European Christmas Handbook

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8. New Year's Eve & Day

4. Advice for a green Christmas

9. Typical challenges

6. Christmas carols & songs

5. Christmas traditional meals

3. Christmas typical decorations

2. A Christmas traditional calendar

7. Christmas typical stories

1. Christmas glossary

Christmas decorations

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Food and drink

1. Christmas glossary

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• The desserts: Les desserts Los postres,Επιδόρπια, Nachtisch
• Christmas log: bûche de Noël, tronco de Navidad, Χριστουγεννιάτικος κορμός,Biskuitrolle (Christstollen )
• galette des rois , roscón de reyes
• Christmas biscuits: biscuit de Noël , galletas de navidad, χριστουγεννιάτικα μπισκότα,Plätzchen
• Gingerbread: pain d'epices, pan de jenjibre, μελόπιτα, Lebkuchen
• barley sugar: sucre d'orge, piruletas,brauner Zucker
• chocolate: chocolat, chocalate, σοκολάτα,Schokolade
• cheese: fromage , queso ,τυρί , Käse
• dried fruit: fruits secs, frutos secos,αποξηραμένα φρούτα,Trockenobst
• nuts: noix, nueces,ξηροί καρποί, Nüsse
• nougat: nougat, turrón,μαντολάτο,Nugat
• orange: orange, naranja, πορτοκάλι, Orangen
• date: datte, dátil, χουρμάς, Datteln
• Drinks : Boissons Bebidas, Ποτά,Getränke
• champagne: champagne , champán,σαμπάνια, Champagner / Sekt

• white wine: vin blanc, vino blanco, λευκό κρασί, Weißwein
• red wine: vin rouge, vino tinto, κόκκινο κρασί,Rotwein

Food and drink

• Starters : Les entrées. Entrantes. Ορεκτικά.Vorspeisen
• fois gras : foie gras ,φουά γκρα ,Gänseleberpastete
• seafood: les fruits de mers, el marisco, θαλασσινά, Meeresfrüchte
• shrimp : crevette, gambas, γαρίδες,Garnelen
• lobster: homard, langosta, αστακός, Hummer
• salmon : salmon, salmón, σολωμός,Lachs
• oysters : huitres, ostras, όστρακα,Austern
• mussels: moules, mejillones, μύδια,Muscheln
• scallop shell: coquilles St Jacques, vieiras, χτένια,
• Jakobsmuscheln
• ham: jambon, jamón,ζαμπόν,Schinken
• Main course: Plat principal, Plato principal. Κυρίως πιάτα, Hauptspeisen
• turkey: dinde, pavo, γαλοπούλα,Truthahn / Pute
• lamb: agneau, cordero, αρνί,Lamm
• duck breast: magret de canard, pechuga de pato, στήθος πάπιας,Entenbrust
• chestnuts: marrons, castañas, κάστανα, Kastanien
• patatoes: patates, patatas, πατάτες,Kartoffeln
• snails: escargots, caracoles, σαλιγκάρια ,Schnecken
• pork:porc, cerdo χοιρινό

