Different Cultural Christmas Traditions

Christmas in the United States is warm and bright! Many houses are decorated with beautiful lights and  tall green trees. Santa Claus and Elf On The Shelf are two really big premises for American culture. Elves are Santa’s helpers, but all these are just beliefs for young kids. Christmas is celebrated on December 25th, unlike other countries that celebrate it on the 24th. Families usually open presents in the morning on the 25th. Kids as well enjoy sending letters to Santa! They send them to 123 Elf Road, North Pole, 88888. The Enchant Lights in Washington D.C. are a perfect and calming way to end a day. Tickets start at $23 per child and $35 per adult. Many tourists visit from all over the world to see these Christmas events in the United States. Christmas is also well known in New York City for the Rockefeller tree that they have up throughout December, where people go to take pictures and have fun!

Feliz Navidad! Christmas is celebrated in many different countries, but my favorite is Christmas in Guanajuato, Mexico. It is a beautiful celebration since there are so many fun things to do, such as going to bailes, going out to las posadas, and praying to baby Jesus. Bailes are a fun dance for people to go and have fun all night long. Posadas are religious festivals that are from December 16th until Christmas Eve with praying with people in the community. The Posadas mostly show the journey that Mary and Joseph made to Jerusalem where Jesus was born. For the Christmas party, many known music artists go to the ranch for the big party that happens every year! The fiestas are brightly colored and have a lot of confetti. They also have a type of dance where a person will go under the horns of a bull and dance with it having fireworks coming out of it! 

Las Posadas is one of the main Christmas festivities celebrated at different peoples’ houses every night. In Posadas they have candy, food like tamales, pozole, champorado, bueńelos, atole, and many more. They start from December 16th to December 24th, with a prayer every night. In Mexico, they pray to baby Jesus on the 24th, which makes baby Jesus go to sleep and rest. After they celebrate The Three Kings, they pray again. Then, baby Jesus will be up on February 2nd after you pray for him to wake up again. The Three Kings are named Gaspar, Melchior, and Balthasar, and their journey started when they were following the star of Bethlehem to find where Jesus was born. They brought gifts for Jesus, like gold, frankincense, and myrrh. 

Christmas in many different countries is different and beautiful, with many of their traditions filled with love. As a result of many countries celebrating it differently, I believe Christmas in Mexico is one of the best-celebrated holidays. Christmas will always be a happy and loving place for any country to be with family and friends!