Christmas Down Under

First things first: summer in Australia is the direct opposite of summer in the Northern Hemisphere. Yes, you heard right. In Australia, summer actually happens from December to February. Which means Aussies celebrate their Christmas at the height of summer. Which means they get to do more things they otherwise couldn't do if they were in the wintry, arctic regions on the Northern Hemisphere. Blessed be the Australian summer.

But watch out: the Australian summer can be very hot and unforgiving, but this is just fine as long as you keep a handy bottle of sunscreen with you and arm yourself with a good pair of UV-proof sunglasses. For Aussie families, summer generally is the time to hit the beach and frolic in the waters. Summer also marks the mid-year break for students; instead of springbreak, they enjoy summer holidays or Christmas holidays. And for backpackers who roam and travel Australia, the Aussie summer can be a liberating experience. Even businesspeople who like to keep busy with work even during the holidays prefer to leave their freezing homelands and travel Australia to seek its cosy warmth.

Before you get any misplaced ideas about Australia as being just pure hard summer, you have to realise that Australia is such a large country that each region experiences different weather patterns. Up north where the tropical rainforests reign, it's mainly high temperatures and high humidity and distinct wet and dry seasons. In the centre of the country, where the Outback sprawls, it's dry, desert regions with high daytime temperatures and occasional bursts of rain. In the south are the temperate regions with moderate rainfall and temperatures ranging from hot to cold.

To travel Australia in all its entirety is to witness nature's awesome and breathtaking display of colors, heat, frenzy, and vibrance. It's a land of extremes: one moment you could be enjoying a runny pistachio ice cream under the scorching sun, the next, you could be snuggling tight with a loved one under the velvety pouring rain. There's no perfect weather in which to travel Australia. After all wherever we go, we all bring along with us our pieces of sky and sun and climate.

Christmas in Spain

Christmas is a very religious holiday in Spain. The Spain's patron saint is the Virgin Mary and the Christmas season officially begins December 8, the feast of the Immaculate Conception. Each year it is celebrated in front of the great Gothic cathedral in Seville with a ceremony called los Seises or the "dance of six." The elaborate ritual dance is performed by ten costumed boys; the dance is said to be quite moving and beautiful. It is made up of a series of precise traditional movements and gestures.

Christmas Eve is known as Nochebuena or "the Good Night." As the stars come out on Christmas Eve, tiny oil lamps are lit in every house. Family members gather together to rejoice and feast around the Nativity scenes, complete with carved figures, that are present in nearly every home. The traditional Christmas treat is turron, a kind of almond candy. After Midnight Mass and Christmas Dinner the streets fill with dancers and onlookers. There is a special Christmas dance called the Jota and the words and music of which have been handed down for hundreds of years. The dance is accompanied by the sound of guitars and castanets.

The Spanish especially honour the cow at Christmas. This is because it is thought that when Mary gave birth to Jesus, the cow in the stable breathed on the Baby Jesus to keep him warm. The Spanish Christmas is Navidad, people go to church, exchange presents, and many play on swing sets set up especially for the occasion. Swinging at solstice time evokes an ancient desire to encourage the sun, urging it to "swing" ever higher in the sky. December 28 is the feast of the Holy Innocents. Young boys of a town or village light bonfires while one of them acts as the mayor who orders the townspeople to perform civic chores such as sweeping the streets. If you refuse to comply fines are levied which are then used to pay for the celebration.

The children of Spain receive gifts on the feast of the Epiphany, January 6th, the date the Three Wise Men gave gifts to Jesus. The Magi are particularly revered in Spain. It is believed that they travel through the countryside re-enacting their journey to Bethlehem every year at this time.

On the 'Eve of The Kings', a parade takes place in each town centre. The locals dress as kings and walk through the towns, throwing sweets and gifts to the children watching. The Kings (Los Reyes), are the highlight of each child's Christmas and they write a gift list to 'The Kings' rather than Father Christmas, leaving food and drink out for them to enjoy while delivering the children's presents. Children leave their shoes on the windowsills and fill them with straw, carrots or barley for the horses of the Wise Men. By morning the camel food is gone and in place of the straw, carrots or barley are presents. Their favourite Wise Man is Balthazar who rides a donkey and is the one believed to leave the gifts.