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Christmas decorations

Christmas wreath : la couronne de noel, la corona de Navidad, χριστουγεννιάτικο στεφάνι, AdventskranzChristmas tree: sapin,el pino,χριστουγεννιάτικο δέντρο,ChristbaumBaubles : les boules, las bolas,μπάλες,Christbaumkugelntinsels: les guirlandes, las guirnaldas, γιρλάνδες,GirlandenFairy lights: guirlande lumineuse, guirnaldas luminosas, λαμπάκια,LichterkettenChristmas figurines: des figurines de Noël, figuritas de Navidad, χριστουγεννιάτικες φιγούρες, Weihnachtskrippe,candles: les bougies, las velas, κεριά,Kerzenholly: le houx, el acebo, λιόπρινο,Stechpalmereindeer: renne, el reno, τάρανδος,Rentiermistletoe: gui,el muérdago, γκι, MistelzweigSanta Claus: Père Noël, Papa Noël, Άγιος Βασίλης,Weihnachtsmannsnowman: bonhome de neige, muñeco de nieve, χιονάνθρωπος,Schneemannsnowflakes: neige, la nieve, χιονονιφάδες,Schneeflockengingerbreadman: bonhomme de pain d épice, muñeco de pan de jengibre, Lebkuchenmännchenbell: cloche, la campana,καμπάνα,GlockeChristmas stockings: chaussettes de Noël, botas de Navidad, χριστουγεννιάτικες κάλτσες,Weihnachtsstrümpfethe manger: la crèche, el belén, φάτνη,krippethe wise men: rois mages, los Reyes Magos, οι Τρεις Μάγοι,Heilige drei KönigeThe star: l´étoile, la estrella, το αστέρι,der SternThe presents: les cadeaux, los regalos, τα δώρα,Geschenke

A German calendar

A Greek calendar

A French calendar

A Spanish calendar

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2. A Christmas traditional calendar

• January 6th

• December 31st

• December 25th

• January 1st

• December 24 th

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• December 6th

A French Christmas traditional calendar

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- 22nd December, big draw of the national lottery. It is like the beginning of Christmas in Spain. We usually get our Christmas holidays that day! - 24th December, Christmas Eve. We have a meal at home with the family. Some people go to mass. - 25th December, Christmas day. We get some presents from Santa. - 28th December, Fool´s day. We play tricks on people. - 31th December, New Years Eve. We have a meal at home and then we celebrate the New Year. At 00:00 on the 1st january, we eat 12 grapes. - 1st January, New Years day. Another big family meal, sometimes we go to the restaurant. - 5th January, Magic Kings Parade. The Kings send lots of toys and sweets to the children around the parade. - 6th January, Three Kings day . This is when we get most of our presents, but unfortunately school starts the day after.

A Spanish calendar of Christmas

Children enjoy the 6th January

The three wise men usually go on floats, camels o boats.

Nobody misses having the 12 grapes on New Year's eve. It is great fun!

"Inocente"means "fool", "naïve" in Spanish, so be careful on this day .

Some photos

A lottery ticket. You pay 20 euros and can get 400.000 euros

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• late November: It is time to start preparations and to bake little cookies

• 1st Sunday of Advent: We light the first candle on our Advent Wreath and eat the first cookies

• 6th December: Santa Claus visits the families and brings little sweets to the children

• 2nd Sunday of Advent
• 3rd Sunday of Advent
• 4th Sunday of Advent

A German calendar

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• 24th December: In the morning the families start decorating the Christmas tree and in the afternoon they go to the church for the mass. Later on they gather around the Christmas tree and unwrap the presents before they spend the evening with a great meal
• 25th and 26th December: It is time to be spent with the family
• 31st December: Fireworks and party
• 1st January: The day of the international ski jump competition in Garmisch-Partenkirchen
• 6th January: Children disguised as the three kings go round, sing songs and gather money for charity. They also write C+M+B with the year on the entrance door.

A German calendar

Theophania or Epiphany .We traditionally go to church and watch a ceremony during which the priests throw the Holy Cross in the sea and some people , whoever wants it, dive in and grab the cross.

New Year's Day.Many families have a big family lunch.They eat Vasilopita , a special cake with a coin inside it.

New Year's Eve.In the morning children sing the carols . In the evening people throw parties ,eat ,danse and have some great moments. Some play cards and at midnight we watch a firework display.Some throw and crack a pomegranate for good luck . This exact day is when most children get their gifts from Santa Claus .

Christmas Day .All the family gets together and enjoys a big family lunch. Some children get their presents from Santa Claus.

Christmas Eve. In the morning children go around from house to house , sing the carols and get money from the people in the house.In the evening we have some family gatherings.

