With Christmas just around the corner, every country celebrate it by various ways.
In China, Christmas is not generally celebrated for religious purposes. Instead, December 25 has become a big occasion for promotion and fun. The idea of exchanging gifts seems to appeal strongly to young Chinese. The tradesmen have commercialized Christmas just as western shops have done. Several weeks before the day itself, stores begin shouting about Christmas. There are decorations and wonderful displays of appropriate gifts. Many western customs in observing Christmas have been adopted by the Chinese. Besides exchanging gifts on Christmas Day, people get together to hold parties in fancy restaurants and cafes where Christmas carols are sung. 
There are a number of Christmas customs that are uniquely Greek. After 40 days of fasting, the Christmas feast is anticipated. Pigs are slaughtered and on every table there are loaves of "Christ Bread." Christmas trees are not commonly used in Greece. In almost every home the main symbol of the season is a shallow wooden bowl with a piece of wire suspended across the rim; from that hangs fragrant herb wrapped around a wooden cross. Water is kept in the bowl to keep the herbs alive. Every day, the mother uses the cross and herbs to sprinkle water in each room. This ritual is believed to keep the house safe. Gifts are exchanged on January 1. 
Christmas is special to the majority of Australians for it is summer holiday season and for students it means an end to school studies and the beginning of sun, surf and shopping. Traditional dinners have been replaced with family gatherings in back yards, or picnics in parks and gardens. A typical Christmas menu could include seafood, cold chicken or turkey, pasta and desserts. 
The Christmas feast, in Denmark, is celebrated at midnight Christmas Eve. Everyone looks forward to dessert when a special rice pudding is served in which a single almond is hidden. Whoever finds the almond will have good luck for the coming year. Children leave out saucers of milk or rice pudding for Santa Claus and are delighted to find the food gone next morning. On Christmas Eve, Iraqi Christian families gather together and one of the children reads about the birth of Jesus while others hold lighted candles. After the reading, a bonfire of thorn bushes is lit and everyone sings. If the thorns turn to ash, good luck will arrive in the coming year. When the fire dies out, each person jumps over the ashes three times and makes a wish. Saint Nicholas is especially popular in Russia. Nicholas is one of the most common names for boys. Christmas Eve dinner is meatless but festive. The most important ingredient is a special porridge called kutya. It is made of wheat or other grains which symbolize hope and immortality, and honey and poppy seeds, which ensure happiness and success. 




