Holidays, Festivals and Traditions

→ one of the purest American holidays, which is celebrated with the whole family whose members gather for a traditional feast made of roast turkey with bread stuffing, mashed potatoes, cranberry sauce and pumpkin pie

Christmas

≈ the most important festival of the year celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ

→ the Christmas season is characterised by groups of carollers, families decorating their houses, buying Christmas trees, exchanging gifts and spending time together (typical symbols include the holly, red stockings and crackers

→ children traditionally open their presents in the morning on 25th December which is also the day when the British Queen delivers her traditional Christmas message to the people of the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth

- typical British Christmas feast consists of turkey followed by Christmas pudding

New Year´s Eve

≈ the last night of the year during which people gather together, celebrate, drink and wait for midnight to wish each other a happy new year and kiss their loved ones

→ people in the States watch the traditional ball dropping ceremony at Times Square in New York City while in Britain, people watch celebrations at Trafalgar Square in London

Tết
also known as the Vietnamese New Year, it is the most important holiday in Vietnam. It follows the lunar calendar, so the actual day is different every year. This year is the year of the snake it was celebrated on the 10th of February. Last year was the year of the dragon. Vietnamese usually clean the house and cook special meals, such as rice cake, which consists of sticky rice, pork and beans. It is then wrapped in banana leaves, which makes it green.