• January 6th

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• January 1st

• December 31st

• December 25th

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• December 24 th

A Greek calendar

Fireworks

Cracking of Pomegranate

Theophania

Vasilopita

Singing the Carols

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A Greek calendar

Handmade decoration, by Sophie , Germany

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Handmade decoration, by Laurent and Kentin, France

Handmade decoration byLaura, Spain

Handmade decoration, by Eva , Greece

3. Christmas typical decorations

Easy ideas for a more personal and sustainable Christmas

click here to watch my video

I have made this video on how to make a snowflake as a decoration for your Christmas tree. I hope that you like it!!

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Handmade decoration, an idea of Laura

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"Hello, I'm Kentin from Corsica : I feel like making decorations with various patterns we can have on a tree. I have already got the wood and started to work it and I am thinking about a fixing system. I have chosen natural materials around me." Here is the final results! Merry Chrismas!

Hey, it is Laurent! To create a star in drift wood, you will need driftwood and glue or wire to build the star, it's very easy, you don't need any tools. You can find this material in a shop and at the beach.

Handmade decorations, by Laurent and Kentin, France

The ornament

The process

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The ingredients

Every year we make this lovely ornament with tangerines or oranges and cloves and we hung it on the christmas tree .

Handmade decoration, by Eva , Greece.

In our region wood carving has got a long tradition and some easy decorations can be made at home by anybody.The snowflakes in the window are cut from simple white paper and they are as individual as real snow flakes.

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Handmade decoration, by Sophie, Germany

Sara's ideas for a Green Christmas (Spain)

Svenja 's ideas for a Green Christmas (Germany)

Ange Etienne and Davia's ideas for a Green Christmas (France)

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Aggelos Keranis' ideas for a Green Christmas (Greece)

4. Advice for a green Christmas

Lastly, trying to cook consciously is also a very good idea. You can try to buy local ingredients where you can (as this reduces transport emissions) and swap red meat for more vegetarian dishes to reduce your carbon footprint.

On the other hand, you can wrap your gifts in an ecological way. You can reuse gift wrap from last Christmas or use old newspapers to cover your gifts.

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I would like to share some of the ideas I've had for a greener Christmas. I've chosen this because I would like to make people aware of how much is wasted at this time of year and, in this way, we can all together reduce environmental impact. First of all, you can take advantage of what you have. For example, instead of buying a plastic Christmas tree or cutting a real one, why not decorate any plant that you have as your Christmas tree? In my case, I have taken a pita (a typical plant along the Mediterranean coast) that had dried up and, after painting it, I have decorated it with some handmade ornaments.

Sara's ideas for a Green Christmas (Spain)

Lastly, trying to cook consciously is also a very good idea. You can try to buy local ingredients where you can (as this reduces transport emissions) and swap red meat for more vegetarian dishes to reduce your carbon footprint.

On the other hand, you can wrap your gifts in an ecological way. You can reuse gift wrap from last Christmas or use old newspapers to cover your gifts.

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I would like to share some of the ideas I've had for a greener Christmas. I've chosen this because I would like to make people aware of how much is wasted at this time of year and, in this way, we can all together reduce environmental impact. First of all, you can take advantage of what you have. For example, instead of buying a plastic Christmas tree or cutting a real one, why not decorate any plant that you have as your Christmas tree? In my case, I have taken a pita (a typical plant along the Mediterranean coast) that had dried up and, after painting it, I have decorated it with some handmade ornaments.

Sara's ideas for a Green Christmas (Spain)

Going green for Christmas is alsohandmaking your Christmas cardsand why not your Christmas decorationwith natural resources!Buy less and enjoy more creating with your family members!

Don't forget that animals are not the ideal gift for children! They are real beings and they need appropriate food, drink, shelter and time spent with them to enjoy. An animal is a family member that we must keep and protect all along its life! Think before offering a pet. Adopt if you can!

