A Christmas Question for our Equatorial and Southern Latitude Friends

[jmig]

My wife and I were walking this afternoon when the question of snow and Christmas came up. Since we are both Southerners, we have never experienced a White Christmas or much snow. Still, Christmas and snow are etched into our conscienceless. We associate pictures of snow with winter and Christmas.

How about our equatorial and southern latitude friends. For you living near the equator it is just as hot in December or July. If you are from Australia, New Zealand, or South Africa, Christmas comes in the summer. Do you associate Christmas the way we do in North America or Europe?

[Bjoern]

It's a matter of habit, I guess. When you've never had a "classical" X-mas, you won't miss it.


If the southerners are in need for some snow to get in the mood nonetheless, I'm sure Europe will have some to spare. :icon_lol:

[stiz]

well until last year, we didnt have a white christmas in England for at least 30yrs ... we just got used to it, last year was white though and this years looking the same :jump:

[Wing_Z]

..Do you associate Christmas the way we do in North America or Europe?
Most of NZ is of European extraction, so there are these fat old geezers squeezed into red suits at this time of the year, sweating profusely, going Ho ho ho.
Or at least they did until the meaning of the word changed...

Down at the Auckland waterfront this year they had a "Snowdome", kind of a scaled up version of those little glass dioramas that you shake and the fake snow flurries around.:isadizzy:

Some Europeans have a "Midwinter Christmas" in July, where you get fed stuff more applicable to a European December, like hot cakey stuff.

But Christmas is the time to meet friends on the beach for a barbie and a few cold ones.
The weather can still be a bit iffy (we have winter rainfall), so many delay the holiday until January when it's meant to be dry and sunny.

[Naismith]

My wife's uncle lives in Brisbane. He has Xmas dinner on the beach! This is just wrong.

[Naki]

Agree with Wing_z....whilst we see all the images of snow and Christmas on TV etc and relate to it as you do but Christmas to Kiwis (and Aussies) is beach, pool, BBQs (and few cold ones:icon29:) and camping (many have Christmas whilst camping or at the bach/holiday home)...I'm off camping at the beach on the 7th of January.

Whilst its seems a bit mad many do have hot roast lunches on Christmas day - we will be having a Roast Turkey at the inlaws on their Kiwi Fruit orchard but it will be BBQ tea on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.

I have once experienced snow around Christmas when we had some freak weather when I was living further south and I see on TV that that ski fields in Aussie have a bit of snow on them at the moment, which is completely weird - the weather here is the opposite - very warm and muggy - we usually get this weather late January & February - Christmas day is forecast to be hot and dry.