Update from Outbound Rotary Exchange Student - Emma Thomson - Boldog Karacsonyt: Christmas in Hungary
Posted by Chantelle Meriam on Jan 02, 2017
Christmas this year was a completely new experience for me. But one I did very much enjoy.
I took me quite a long time to really feel in a full Christmas mood this year, partly cause it wasn’t the same routine as what I’m used to in December. I watched Christmas movies but other than those (which I didn’t even watch as many as I do back in Canada) most things were all new for me.
To start off with, Santa doesn’t come on Christmas eve, rather on December 6th, St. Nicholas day. He doesn’t bring toys either, he overflows your shoe/boot with chocolate and candy, so much that I’m actually still working through eating it all now! And of course he goes by a different name here, Mikulás.
When it comes to Christmas itself the biggest difference I found was the fact that the Christmas tree doesn’t get put up until the 24th. At the end of November/start of December though my host sister and I made an advent wreath which contains four candles, one to be burned every Sunday leading up until Christmas.
On the 24th we finally decorated the tree after breakfast. The 24th is the first day of three days of Christmas you could say. You spend this day with your direct family. After a nice little family dinner we opened the presents that got put under the tree after lunch.
Before opening the presents you also sing and we made sure to always get photos taken. It was a really nice and relaxed day.
On the 25th we went to my host dad’s fathers house for a long family lunch, again we sang and opened presents, and of course ate a big meal.
On the 26th, later in the day, we went to another family members house for another family dinner with another part of the family.
Overall it was a really nice three days of the holidays. And since the tree didn’t go up until the 24th it will be up longer than I’m used to in Canada most likely. We didn’t get very much snow at all though, mainly frost and fog, there was a little on Christmas which was really nice but then the next morning I woke up and it was like early spring. The fog was gone, blue, sunny sky, and all the snow was melted! But this morning as I’m writing this post, the fog and frost are back, keeping the trees white.
I hope everyone had lovely holidays as well and a very happy new year! I can’t wait to see everything that comes from 2017.
-Emma
~NOTE: To read more about Emma and her adventures abroad, please visit her blog at https://etgoabroad.wordpress.com/