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Hello my name is Davia and my idea for an ecological Christmas will be to replace the gift paper with craft paper and instead of the ribbon put small fabric ropes

Hello my name is ange etienne here are my advice for a green christmas -don’t wrap presents un glossy printed paper -Use fabric or recycled plain paper

Ange Etienne and Davia's ideas for a Green Christmas (France)

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As for your wishes ,you can design and send e-cards instead of paper ones using digital tools such as wordart, canvas etc.

Nowadays, that our planet is in severe danger , I think it's an opportunity to be creactive and share your ideas with your friends and family!

One suggestion is to decorate your christmas tree with ornaments you can make from recycling objects you have at your house, such as paper, cones, gingerbread men etc.

Aggelos Keranis' ideas for a Green Christmas ( Greece)

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You can also create and decorate a Christmas tree made of clay that you can use many years.If you find a piece of wood, you can cut it to paint Santa Clause's face on it.

Every year thousands of Christmas trees are cut down.So why doń't we take just little spruce , because we can have a little spruce (they must be really small) Take it with your hands and dig it carefully out of the ground. And when Cristmas is over we must put this little tree back on the same place, where we had taken it out. (That's very important!!!)

Svenja 's ideas for a Green Christmas (Germany)

A typical meal in France

A typical meal in Germany

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A typical meal in Spain

A typical meal in Greece

5. Christmas traditional meals

A typical meal in France

A typical meal in Germany

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A typical meal in Spain

A typical meal in Greece

5. Christmas traditional meals

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I hope you all had a great Christmas and winter break. For Christmas I had the traditional British Christmas Lunch: Turkey, brussel sprouts fried with bacon, cauliflower & broccoli cheese, roast potatoes & sweet potatoes, carrot & parsnip crush, stuffing balls and pigs in blankets plus cranbery sauce and lots of gravy. Later on, for dessert, I had raspberry roulade and clotted cream (a specilaity from Devon & Cornwall). I forgot to take a picture, I had already eaten it by the time I remembered!

A meal in Spain from a British student, Talia

A good bottle of wine

Lamb ribs

There is always a plate of sweets on the table

A good stew

A plate of clams

A plate of cured ham croquettes

A plate of cured ham

A plate of shrimp, boiled or grilled

Russian salad

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Things that you always find on a Spanish table for Christmas, by Marta, María and Mónica

Here are some of the wines, appetizers and starters you can see on a Corsican table at Christmas.

Corsican delicatessen: cured ham, dried sausage, lonzo and coppa.

Herbs turnovers

Seafood : prawns, crab, oyesters, gambas,clams, mussels

Sweet wine.

White wine and muscat / sweet wine

La baguette

Foie gras

Fish egg toast

Champage

Red wine

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A typical meal in Corsica,France

Roasted duck magret

Roasted turkey or chapon

Yule Log

Brocciu donuts

Here are some of the wines, main courses and desserts you can find on a Corsican table at Christmas

Red wine

Rosé wine

Corsican cheese

Roasted lamb

Fig jam

Frappes

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Chocolate cake with a liquid heart, by Katia.

The Dutchman Van Housten, manufacturer in Amsterdam, invended the solybiliation of cocoa in 1828 : it was the first patent for powdered chocolate.In 1847, the firt chocolate bar was created Rodolphe lindt filled in a a patent in 1849 with marked the creation of melting chocolate by the conching process.Other recipe with chocolate :-Chocolate mousse- Chocolate marble cake...

It was in 1981 Michel Bras a French man, in his restaurant in Laguiole made his cake with a liquid heart. He needs sereral formulas before deciding and finally, he found the right one. As "Liberation" newspacer wrote as a headline : "He makes ganache cores" in ( chocolate and cream) that he stored in the freezer overnight .Chocolate cake recipe for six people :-250 grams of chocolates-175 grams of butter-125 grams of icing sugar-5 eggs

roasted pork with greens

Cabbage and carrots salad

green avocado goji berries salad

Cheese and cold meat starters

Cabbage stuffed leaves

Christ's Bread

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Turkey stuffed with chestnuts

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A typical Christmas meal in Greece includes a variety of delicious dishes ,salads and desserts . Here are some of them :

A typical meal in Greece

christmas truffles

wines

tsoureki covered with chocolate

diples

vasilopita

kourabiedes

melomakarona

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A typical meal in Greece

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Nowadays there are still families where for example a duck is eaten at Christmas, but there is a variety of other food styles, too. Some choose raclette or fondue for a cozy evening meal to be shared with the family.And of course, cookies, Kletzenbrot and Christstollen play an important role in the menue.