The Hawaiian Christmas

Christmas in Hawaii this year is as festive as ever, and some very well priced, holiday airfares can be found (at last check as low as $300 from US West Coast). Whether your vacation is budget or extravagant, you can create some beautiful holiday memories on Oahu.

Hawaiian Christmas memories are among my favorite remembrances of living in Hawaii. Listening to the children belt out their favorites like "Here Comes Santa in a Red Canoe," and the Hawaiian version of "The 12 Days of Christmas," and hearing "Silent Night" sung in English and Hawaiian by an angelic choir on a balmy evening under the stars with palm trees swaying are experiences not to be missed.Just walking downtown is a delight during the holidays.

And I'll never forget arriving at the Honolulu Airport for the first time during the holiday season and being in awe of the towering tree all decked out with huge, lauhala woven pineapples and golden lights.

Holidays in Hawaii, especially Christmas are widely celebrated. This is a very churched community, but even many of the Buddhist families participate in Christmas traditions, especially the Japanese-Americans who come who have a reputation for loving to give gifts.

If you're visiting the islands for the holidays, you will find a myriad of Christmas events on Oahu, actually on all the islands, but more so on Oahu.

In Hawaii, Santa gives his reindeer a Christmas break and arrives in a canoe, barefoot, tanned and with his red furry pants rolled up. On Oahu, his first stop is, as it is for most of Hawaii's visitors, Waikiki Beach in Honolulu. Keiki (children) visit their Hawaiian Santa at various cities on Oahu throughout the season.

While at Christmas time, many of the islanders enjoy watching the visitors in awe of this warm, friendly climate in the dead of winter, they also enjoy imagining what a white Christmas would be like. You'll hear many of the traditional mainland songs, like "Winter Wonderland" and "Jingle Bells."

Some Hawaiians though do have a white Christmas, that is if they're on the Big Island (island of Hawaii) and drive up above the tree line to the 10,000 foot high snowcapped peaks of Mauna Kea, transforming their boogie boards into sleds and building snowmen! With the current, cheap airfares from between Oahu and Neighbor Islands,a side trip from Oahu to the Big Island is more affordable than its been in a long time.

It's fun swapping tropical and white Christmas stories with locals. For us visitors it's especially fun to write home about how we spent our Christmas day on a beach! Some newcomers to Hawaii will even bring miniature trees down to the beach, although Hawaii has plenty Christmas trees. On Oahu,as on the other islands, trees from the mainland are sold. And, Hawaii has its own Christmas tree: the island Norfolk Pine. The tree doesn't have the spicy pine scent, but its largely spaced branches are wonderfully easy to decorate.

Hawaiian Christmas tree decorations are found everywhere. Craft fairs are great for finding local style ones: coconut frond woven ornaments, kukui nut and tapa cloth angels, Santas on surfboards in canoes and riding dolphins; along with beautiful wreaths made of island flowers and greenery.

Many of these craft fairs are events in themselves, complete with Hawaiian Christmas entertainment and food. You'll find many of these listed along with other holiday Oahu events in newspapers and free magazines at the airport.

Some of my favorite Oahu events at Christmas are the light displays in Honolulu and the music – choirs, orchestras and local style bands are found everywhere with free concerts at malls and on the beach. Adding to the holiday fun, many of Hawaii's most popular musicians like the Brothers Cazimero and Don Ho perform regularly in Waikiki.

The Honolulu City Lights (the city was given permission by Keola and Kapono Beamer to use the name of their all time hit song) is a spectacular display throughout Honolulu, including Waikiki, making Oahu a good pick for a Hawaiian holiday vacation.

The month-long, traditional festivities begin with the Kawaiahao Church Service in Honolulu (This was the first Christian church built in Hawaii and is extraordinary), the lighting of the City's 63-foot Norfolk Pine at Honolulu Hale (City Hall) and an electric parade and concert on December 3; however festivities continue throughout the holiday season.

For example, the Honolulu City Lights Trolley Tours run from December 8 to 30. The $2.50 fare (under age 4 free) benefits the Hawaii Food bank. For details, visit Honolulu Hale. If you go, be sure to check out the other Oahu event calendars mentioned above as well as this one's. And check out the holiday airfares at places like Hawaiian Airlines and Hotwire.com.

Mele Kalikimaka!