Christmas celebrations in

Greece and at our school

11th Primary school of Alexandroupoli, Greece

We’d like to tell you a few things about what we do at Christmas time in Greece.

Christmas holidays for schools start on 23rd December. On Christmas Eve children go caroling. They go from door to door and sing carols which can be translated like this:

Good morning merry gentlemen, And if you really want Christ’s holy birth

Will be announced to your home

The students of our school sing Carols on the last day before Christmas holidays

and go to every class .

At school we have a big celebration

with theatrical plays and Greek and

English Christmas songs by our choir

With Our Comenius friends we

exchanged cards with wishes for a

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year

Traditional food at

Christmas

• People give money or sweets which children later share . Christmas mass at church starts at 5:00 in the morning on Christmas Day and finishes at about 8:00. Then, the whole family gathers and they start preparing Christmas supper which is actually eaten at noon. We usually have roast turkey or chicken stuffed with minced meat and rice , a lot of different salads and for dessert we have “kourabiedes” and “melomakarona”. “Kourabiedes” are a kind of biscuit with almonds inside, covered in grated sugar and look like snowballs and “melomakarona “ are sweets made of honey –“meli” means honey .

New Year’s Day celebrations

• On New Year’s Eve children also go caroling. In our town there is a tradition on New Year’s Eve. Every café, restaurant, supermarket, shop offers meat ,cheese wine and other things and there are barbecues in almost every corner of the town centre. Everybody is invited to eat and drink in the streets while music is played and people have fun. In the evening people usually gather at homes, in restaurants ,hotels and clubs, especially those with live music.

• At 12:00 everybody sings: • The old year goes by/Come on, kids, let’s

celebrate/and may the pain of separation/sleep in our hearts/ Happy New year!!/ Happy and Golden New Year’s Day!!

Then , we cut “Vasilopita” –Saint Vasilios’s pie. There is a coin hidden inside and the one who gets the piece with it , will be the lucky one of the year. Traditionally, presents are opened on New Year’s Day, although most people nowadays open them on Christmas Day.

In Greece, Santa Claus is Saint Vasilios , a saint who dedicated his life to poor people just like Saint Nicholas. Saint Vasilios is the one who brings the presents to us! On that day many people go first footing and visit relatives and friends to wish them luck and good health.

Customs in our town on New Year’s Eve

• People dressed in traditional costumes perform the custom of “kamila” -camel- in the streets of our town

January 6th –Epiphany Day

• On 6th January we celebrate Epiphany-Christ’s baptism. After the mass at church , people gather at the port of the town .The priest throws the Cross into the water and some men and women fall into the cold water in order to catch it. The one who manages to get the cross will be the blessed one of the year.

• The next day, January 7th is the last day of our holidays. It is Saint John’s day. John –Giannis in Greek- is one of the most common names in Greece .

KAΛΗ ΧΡΟΝΙΑ(KALI CHRONIA)ΗΑPPY NEW YEAR