A typical meal in Germany

German Christmas Carol

Greek Christmas Carol

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Spanish Christmas Carol

French Christmas Carol

6. Christmas carols & songs

New Year's Carols

Christmas Carols

trigono

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Every Christmas' and New Year 's Eve children go from house to house and sing the carols. There are different carols for the two days . They accompany their singing with the sound of jingling a small traditional instrument called" trigono "

Greek Christmas Carol

If you want to hear it... "click here to hear the carol"

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La Virgen lava pañales Y los tiende en el romero Los pajarillos cantando Y el romero floreciendoPero mira cómo beben Los peces en el río Los peces en el río Al ver a Dios nacidoBeben y beben y vuelven a beberLos peces en el río al ver a Dios nacer

Pero mira cómo beben Los peces en el río Los peces en el río Al ver a Dios nacido Beben y beben y vuelven a beber Los peces en el río al ver a Dios nacer Beben y beben y vuelven a beber Los peces en el río al ver a Dios nacer Beben y beben y vuelven a beber Los peces en el río al ver a Dios nacer

La Virgen está lavandoCon un trozo de jabón Se le han partido las manos Manos de mi corazón Pero mira cómo beben Los peces en el río Los peces en el río Al ver a Dios nacido Beben y beben y vuelven a beber Los peces en el río al ver a Dios nacer

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I want to show all of you one of my favourite carols :) It is called " Los Peces en el Río" (Fish in the River) Here are the lyrics:La Virgen se está peinando Cortina tras de cortina Sus cabellos son de oro Y el peine de plata fina Pero mira cómo beben Los peces en el río Los peces en el río Al ver a Dios nacido Beben y beben y vuelven a beber Los peces en el río al ver a Dios nacer

A traditional carol in Spanish "Villancico" and some traditional instruments, by Clara

This is a "matraca", it's also called "carraca". It is a percussion musical instrument . It consists of a wooden board to which some mobile wooden or metal hammers are attached. They are the ones in charge of hitting the wooden body. It also has a handle to hold it. The sound is produced by holding the matraca by the handle and turning it. The continued noise of the matraca is called matraqueo.

This is called "botella de anís". Basically, the body of the bottle itself vibrates when it is scraped with a metal object. It is mostly used as a rhythmic accompaniment in Christmas Carols.

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These are called "Zambombas". It is a musical instrument of friction

Some traditional music instrumentsfor Christmas in Spain

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Et quand tu seras sur ton beau nuageViens d'abord sur notre maisonJe n'ai pas été tous les jours très sageMais j'en demande pardonPetit Papa NoëlQuand tu descendras du cielAvec des jouets par milliersN'oublie pas mon petit soulierPetit Papa NoëlTINO ROSSIA famous Corsican Singer1946

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Il me tarde tant que le jour se lèvePour voir si tu m'as apportéTous les beaux joujoux que je vois en rêveEt que je t'ai commandéPetit Papa NoëlQuand tu descendras du cielAvec des jouets par milliersN'oublie pas mon petit soulierLe marchand de sable est passéLes enfants vont faire dodoEt tu vas pouvoir commencerAvec ta hotte sur le dosAu son des cloches des églisesTa distribution de surprises

