Christmas Down Under

Christmas in Australia can seem a bit strange if you aren’t from there, especially since it’s often extremely hot. Australia shares a lot of Christmas culture with England and other Western countries but adapts to the temperature.

This year Christmas Day was actually relatively cool for a lot of the country but since it’s normally quite hot, it is very common to eats lots of cool or cold dishes. This means cold meats and seafood, salads, breads, cheeses, and desserts. Christmas lunches and dinners are often big events with extended family so it is common for many people to bring and share some food. One of my plates from a Christmas dinner included cold chicken, ham, prawns, Caesar salad, potato salad, Caprese salad, potato salad and devilled eggs. There was cake, cheeses, olives, and rice pudding for dessert after, too! Pavlova is quite common since many different fruits are in season.

The long school holidays in Australia stretch from the end of December to the end of January and many businesses shut from Christmas Day until after New Year’s. Santa, Christmas lights & decorations, music, and sharing gifts is very similar to other countries. However, instead of Christmas markets and snow activities you’re more likely to play backyard cricket, go to the beach, or watch sport (especially cricket or sailing) at this time of year.