Merry Christmas! Vrolijk Kerstfeest! Joyeux Noel! Feliz Navidad! Frohe Weihnachten!
And to all a very happy, healthy 2004!!
Christmas in the Netherlands
What is most important to us during the holidays? To me, it's the traditions. Traditions that were started in my family before I was even alive and traditions that were started recently in my own family, after I got married.
The links on this page point to sites that discuss the different ways Christmas is celebrated in countries around the world.
I would like to add my own traditions, which are based on growing up in my native country, the Netherlands. Please see my Sint page for an explanation of our St. Nicolas tradition on the 5th of December.
In the Netherlands, Christmas was mostly a family celebration for us, no gifts, since we had received those on the 5th. It was purely a spiritual holiday. We had a tree, with real candles and candy wreaths. I remember one Christmas, the cat's tail caught on fire brushing by one of the candles. The bucket of water was always right next to the tree!
We would have a delicious breakfast with Christmas stollen. Relatives and friends would come to visit and eat goodies during the day. And in the evening, we would have (and still have) a fancy 5 course dinner.
My dad's pride and joy is his Christmas dinner. The recipes, for his silky tomato soup, his special turkey stuffing and his very juicy turkey, are well guarded secrets. In fact, I don't even think a recipe exists, it's the love and attention that make it so special!
In the Netherlands, we had two Christmas days. We would go and visit our aunt and uncle on the second day (26 December) and enjoy another wonderful meal.
My memories of Christmas are of a warm and cozy holiday. Here in the U.S. we have adopted the tradition of gift giving on Christmas morning.
We have some traditions, that have crept in over the years. Early in December we all go to the mall together and each of the kids selects an "Angel" their age from the Salvation Army Christmas Tree there. We take an afternoon and go shopping for the Angels. The kids really enjoy finding things that will make those kids' Christmas special.
On Christmas Eve everyone finds nice and warm new pajamas under the tree, so Christmas night starts snug in our beds.
On Christmas morning, the kids awaken to find an ornament next to their pillow. One gets an angel, the other a Santa and the third a snowman. The idea behind this is, that once they go off on their own, they'll already have ornaments for their first Christmas tree.
After finding out one wanted colored lights, the other white lights and one wanted a long needled tree, the other short needled, my husband and I compromised. We now have a tree with both types of lights, which are on on alternate nights. The needles are medium long and that's typical of our Christmases today: a blend of traditions from both our youths and some new ones thrown in! Merry Christmas!
Visit these sites to celebrate Christmas around the World:
