Christmas Day 2024 and in 2025 year

What Do People Do?

Decorations are made and placed at gardens and homes before Christmas Day. Some of these include: 

• Small colored fairy lights
• Christmas trees 
• Berries and leaves from mistletoe bushes and holly trees
• Different decorations with beautiful colors that gives that Christmas feeling

The streets in most cities and towns, especially shopping streets are decorated with large pine trees and lights, usually purchased from Norway. In some areas, there is a Nativity scene, which portrays the story behind the birth of Jesus with the use of actors, statues and live animals. Special services are held in most churches a night prior to Christmas Day. 

For most people, Christmas Day celebration is celebrated with family members, who they share their cards and gifts with. Most children wake to small gifts close to their beds or other areas in their homes. The assumption is that a ‘Santa Clause’ or ‘Father Christmas’ coming from North Pole brought the gifts. He moves around in a sleigh pulled by reindeer and goes into people’s home through the chimney.

The hope is that he enjoys brandy and a snack of mince pies at every home he visits. The supposed assumption is that he visits different locations as fast as possible in order to reach every child’s home in one night, even though in some stories, he is helped by elves to accomplish this task.

Towards the end of the day, people may attend special services in the church, even if they are not regular church goers. Almost everyone cooks a special mean, including potatoes, parsnips, roast turkey, and other vegetables. Christmas pudding is also served after this main course - a very heavy steamed and dense cake-like pudding with dried nuts and fruits. Burning brandy is usually poured as it is served, which gives it an incredible impact. There are also popular mince pies on Christmas Day, including sweet pastry cases with different dried fruit, alcohol, and even fat.

In the United Kingdom, families frequently observe Christmas together, so they can observe each other open their presents! 

Most families have a Christmas Tree (or possibly two!) in their home for Christmas. The designing of the tree is normally a family event, with everybody making a difference. Christmas Trees were first advanced the UK by Prince Albert, the spouse of Queen Victoria. Sovereign Albert was German, and imagined that it is great to utilize one of his methods for observing Christmas in England. 

Most towns and urban communities are finished with Christmas lights over Christmas. Regularly a celebrated individual switches them on. The most acclaimed Christmas lights in the UK are in Oxford Street in London. Consistently they show signs of improvement. A great many individuals go to watch the huge 'switch on' around the start of November.

Public Life

Christmas Day is a public holiday for almost every organization, with the exception of homeless’ shelters and hospital. Small scale stores and public houses may be opened for some hours during the day, especially those selling food. Public transport services will not operate normally or not work at all. All public activities are nearly completely closed on Christmas Day.

Special services are held by many churches on Christmas Eve. Some of these churches provide food and shelter for the homeless or people who need help while also keeping their company. Events are held by others for those who prefer the spiritual part of Christmas and leave the commercial parts away from the modern celebrations of Christmas.

Background and Symbols

Usually, Christmas Day celebrates the birth of Jesus Christ which occurred more than 2,000 years back in Bethlehem. However, the celebration has numerous features with Pagan tradition origins of Wales, Ireland, Scotland, and England. These consist of gathering pieces of evergreen trees into homes, holding parties, eating special foods, and lighting fires. After the conversion of residents of these countries to Christianity by the missionaries, the majority of these customers were encapsulated in Christian celebrations.

Christmas has numerous symbols, including the berries and leaves from the holly tree and pine trees, mistletoe bush, small lights and candles. Some of figures during the season include Santa Claus or Father Christmas, Joseph, Mary, the baby Jesus, and relevant characters obtained from the Nativity story. Christmas food and presents are exchanged; some of the foods include Christmas pudding, mince pies, and turkey. A special mention has to be set aside for the robin red breast. This is a small bird with red feathered breast, and always beautiful during the winters and usually considered as the decoration on Christmas cakes, wrapping papers, and cards.