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Very few people here ... attend church.
Is that true? Thought lots of people attend church once a year - either midnight mass or Christmas day service.
@amey eating turkey is relatively new as a thing. Personally don't get the point unless you have a lot of mouths to feed on the day - it's expensive, doesn't taste great and you need a massive oven. If you need to roast a dead animal, a big chicken tastes better. Goose is traditional, I've never had it.
There are lots of Christmas foods to be eaten at home with family/relations/friends - mince pies, Christmas pudding, Christmas cake etc It's the longest shared holiday time people tend to have - it's common to take the week between Christmas and New year as leave or be given it, so it's a long period of getting together with friends/family. Easier than the rest of the year as you don't need to coordinate leave.
Christmas cards are a way to keep in touch with people you aren't super close to. You don't have to write a whole letter but just say you're thinking of them. It's easier than remembering to send a note at other times.
Presents are exchanged. For lots of people it's a big deal, and bigger purchases might be put off until Christmas.
My family mostly isn't Christian or culturally really into marking christmas but we do it a bit. Small/practical gifts only. My sister is a proper christian so is quite keen on doing it 'properly' and consequently I've been to quite a few Christmas services. She is most likely to cook Christmas dinner, and make soup with the leftover veg and roast potatoes to have in the evening or next day.
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hoefla
@almac68
Christmas? well if you consider some of the traditions associated in the UK, it was basically introduced by the Germans in victorian times, decorating pine trees, mulled wine, greeting cards at least. That and what was written in a Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens. Very few people here observe the nativity, the narrative of the Virgin Mary and baby Jesus or attend church. It’s been a commercial enterprise for so long now and we are seeing the economy battered by Covid, so perhaps Christmas should be left for the rich people to enjoy.
We don’t do Christmas here very well, often the loneliest times, or the most expensive for those that struggle financially for the rest of the year.
In Colombia the 9 day festival of story telling, singing, eating with extended family and close friends leading up to Christmas is a joy to behold.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Novena