I have friends all over the World but in particular, I have some really lovely friends, that I’ve met through blogging, in America and whilst they still celebrate Christmas, they do it a little differently to us here in the UK. I thought I’d write a little guide to Christmas in the UK.
Christmas is a time of the year when people all over the world bring back memories of their childhood. It is a festive and joyful occasion with loads of food and decorations.
However, not everyone celebrates Christmas as we do in Britain. What’s more, some things may seem strange to us, but don’t worry; we have an extensive guide to help you through this!
This year has been a difficult one for many people and it’s important that we try to make it as merry as possible.
When We Start Celebrating
My American friends tend to start celebrating much earlier than we do. As we don’t celebrate Thanksgiving, our Christmas generally starts in December. This year, mind you, I know many, many people that started really early and put their trees up in November. I think that’s pretty unusual though. Our town Christmas light switch on is usually the very last weekend in November so that’s when I tend to crack out the Christmas jumpers (then live in the for the whole festive period!). This year, our tree went up on the first weekend in December.
Christmas Day
Christmas day is possibly the most important day of the year. It’s when we get together with our families and loved ones and share presents and have a Christmas dinner together. Christmas dinner is usually a roasted turkey with all the trimmings. The trimmings are pigs in blankets – very important (these are sausages wrapped in bacon), roast potatoes, parsnips, Brussel sprouts and various other vegetables with roasted potatoes and gravy.
In our household, the evenings are usually pretty lowkey and we play games and relax.
What is Boxing Day and How Is It Celebrated?
In olden times, Boxing Day was a day where the rich boxed up presents and gave them to their staff. The staff were also allowed home on this day. You can read more about that here.
For my family, boxing day is where my whole family get together (parents, siblings, partners, grandchildren, everyone) and have a meal together and exchange gifts. It’s like a second Christmas day for us.
This year, we’ll be celebrating it at my brother’s house as he’s recently moved and his house is really spacious and beautiful.
I hope you all have a wonderful Christmas. You can enter a Christmas competition here.
