G'day and Merry Christmas to all our American cousins.
I thought it may interest those family members who have never been down under to hear how we spend this most Holy of days without snow or cold or sleet.
Remember we are approximately 16 hours ahead of you guys so we get to greet the jolly old fellow first which means we get our presents first. yuk yuk yuk.
Christmas Eve sees most people participating in Carols by Candlelight and many attend midnight mass. Then it's time to get to bed so the old bloke can ride his sleigh across the stars of the Southern Cross .
Due to the heat Santa arrives slightly differently than in the Northern hemisphere.
Santa is dressed in a broad brimmed hat with UV sunglasses, a red singlet, red & white board shorts and a pair of red thongs to protect his feet.
His transport has also been adapted to our climate and instead of reindeer, who have trouble with the heat, the sleigh is drawn by six white Boomers (kangaroo).
Chimneys are rare so Santa enters Aussie homes via pure magic.
Everyone is asleep when he arrives or are supposed to be but a mate of mine told me he stayed up one year and sprung his Mum having a pash with Santa under the mistle toe. I myself never believed him.
Christmas morning sees everyone up early to gather round the tree and receive their presents then the adults all sit down for a champagne and OJ breakfast while the kids wreck the place and rush off to their mates place to compare presents.
The rest of the morning is spent preparing the lunch, the ladies that is, and the blokes test out their new toys with a shot or two of Bundy Rum or whatever comes to hand.
The big lunch is also somewhat different than in the North though there are still some traditionalists that swealter with a hot European type meal. Most of us drag out the Bar-B-Que and the fun begins for the blokes. On the hot plate goes seafood by the score, Barrumundi, Schnapper, Moreton Bay Bugs (like a small but sweeter lobster), Mud Crabs, and of course no B-B-Q would be complete without KING PRAWNS (shrimp-very large ones). This is then served with various salads, cold meats, tropical fruit, christmas pudding with custard, and of course copious amounts of Christmas Cheer.
This is then followed by the traditional afternoon nap befor driving home to recover and prepare for Hogmanay.
This year the tempersature will be somewhere between 90-100 deg F and Cheryl and I will be on our own for the first time so have decided to go to Mt Tambourine for a catered affair and sleepover at one of the Chalets before attempting to drive back down the mountain.
I'm sure we'll have a fabulous time and We hope and pray that all our family in the North, that means you, all have the same.
MERRY CHRISTMAS and HAPPY HOGMANAY
Your Aussie Cousins
Ern & Cheryl Thompson
