by: Frank English

Is Christmas in France and different from Christmas anywhere else? Well I guess that depends where you come from. For me as an Englishman there are quite a few similarities and, of course, quite a few differences.

Similar things would be Santa Claus (Père Noël) all over the place, shops suddenly hiding all the useful things and filing their shelves with toys instead, streets lit up and decorated, that kind of thing. Actually they seem to make a bit more of an effort with the street-lighting – even the small villages make the effort in France, which is not often the case in the UK.

Differences with a French Christmas? Well it’ still not quite so commercialized. Christmas doesn’t start until December here, whereas in England now the build-up seems to begin in September!

There are practical differences too. The local bread shop (boulangerie) is often open on Christmas morning for example, and Boxing Day is not a holiday. Most French are back at work unless it’s a weekend.

Christmas in France is still quite an important religious holiday and a big family event. The French are big on family. They are quite likely to have a turkey for the main meal, with chestnut stuffing, but they might equally have a goose or capon. The big difference with the main meal is that it will be on Christmas Eve – in the evening – and it doesn’t start until after midnight mass! Although perhaps less French go to midnight mass than they used to, the meal (le réveillon – it means the wake up!) goes on until the early hours of the morning.

Some parts of France still begin to celebrate on St Nicholas’ day, which is the 6th December, but 12th night means nothing to them. For us it’s when all the decorations have to come down (or else bad luck) but the French celebrate the arrival of the Kings on 6th January (fête des rois) and the decorations seem to stay up for weeks and weeks after that. Perhaps they’re just more festive than us!

Of course Christmas in France wouldn’t be complete without the Sapin De Noël – the Christmas tree – so we probably have more in common than we do that separates us. In the New Year, Epiphany is quite a big celebration and most communities are invited by the major for a glass of something sparkling at the local town or village hall. There’s also a cake with a small charm in it – much like the coin in a traditional Christmas pudding – although the cake is usually circular, flat and made of puff pastry and frangipane – very sweet.

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/travel-articles/christmas-in-france-what-is-a-french-christmas-like-1560690.html

About the Author:

For more info about Christmas in France and a light-hearted but informative view of all things French pop over to Frenchlife4real.com. It’s written by an English-speaking ex-pat living and working in France full-time so whether you’re coming on vacation, or thinking of moving to France permanently, it’s well worth a look.