Petit Papa NoëlC'est la belle nuit de NoëlLa neige étend son manteau blancEt les yeux levés vers le cielÀ genoux, les petits enfantsAvant de fermer les paupièresFont une dernière prièrePetit Papa NoëlQuand tu descendras du cielAvec des jouets par milliersN'oublie pas mon petit soulierMais avant de partirIl faudra bien te couvrirDehors tu vas avoir si froidC'est un peu à cause de moi

French Christmas Carol

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German Christmas Carol

Christmas traditions & legends in Spain

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Christmas traditions & legends in Greece

Christmas traditions & legends in Germany

Christmas traditions & legends in Corsica, France

7. Christmas typical stories

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Another Christmas tradition is to teach the youngest (or not) how to counter the evil eye, the "ochju" on Christmas Eve. The evil eye refers to the mysterious forms that a person is a victim of.

Christmas traditions & legends in Corsica, France

Chiara, Corsica. There is not really a Corsican Christmas story but rather facts and traditions, for example: The song "Petit papa Noel" is of Corsican origin, the creator is Tino Rossi a singer of Ajaccio. Petit Papa Noël. In Corsica, we used to take a log and light it in front of the village church, ignited at the end of the midnight mass on December 24th. On the 25th after the fire disappeared, the ashes were collected by the villagers who deposited them in their chimney. This tradition still exists in some villages.

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Pedro - FranceEach year, this feast is celebrated at the beginning of Advent, that is to say, four weeks before Christmas, until January 6, the day of the epiphany. Every Sunday until December 24, candles in the Advent wreath are lit, emblem of the expectation of the birth of Christ and symbol of hope and light.

Flavie, Corsica First one, on Christmas Eve in France, we eat a Yule log, it is an iced cake or with cream that we serve in portions on the Christmas table. Long before that, this log was an oak log that we was burned in the fireplace to start on Christmas Eve Second one, in France, Santa Claus is represented under the name of "Saint Nicolas"

by Katerina

by Angelina

Kalikantzari are mysterious Greek goblins or elves, that appear during the twelve days of Christmas, from the end of December until Epiphany, January sixth. They are said to be small,black and male,mostly blind with long black tails. They speak with a lisp and they eat small creatures such as worms,frogs and snails. During the twelve days of Christmas they come up onto the surface of the Earth, where, they cause all sorts of trouble and mischief. Rather than being evil demons, they are considered impish and stupid.They come out of hiding at night to enter houses anyway they can, through windows, chimneys, keyholes, and any cracks that they may find, in walls. At sunrise they disappear. In Greek folklore, the kalikantzari, disappear on the sixth of January when houses are blessed with holy water by the greek priests.

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There are many Christmas legends .One is about the origins of the tradition of the Vasilopita Pie and another one about the creatures called Kalikantzari.

Vasilopita, translating to Saint Basil’s pie, is a traditional dessert made for New Year’s Day. Every Vasilopita contains a coin; the head of the family cuts the pie into pieces, and whoever finds the coin is said to be in store for a lucky year. This tradition derives from the myth that residents of Cappadocia had collected money and jewellery to give to the area’s tyrannical prefect as a tax. Saint Basil managed to change the prefect’s mind and exempt local people from having to give away their valuables. Not knowing how to return the possessions to their rightful owners, the residents followed Saint Basil’s advice and made small pies. Saint Basil then put the jewellery and money inside the pies and miraculously each person received their own valuable

Christmas traditions & legends in Greece

Later on, when the German peoples were christianized, the crib became important, too.

The Christmas tree itself is Germany's most important tradition. In the old ages, when Germany was almost completely covered with dense and dark woods, the Celts used to celebrate the winter solstice with bringing lights into the houses. They already cut trees to decorate the inside and used any means for making light as you must know that the further you go northwards the longer the nights in winter are.

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Christmas traditions & legends in Germany

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The Spanish students Helen and Cala have invented this Christmas tale. We hope that you enjoy it!! Feel free to decorate, change or add anything that you want!!!

