CHRISTMAS IN XINA

Lots of Chinese people are not Christian, the main winter festival in China is the Chinese New Year which takes place toward the end of January. Now officially called the "Spring Festival," it is a time when children receive new clothing, eat luxurious meals, receive new toys, and enjoy firecracker displays. An important aspect of the New Year celebration is the worship of ancestors. Portraits and paintings of ancestors are brought out and hung in the main room of the home.

CHRISTMAS IN BRAZIL

Brazilians are a mix of people from many parts of the world, and because it is from the Portuguese colony, they have many Christmas customs.

One tradition is to create Presépio, the word origins from the Hebrew word "presepium" which means the bed of straw upon which Jesus first slept in Bethlehem. The Presépio is common in northeastern Brazil (Bahia, Sergipe, Rio Grande do Norte, Paraíba, Maranhão, Ceará, Pernambuco, Piauí and Alagoas). The Presépio was introduced in the 17th century, in the city of Olinda in the state of Pernambuco by a person called Gaspar de Santo Agostinho. Prespios are in churches, homes, and stores.

CHRISTMAS IN GREECE

St. Nicholas is important in Greece as the patron saint of sailors. Greek tradition is that his clothes are drenched with brine, his beard drips with seawater, and his face is covered with perspiration because he has been working hard against the waves to reach ships and rescue them from the angry sea. Greek ships never leave port without some paint or else of St. Nicholas on board. The christmas are celebrated in Easter. On Christmas Eve, village children travel from house to house offering good wishes and singing kalanda,(like carols). Often the songs are accompanied by small metal triangles and little clay drums. The people who ear the children singing give them sweets and dried fruits.

credits: me & christmas around the world