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is - tun ultxitnnohrtu . Wrditesdat. lMeltlbt'l13.JUlU Worldwide celebrations continu O O O I Different cultures across the world celebrate the holidays m drflerent ways Br Gum UP’l’ON everywhere in the world, Special to the Chronicle In China and Japan the lantern Festival is celebrated on the first full moon of the New ( : hristntas has come and gone. but cel- Year. Paper lanterns lit WIIll candles are ebrations continue in other corners of hung on the peaks of homes or carried on the globe 3 poles. In North America and]Western Europe . In Thailand it is Int Kruthong. Loy means many people celebrate Christmas. There are to float, and it “krathong' is a ltitusrshaped plenty ofsimilarities to how this is done. and ' vessel made of banana leaves. there are some differences. . ._~.w on. v.- . The krathong usually contains a candle, The tradition in this part of the world is to 4 ӣ33: 1‘ three joss-stit‘ks. some flowers and coins It decorate your home with evergreens, holly. '» "if?" is floated on the ocean or a nearby river llll‘s lights and colourful decorations, A tree is $321” , takes place toward the end of November. put up and decorated and lit‘ with wrapped , . fit”; ‘ Then there's the Hindu festival Diwali. presents to be opened on Christmas morn- if'h‘.’ which translates roughly as ‘row of candles ing. The huge mid-day meal usually involves " f ‘ {G};- ‘ and is celebrated for four days in November. turkey or ham. ' . ’~3‘;‘";'.{\"“.c , Each day has a difierent tradition related to There is of course the underlying reli- “* . aseparate legend and god. gious aspect. Christmas literally means ._ ‘ Q}? of,“ In Egypt. Christmas is celebrated on Ian. Christ Mass. or Mass for Christ. 5 ,.~' I? G and Ian. 7. Holy sites are decorated with The festival is to celebrate the birth of ';’lf“<?.5‘*<_»:l‘f b-{gfj' special lights and candles. Churches give lesus Christ. Lights represent the candle ’ 3 1 . . . (“ML-HQ}; ' candles to the poor. Joseph burned to keep his family safe, and ‘ . . 52.5. 4. f”? 97333- 43 g In the United States, many African fami- today's gifts represent the three gifts of the ‘ '-’ f 51433 lies celebrate Kwanzaa starting on Dec. 26. wise men. l ' g, This is a seven-day harvest celebration, with But for most people, Christmas is all ., “a? . a candle to be lit and presents to be about family. ‘ ~ ~. 1: is? ' exchanged on each day. Although Kwanzaa Doug Payne. who lives in the midwest g ‘ “t is thought to be a relatively new festival. U.S., points out the important aspect of 7: many maintain that it is a revival of an Christmas. ' . ancient African tradition. “Our kids and grandkids all live in other I " One universal celebration involving lights areas. but they all come in for the holiday. , is Hanukkah. which is celebrated by Jewish On Christmas Eve we usually visit cousins, ' â€". 5 people throughout the world. Central to the uncles and aunts and other family and ' ’ ‘f . â€" celebrations is the menorah, a candle-hold- fn’ends.” . er with nine places. Christmas in Australia â€"â€" also a former » ; The central candle is lit to indicate the English colony â€" is similar. with one big ," beginning of the ceremonies, and is used to twist. As they are south of the equator. __ f: light the other eight, one each day repre- December is the start of their summer. It‘s a - if . W1, _‘ - senting the miracle of the rededication of social occasion there. which often involves _ 7 3 ,» gm: £35: the holy temple in lerusalem. when one an afternoon swim at the beach. ' ' first?" it a 4; fig. day's worth of holy oil burned for eight The Christmas turkey is often cooked on at“; - "L. ?'= M" ' if” days. the “barby” (barbecue). . , ‘ TI“ 5' 3 .;,'-- ' Hanukkah is indicated on a lewish lunar Enrico Sunseri. who lives on the outskirts ' w" . . . 'f - 1.5 calendar. and thus may begin anywhere of Venice. points out that Christmas in Italy ’ ". g" ' - ~ from the end of November to the end of revolves around food. ~‘ A ' December. "Everything starts at the evening of 24th A midnight mass is often a big pan of the than Christmas. However. the church Over time, especially in countries that December. called ‘Ia Vigilia'. People get celebration in this predominantly Roman pinned it at the time of the very common celebrate Christmas, the exchange of gifts together at a friend's or relatives house to Catholic country. pagan celebration we now call the Festival of has become common during each day of have a very long and rich dinner. Usually Most historians agree that the actual date lights. Hanukkah. that dinner ends late in the night. even after of Christ's birth is a complete mystery. The The Festival of lights is not just common It seems that a wish for peace and love midnight, and after swapping gifts and Bible indicates that it might have been to Europe and North America. Some form of and a desire to banish the darkness are all wishes." around March or April â€" closer to Easter it can be found at about this time almost rather universal. y“ \I.I, I-l{.\.\ll,.\ _ to“ to.“ ‘ x \l .\t.l \,\\l,\ “a s a LAURIER . t’ OPTICAL as 3.9 ”m "°""'""""°°"“ NHL: :-."w' Coast/"ii “.. i A at t n., a dc lg.>. w ‘. OK) i J mWCHE\Fn , - . 3 - A» r: 50 runs . f c