Christmas traditions and the holiday in general is something that is currently cherished worldwide and has been for centuries, that much is customarily understood. But have you ever considered how others traditions and celebrations differ from yours? I’m sure we are all familiar with the common holiday traditions in the US such as tree decorating, stocking stuffing, the elf on the shelf , and some family specific traditions (examples being cookie making , star on top of the Christmas tree etc.), but have you ever heard of the unique traditions all over the world specifically in Sweden, Japan, Iceland, Portugal, Brazil, and lastly Austria. To start , Sweden up until the year 1966 had the tradition of a yule goat which was Sweden’s Christmas “symbol” dating back to ancient pagan festivals, but 67 years ago they decided it was time for a change, where the Yule goat was replaced by a giant straw goat referred to as the Gävle Goat. The Gävle Goat stands at 42 feet high and 23 feet wide, 3.6 tons. There is a yearly livestream from the 1st Sunday of advent through the new year when it is taken down/apart where Sweden’s can watch the straw goat 24/7. Furthermore, although in this country Christmas isn’t even considered a national holiday due to a lack of substantial Christian population (estimate of 1 percent) citizens still find a way to celebrate. Believe it or not, on Christmas people in Japan eat KFC, as a matter of fact they go crazy over it. This started in 1974 after a wildly successful marketing campaign called “kurisumasu in wa kentakkii” which translates to “Kentucky for Christmas” blew up. Now ever since the people of Japan will order their Yuletide chicken MONTHS in advance or spend their Christmas morning standing in 2 hour lines. Now to continue, there’s Iceland that has, in my opinion, one of the cutest Christmas traditions. In Iceland they as opposed to the customary 12 days of Christmas in the US celebrate 13 during these 13 days Icelandic children place their shoes in their windowsill before going to bed , when they wake up they are either greeted by shoes full of candy (for being good) or shoes full of rotten potato’s (for being naughty). On to Portugal and Brazil these Portuguese countries have a longstanding tradition of eating together as a community on the 24th around 10pm then, exactly at midnight, going to a mass they call Missa Do Galo (Rooster Mass) after this midnight service the people rejoice and celebrate with fireworks while exchanging Christmas wishes. And finally, saving the best for last Austria. Austria and other alpine countries alike share the common legend of Krampus (a devil of sorts) who deals with the faith of bad children. In Austria Krampus joins their St. Nicolas festival on December 6th where children are asked to compile a list of their good and bad deeds from the year. Good children are known to receive sweets, apples, and nuts while those who have been deemed bad fear what Krampus will bring on Christmas Day. Out of these unique holidays, which one was your favorite? Which one was the most surprising?