Christmas Traditions and Legends in Spain

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A Christmas tale in Vera, by Helena and Cala It was the 31st of December 1909,and Roberto Sánchez was very sad. He was a humble farmer but had always had a present for his 3 beautiful daughters: Cala, Helena and Leonor on the 6th January, the day of the 3 Kings. In his garden, he had a beautiful orange tree with the most delicious fruits, and every year, he saved three of those fruits as a gift for his daughters for that day. But that year had been a very bad one, it had not rained at all in Vera, and Roberto had not grown any vegetables to sell in the market. He had to sell all the oranges to be able to feed his family during Christmas and New Year. Although he was very sad, he was trying to smile. He did not want his wife Sara or his daughters to see him sad. Before the main course, he decided to go out, to the garden, because he wanted to cry. It was very cold outside, the floor and the trees were covered in frost.

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Drawn by Amalia, from Greece

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A vision of Roberto's garden

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He was just coming back inside, when he heard a strange sound next to the orange tree. He came closer and saw a little boy crying. The little boy was smartly dressed, but his clothes were ragged and covered in mud. “Poor boy”, Roberto thought “walking alone on a night like this!” “What is your name?” he asked the boy “Carlos, my name is Carlos” The little boy answered. “Well, Carlos, come into my house, you can share our dinner with us and you can sit by the fire ang get warm!” So Roberto invited the little boy into his house, fed him, gave him some dry clothes and let him spend the night with them. He suddenly felt much better with himself. Maybe he could not give his daughters a present this year, but they all had helped a little boy on a freezing night. The next morning was the 1st January 1910, New Year’s day and the family was happy to be together. They were singing and telling stories, when they heard some horses stopping at their house.....

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Spanish proposed ending: They all went outside to see what the men wanted. One of the men was Fernando Flores de Abascal, one of the richest men in the area. He had a big plantation of olive trees, which did not need much water to give their fruit, and produce olive oil. Fernando was looking for his son Carlos, who had disappeared the previous day, while he was working in the field. When he saw his son, he became very happy. Carlos told him the whole story and Fernando was so grateful to Roberto that he gave him a bag full of coins. Roberto went to town and bought four necklaces, one for each of his daughters and one for his wife. That was the best Christmas holidays that they had ever had.

The presents

The orange tree

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The reward

New Year's Eve & Dayin Spain

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New Year's Eve & Dayin France

New Year's Eve & Dayin Germany

New Year's Eve & Dayin Greece

8. New Year's Eve & Day

Then the family spends the evening partying, playing board games and chatting.Teenagers usually go to parties with their friends.

There are usually beautiful firework , so people go to the balcony to watch them.

The family gathers around a big table for the big dinner

After that, the aduts celebrate the New Year with a glass of champagne

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At 00:00 we eat the 12 grapes, one for each strike of the clock. It is very fast, so sometimes, we do not have time to eat them all

Things we do for new Year's Eve and Day in Spain

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In the past in Corsica...

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A birba, which was originally a foraging for food by the poorest, was led by a group of young people, named: i birbanti. They would go from house to house asking for dried fruit, nuts, donuts or wine. These provisions were then consumed together in a large room made available by an inhabitant of the village. Those who offered were thanked: Chi vo appiate tante somme di vinu, Quantu ci hè petre in San Gavinu ! Chi vo appiate tante somme di granu, Quantu ci hè petre in Sant’Appianu ! Those who refused were cursed : Chì vo appiate tante zecche in culu, Ch’ellu ci hè petre in u muru !

A BIRBA DI SAN SILVESTRU Linked to the passage into the new year, in Corsica a birba was a sort of procession of young people that took place at night to go from house to house, singing the pricantula, to wish all the inhabitants a fruitful and prosperous year. A birba is actually the name of a long wooden pole that was used to beg for food during rites or celebrations (San'Michele, Sant'Andria, etc ...) At the end of this birba was hung a canvas or leather bag (narpia) to store the food offered. According to a belief, the inhabitants should not have any physical contact with i birbanti because it could bring bad luck! When they arrived in front of a house, they should not in any case knock on the door and they recited aloud the pricantula: A la Birba, techja techja Ch’ella s’affacchi a vechjetta, S’ella ùn si vole affaccà Calci è pugni piglierà. A la casa di lu signore, fate ci a carità, O per forza, o per amore, Chì la birba ghjunghje avà !

