Christmas school holidays 2022: Check country-wise dates

Christmas is incomplete with a sumptuous feast. But, when in Japan, the American fast-food chain KFC transforms into a venue of jubilation. On Christmas day, the Japanese flock to KFC outlets in large numbers to relish the fried Christmas chicken. ‘Kurisumasu ni wa kentakkii!’ (Kentucky For Christmas!) is a recent tradition of eating fried chicken on Christmas day and it traces its roots to a wildly popular marketing campaign in 1974. The outlet witnesses the highest sales volume on the eve of Christmas each year.

Norwegians are superstitious when it comes to their Christmas traditions. They believe that on Christmas day, evil spirits may return to Earth and steal brooms and mops. According to the age-old belief, evil spirits take joy rides on brooms and disrupt Christmas celebrations. As a custom, during Christmas Norwegians hide all the brooms and mops in their house.

The Filipinos have one of the most visually breathtaking and the grandest celebrations during Christmas. Every year, on the Saturday before Christmas, the city of San Fernando witnesses a competition of giant lanterns. Eleven villages take part in the competition and each one creates the most unique and elaborate lanterns. The illuminated lanterns during this time of the year is a major tourist attraction. The skies of San Fernando come to life with giant lanterns that offer a visual extravaganza of kaleidoscopic patterns.

Demons on the streets may invoke the images from Halloween, however, in Austria this could be an occasion around Christmas. On St Nicholas Day which falls around Christmas, people dressed as demons roam city streets frightening children. During this time, young men dressed as Krampus, the evil accomplice of St Nicholas, are seen on the streets of Austria. While St Nicholas is believed to reward children, Krampus is said to capture naughty children.

Children in Iceland get to enjoy some of the most interesting traditions. While the world celebrates 12 days of Christmas, Iceland gets to celebrate 13 days. According to Icelandic folklore, children are visited by the 13 sons of legends Grýla and Leppalúði. Known for being notorious pranksters, the 13 Yule lads visit on each day. Children place their shoes by the window on Christmas eve, and if they have been good then they will receive candies. In case they have been naughty, the children would receive rotten potatoes in the shoes.

If there was an award for the coolest Christmas tradition, it would have definitely been won by the South American nation, Venezuela. On Christmas day, the nation's capital Caracas is quite a sight with people seen roller skating across the streets. People are seen going to church on roller skates. Considering the large number of people on roller skates, traffic in several parts of the city are blocked to allow safe passage.

For kiwis, Christmas is an occasion to gather around a barbecue with family and friends to relish freshly cooked seafood, meat and seasonal vegetables. It's not Balsam fir or Fraser fir for Christmas in New Zealand, the Kiwis have a bright red coloured tree known as Pohutukawa as Christmas tree. The coastal tree species which is one of the prime attractions during Christmas is also known for offering shade during bright sunny days. As part of Kiwi custom, people are seen singing carols in English and Maori under the Pohutukawa.

The South American nation, Colombia, perhaps one of the most illuminating Christmas celebrations. Christmas season in Colombia starts with the Little Candles’ Day. On this occasion, Columbians place candles and paper lanterns in their windows, yards and balconies. This is a common sight across the nation. An aerial view of the country would give one a visually stunning view of a sea of candles. Colombians also compete with each other to see who can come up with the most striking lighting arrangements.

Getting a gift from Santa is a dream for millions of children. Each year, millions of children write to Santa, however not many may know that Father Christmas has an actual address. His mailbox is in Canada. According to Canadian traditions, if children write to Santa on December 16 he will respond. Santa writes back to letters in as many as 30 languages including Braille. Ahead of Christmas, children send letters to Santa Claus, North Pole, H0H 0H0, Canada.