Chocolate Trivia

Christmas has many exciting and fun traditions around the world. Here we take a look at some fun insights and celebrations that you could even put into practice with your family and friends this festive season to create more fun and festive cheer!

- In Italy they place their presents in a bowl called 'The Urn of Fate' which is placed under the Christmas tree. Then each family member takes it in turn to select a present. Presents can often have a theme or a color. Also presents are often purchased with a specified amount that can be spent which all goes towards making the purchase of and the receiving of the gift more fun and exciting.

- Interestingly Spain also has a custom called 'The Urn of Fate' but it's a little different. Their old custom gets family and friends at the Christmas gathering to write their names on slips of paper and place them in the urn. 2 slips of paper are drawn out at a time. Custom says they are to be devoted friends for the coming year. It is said that a little dabbling and match making occurs creating a lot of fun!

- The Dutch have a great sense of humor. They love to hide presents inside a pudding, a sausage or potato or wrap a small gift in a huge parcel They love the element of surprise and come up with all kinds of creative ideas to surprise each other each year!

- Iceland have 13 Santa's which are kind of more like mischievous elves. They begin visiting homes from the 12th December and by the 25th they have all arrived. Each character likes to make their presence felt in mischievous ways, such as door slammer awakens sleeps by slamming doors and the candle beggar snatches candles. Often they leave a gift behind in the shoe of the children and sometimes a potato if they think someone needs a little reminder to be good!

- Also in Iceland between 5pm and 10pm on Christmas eve there is no television broadcast. So this ensures that family time is spent as family time without distraction and they can feast and open and give presents with full attention to each other.

- In Scotland they practice 'Sowans Night' Christmas eve. The tradition calls for family to burn branches of the Sowans tree as they declare and release any ill feelings towards any family or friends or colleagues. It's a beautiful ceremony of forgiveness and letting go.

- In Denmark at Christmas they have a mischievous elf called Nisse who makes his appearance whilst having fun and playing jokes on people. He wears a red bonnet, red stockings, white clogs and gray woolen clothes. It is a loved tradition for the fine folk of Denmark to leave out a bowl of porridge on Christmas eve to entice him to keep his jokes within limits. However it has been reported that the porridge along is no longer working. So each year new extra treats are topped onto Nisse's favorite treat 'porridge' hoping to distract him and keep them in his good books so he'll be less mischievous on his annual festive visit.

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