unwrapped and the joy of Christmas begins. For many with relatives and friends overseas, it is a mad scramble to get an early phone call to relatives worldwide.

On Christmas Day the people who live in the outback send Christmas greetings to each other over a special radio network.

To say Merry Christmas in Australia you may say ‘Ave a good one, mate.”

Join me each weeknight at 8:30pm through December 21st. We will  travel to a new country to see how they celebrate Christmas. Listen online at www.zradio.com

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