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by Christine Burgmer | Dec 20, 2014 | Allgemein |
A Christmas Tree is an evergreen conifer (such as a fir, pine or spruce) or an artificial tree, decorated with Christmas ornaments usually made of glass, metal, wood, ceramics or even paper. Traditionally the tree was decorated with apples and nuts and illuminated by candles. Today, most people use fairy lights, tinsel and baubles, and complete the decoration with a Tree-Topper placed at the top of the tree. The most common tree-toppers are the angel or the star, but some people also use a finial.
Why not look at the short video on history.com to learn a bit about the history of Christmas trees?
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by Christine Burgmer | Dec 19, 2014 | Allgemein |
Father Christmas, also known as Santa Claus or Saint Nicholas, is said to bring presents to the homes of good children on 24 December, the night before Christmas Day.
Take a look at this short video clip (link to: www.history.com) if you’re interested in his origins!
You’ll often see the words “Season’s Greetings” on Christmas cards. This can be translated as “Frohe Festtage” and is a greeting commonly used before or during the Christmas holiday.
And, you’ve probably heard about the Christmas stockings which are hung on the mantlepiece or at the foot of children’s beds on Christmas Eve for Santa to fill with toys, sweets and other gifts. These presents are often called stocking fillers.
Oh, and if you do decide to offer turkey at Christmas (a tradition in Britain), you’ll want to know how to stuff it. Marthastewart.com has a nice little video clip to teach you. You don’t know how to prepare the stuffing? This recipe (link to: www.bbc.co.uk) looks quite easy.
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by Christine Burgmer | Dec 18, 2014 | Allgemein |
For British children, Father Christmas wouldn’t be able to deliver all the presents without his reindeers to pull his sleigh over the rooftops. Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer is probably the most famous of them all! 😉
We learn about the reindeers in the poem:
“T’was the night before Christmas, when all through the house
Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse.
The stockings were hung by the chimney with care,
In hopes that St Nicholas soon would be there …
… And he whistled, and shouted, and called them by name;
“Now, Dasher! now, Dancer! now, Prancer and Vixen!
On, Comet! on, Cupid! on, Donder and Blitzen! … ”
And, of course, presents need to be wrapped up in pretty Christmas paper and tied with Christmas ribbons – perhaps with something like these here!
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by Christine Burgmer | Dec 17, 2014 | Allgemein |
A Christmas Day message has been delivered to the people of the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth almost every year since 1932. And Queen Elizabeth II continues the tradition to this day. In fact millions of people all over the world wouldn’t miss the Queen’s Christmas Message on Christmas Day for all the tea in China!
Why not listen to her last Christmas message (link to YouTube) yourself?
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by Christine Burgmer | Dec 16, 2014 | Allgemein |
A pantomime or ‘panto’ is a very British tradition. It’s a type of musical comedy performed in theatres, village halls and community centres during the Christmas and New Year season. It includes singing, slapstick comedy and dancing and is normally based on a well-known fairy tale. Male roles are often played by women and female roles by men. And the audience is expected to participate!
Take a look at Jack and the Beanstalk (link to YouTube) to get an idea what a pantomime is.
It really is difficult to imagine Christmas without presents, isn’t it? For British children, presents magically appear overnight. When they get up on Christmas Day, they find their presents in the stockings they hung by the fire place. Clear that Father Christmas parked his sleigh on the roof and came down the chimney to put them there during the night!
Of course, buying presents shouldn’t become a chore …
And for some, Christmas pudding (also known as ‘plum pudding’) is a must on 25th December. It’s a steamed pudding made of dried fruit, egg and suet (something I’ve never liked!) and flavoured with cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, ginger and other spices. If you’d like to give it a try, nigella.com has an interesting recipe. Traditionally a silver coin was hidden inside it. For me, that’s the best part of the pudding. In fact that’s the only reason I ate it during my school’s annual Christmas dinner! 😉
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by Christine Burgmer | Dec 15, 2014 | Allgemein |
I remember making our own ornaments for the Christmas tree and for our home. Better Homes and Gardens has some great ideas if you’re feeling creative. Or look at marthastewart.com for more inspiration.
