Greek christmas and new year part

1. 7th Gymnasium
Egaleo/Athens, Greece

2. There are many customs associated with the Christmas holidays, some of which are
relatively recent, “imported” from other parts of the world (like eating turkey on
Christmas day and decorating the Christmas tree). In the past, Greeks decorated small
Christmas boats in honour of St. Nicholas and today, they are increasingly choosing to
decorate boats, instead of trees, reviving this age-old Christmas tradition.

3. The Christmas tree is an “imported” tradition. Traditionally
Greeks would (and still do) decorate a small boat due to
Greece’s close affiliation with the sea and its long marine
history Greeks have been seafarers for thousands of years and
the country is today one of the wolrd’s mightiest shipping
nations. Let’s not forget, that the countrys’s coastline is
14880km long! As a matter of fact according to the World
Factbook Greece, despite its small size, is 10th out of 194
countries with the longest coastline. Remember the Greek
beaches and islands!!!)
The Christmas boats are made of paper or wood, decorated with lights and a
few simple ornaments. They are usually placed near the outer door or by the
fire and the bow should always point to the interior of the house symbolizing
a full load of riches reaching one’s
home.

4. Every December, Greece’s second city, Thessaloniki, erects a huge,
illuminated metal structure in the shape of a three-mast ship next to the
Christmas tree in its main Aristotelous Square.

5. A very old custom which remains today practically unchanged is the Greek Christmas carols, which is called Kalanda in Greek. They are
beautiful carols that have been handed down from Byzantine times and add to the reverent quality of the celebration.
Children, in groups of two or more, still make the rounds of houses singing carols, usually accompanied by the triangle or guitars, accordions
or harmonicas.
The children go from house to house, knock on doors and ask: "shall we say them?" If the homeowner's answer is yes, the kids sing the
Christmas carols for several minutes before finishing up with the wish, "And for the next year, many happy returns." Years ago the
homeowners offered the children holiday sweets and pastries, but today they usually give them some money.
The carols are sung on the eves of Christmas, New Year and Epiphany, and they are different for each holiday.