On the second day of Christmas, blamebrampton gave to me ...

[blamebrampton]

Christmas in another country!

(Well, not for about 15 people on my flist, but for the rest of you ...)

For someone who grew up with sleety Sussex Christmasses, Australia is a strange place to spend Yule. For a start, this is what the weather looks like on most Christmas Days:




So instead of roast goose, we tend to have smoked salmon or barbecued scallops on a bed of salad with lime dressing for Christmas dinner. Whenever I have worked on food magazines in this country, the Christmas issues are filled with seafood and barbecues, and all sorts of lovely chilled salads. Because Australians like to approach the season sensibly.

Well, theoretically. What actually happens is that from the start of November until December 22, everyone who will be dining together says 'Why yes, we should have a cold meal, it's ridiculous to do a roast. Only a madman would wish to eat hot meat in the muggy heat.'

On December 23rd, someone will spend too long looking at cards featuring roast birds and lashings of veg, and will say 'You know, it's not that hot this year ...'

On December 24th, an attack shopping run will be committed and some form of poultry will be purchased, along with lashings of veg.

Depending on the weather and the custom, the supplies will be cooked up into something splendid on Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, or possibly Boxing Day (after spending the big day snacking on gelato and saying 'We'll worry about dinner later'.)

Subsequent to this, everyone sits around in front of fans or by a sea breeze saying 'Uggggggghhhhhhnnnnnnnnn ...' When night falls, or the mosquitoes become too vicious, we move inside and watch a long DVD. This is why sales of Pride and Prejudice, Titanic and Lord of the Rings have always been unusually high in Australia.

Interspersed in there somewhere are exchanges of gifts, chats with the neighbours, visits to the family or friends, often a screaming argument somewhere in the vicinity, and constant warnings over the radio and television to slow down when you're driving, and swim between the flags (not at the same time).

Boxing Day sees the sales in major shops, and on the day after, most people pile into the car and drive up to 1000 kilometres to 'the holiday place' somewhere between Sydney and Brisbane or Melbourne. They do this with a maximum of three stops for snacks and urinating.

Australians even have their own carols. I sang I Saw Three Ships last night, and J looked at me blankly, then declared he'd never heard it before. 'That's because your childhood was filled with Rolf Harris,' I replied. 'Too right,' he grinned.

What Rolf Harris you may ask? This Rolf Harris --

Comments

[emerald-dragon8.livejournal.com]

That is quite an accurate representation of Australian christmas!

We were sensible and insane this year - seafood lunch one day, baked ham and veg the next. At least we have the leftover ham... (mmm...ham...).

I totally took advantage of the sales today by buying four books from Dymocks. (I contemplated two others before remembering I had a Borders giftcard and could buy them next time I was in the city).

Thankfully I don't have to make a trip this year. My mother can't travel, so we always stay in good ol' Canberra. Are you going anywhere?

[blamebrampton.livejournal.com]

I hope not! Last year J decided we should drive to Tweed Heads; traffic jams both ways, 16 hours in the car, thank goodness for iPods and the fact we genuinely like each other.

[emerald-dragon8.livejournal.com]

Oh, yuck. Did you at least have air con? My car's air con is broken, and we're procrastinating and haven't gotten it fixed yet ($900 when we just spent $2200 on a new hot water heater...) so I couldn't stand that.

iPods are fabulous. :)

[blamebrampton.livejournal.com]

Most of the time, it was overwhelmed a few times ;-)

Did your mother behave over Christmas?

[emerald-dragon8.livejournal.com]

She did! Got a bit cranky today (Dad decided to fiddle with the plumbing which was one of his stupidest ideas yet) but mostly okay. She's alright most of the time...I just have to think to myself that it's not about me when she's at her worst. I have a friend whose mother is quite a bit older than mine and after she went through menopause they were a lot closer, so I'm just holding out for that! We're still very close, just...strained at times.

[blamebrampton.livejournal.com]

It's good that you can see past the crazy days. You're a good soul!

[jamie2109.livejournal.com]

*sings* Six white boomers....six white boomers...

Or something. lol.

We did the hot thing this year, as always. The one thing I do love is left over trifle for breakfast the next day. mmmm

[blamebrampton.livejournal.com]

Oooh, I would LOVE some trifle! We have Mousse cake from David Jones, but it's not quite as cool and yummy as trifle.

That song is the worst kind of earworm ...

[jamie2109.livejournal.com]

My mother always laces her trifle with enough alcohol to preserve it into the next year, basically lol.

I agree on the song. My kids used to sing it having learned it at school and I cursed the fact I wanted to send my kids to a Catholic Primary school.