New Year's Eve & Dayin France

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At midnight, some men go out on the street with rifles and they shoot the twelves strokes of midnight in the air.On January 1st, people visit their family and phone the oldest people they could have on the phone at midnight. We sometimes have another meal all together at noon to celebrate again!We eat well, drink some more champagne and watch nice shows on TV. We often eat chocolate at talk about new year's resolutions. We express wishes for the loved ones and the planet. In Corsica, we often go to the beach for a walk, it's a tradition to see the sea on this first day of the year.

Today, people usually go to the hairdresser and shopping to buy great clothes to celebrate the end of the year.Some people spend New Year's Eve at home with their family while others go to the restaurant to have a delicious meal which often consists in the same things as the Christmas meal.Young people enjoy going to discos or partying with friends with a lot of music; they chat and dance all together.In big towns, there are some fireworks and attractions.The atmosphere is very festive with cotillions.At midnight, we have to say "bonne année""Bon Anu / Pace e Salute" "happy new year" to all the people we are with and we give them two kisses! It's always very funny and joyful! Then, we often grab our smartphone to send nice messages to the loved ones who are not with us at midnight! And the party goes on till early in the morning for some people!

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Another tradition we have on New Year's Εve ,as soon as the New Year comes ,is the throwing and cracking of a pomegranate in the doorway of the house for luck and prosperity .

At midnight the owner of the house cuts a cake called Vasilopita in pieces and eveyone takes a piece. There is a coin inside the cake and whoever finds it in his/her piece, is supposed to be lucky all through the year.

On New Year's Eve people throw parties ,inviting family and friends to spend the evening together.We usually have dinner with a variety of traditional dishes. We dance and have fun. Some people play cards for good luck.

New Year's Eve & Dayin Greece

On New Year's Eve we usually celebrate either with the family or together with friends. We take time to eat good food and play games or have a party.At midnight there are lots of fireworks all over the town.On New Year's Day, we meet in the ski stadium to watch the international ski jump competition. It is like a big party, too.

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New Year's Eve & Dayin Germany

In winter we usually lack sunlight, that's why candle lights are veryimportant for us.But we often havefun in the snow.

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Winter Impressions

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A game about Christmas in our countries by Vasilis K. ,Greece

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A game with Christmas Vocabulary by Konstantina, Greece

9. Typical challenges

"My name is Cristina C. and I'm from Spain. In Spain, every year , it is common to go to see the Christmas lights in the city, go to Christmas markets, even have a chocolate with churros. Inside the house we have other customs such as decorating the Christmas tree and putting the nativity scene at home."

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Here is an example of the Kahoots that we do at home. I have changed some of the questions, obviously, so it is interesting for you!Enjoy!!

"Hello! My name is María Ángeles and I´m from Spain. At Christmas, we play some typical challenges like kahoots, puzzles... I´m going to explain to you some of them. We celebrate The Three Kings, for this day we play some puzzles with drawings of them; also, my family and I, every Christmas' Eve, we try to find some names of Christmas things in a word search, at my home, the fist day of our christmas holiday we play some kahoots of Christmas carols, it consists in finding some missing words of them. On 22nd of December we play The Lottery, here we called it `El Gordo´, my family and I play it and we enjoy it a lot! I think it´s one of my favourite typical challenges. To play the Lottery, you need to buy a ticket with a number, and if your number is sung in the raffle, you will win a prize ( money). Greetings from Spain!"

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A kahoot about Christmas, play with us, By Mª Angeles and Cristina C!

Typical challenges

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France created the final quiz to test your understanding of our complete handbook! Are you ready to have fun?