Hmmm I used to have a trifle icon...

[tomatoe18.livejournal.com]

You know, the subject of what Australians eat during Christmas was a hot topic in our class. My teacher, Tim, is the sensible type. He scoffed at the idea of having roast for Christmas dinner in Australia. But I do know the other teachers used to scoff at him for not wanting to roast. I can't say I relate to any of these things, never having visited Australia during the summer, but I should say smoked salmon and barbecued scallops sound just perfect.

This is why sales of Pride and Prejudice, Titanic and Lord of the Rings have always been unusually high in Australia.

So, THAT's why... :o

But, wait, which Pride and Prejudice are we talking about? The new one is pretty short. The old one, produced by BBC, starring Colin Firth, is longer, isn't it? So I'm assuming you're talking about the old one.

[absynthedrinker.livejournal.com]

While it wasn't blazing here in Miami Beach yesterday it was a balmy 84 degrees. I served a chilled Salmon Imperiale,Tuna Nicoise and a host of trimmings. Someone complained of no turkey, so I went and made him a TV dinner I'd purchased for just such a situation. He ate the salmon.

Hope you had a Happy Christmas and have an equally wonderful New Year.

Peace,
Bubba

[romaine24.livejournal.com]

LOL I love the Australian Christmas Song. That is priceless, thanks for sharing.

[jadzialove.livejournal.com]

The ringer on my phone at this moment is I Saw Three Ships. It's one of my favs. I love the old songs the best.

[drgaellon]

Did you know that, historically, New York City only has a 10% chance of having a white Christmas (defined as "fresh snowfall beginning no later than 12:01am Dec 24th")? Of course, any earlier than that, and all you have is a "slushy Christmas."

♪♪♪ The sun is shining,
The grass is green,
The orange and palm trees sway.
There's never been such a day
In Beverly Hills, L.A.
But it's December the twenty-fourth,
And I'm longing to be up north... ♪♪♪

[snottygrrl.livejournal.com]

in nz we have sheep pulling the sleigh. :D

and i think we're slightly better about the bbq thing. sure there are some roasts still, but mostly it's bbq. or picnic food of some sort.

but traditional songs. snoppy's christmas being a big fave.

[uminohikari.livejournal.com]

That is the most hilarious song I've heard in a long time. *giggles*

:( I am jealous of your warm weather

[meredyth-13.livejournal.com]

You're a Sydney girl now and you missed out on one tradition (or maybe it was just because we were a yachty family) - our family has always been 'insane' and done a full, hot Christmas meal - AND PAVLOVA! (It used to be the only time of the year I ever got to eat it) but only if we had Christmas on the farm. If we were in Sydney, it was hot pudding with my grandmother's silver sixpence collection, which the various mothers religiously counted and then eyed up the Laxettes as each bowl was consumed.

But - back to the Sydney tradition - in the afternoon on Christmas Day, after lunch started digested, we would all troop down to the CYC and visit friends etc who were gearing up for the Sydney to Hobart. Even if we hadn't all had lunch together, we'd end up bumping into various uncles, aunts and cousins as we wandered along the piers. Actually, going back even further, we would have already attended the CYC kids Christmas party in the park at Rushcutter's Bay the previous week - where Santa arrived in a motor punt from somewhere mysterious across the water.

Before the CYC became a hotbed of yuppiedom and the new parts were opened up, children weren't allowed inside the premises ever, and in some areas women weren't allowed either - so we would eventually get parked somewhere safe with mum while dad went inside for a 'drink or two with the boys'.

I'm doing the hot roast turkey and pudding thing tonight (sans sixpence - I suspect one of the cousins pocketed those years ago, never to be seen again).

ps. I kind of love Six White Boomers - it's one of those songs that just makes my insides tingle with memories of childhood.

[meredyth-13.livejournal.com]

ps. It's official - I'm a wet mop - I actually just played the youtube link - and have tears pouring down my cheeks. Stupid, huh? but my dad used to sing Rolf Harris songs for us when I was little. I'm have an excess of nostalgia. Could someone please pass a tissue and a little sense this way?

[complications-g.livejournal.com]

Ahahaha! This is great. :)

We've never been able to give up the traditional roast, it's too yummy, even in the heat. ;) Also, I really don't like seafood, or fish of any kind.

And whoa, how have I never heard that song?! So weird.

:)

[shu-shu-sleeps.livejournal.com]

I haven't played the clip but I can tell from the piccie: Six white boomers - a true Aussie Classic!

[grey-hunter.livejournal.com]

LOL This is great! You should write it in a fic sometime. :)