New Seasons

Merry Christmas, Darlings! I know it's now officially boxing day but since I really didn't do Christmas cards this year (as of two days ago, I finally found where I can buy Christmas cards that don't have severely misspelled words, or strange English interpretations of some French poem that have nothing to do with Christmas in the first place -- next year right?), I wanted to take a moment to send greetings of the season and tidings of great joy. Did you know there is no Chinese translation for the word 'tidings' in the good ol' King Jimmy? We went to Chinese Catholic Midnight Mass on Christmas eve (that was neither at midnight nor like anything we've ever been to before in our lives but that's a story to be had for another day -- actually I might save that till next Christmas along with the cards since I don't have photos and my dear friends, you simply must see the photos or you will never believe me!!!) and it was all in Mandarin and randomly "tidings" etc etc and so forth.

To my dear Australians: to the sunburnt beach goers, the worn our O/Rer's (hope you can decipher that!), the 'Why are we singing about snow?' er's, the BBQ till its blackers, the Bundy Rum rumballs, the boxing day cricketers -- how I miss thee! Christmas has always been a completely different holiday when there is no swimming after that big lunch, and Americans don't like 'real Chrismas food' like fruit mince pies and fruit cake and they think plum pudding should have the texture of custard...does the Lord Mayor's Chrismas carols still start the evening with White Christmas? Did Santa bring you goodies on his surf board while wearing boardies and thongs? I can say thongs cause you know I'm not being rude. Was your stocking as full as a beach dunny on boxing day??? Did you go to the beach?

So to my adopted Americans: all my hot chocolate toddy drinkers, the snow angel lovers, the mistletoe kissers, the 'real/environmentally safe' Christmas tree huggers, the Santa yea/Santa nayer's, my Jelico and Fieyro (can you ever forgive me?), the American Chinese food lovers...you all know who you are -- I miss you! I miss the standard Christmas traditions, the endless parties full of sugar and good wine (what a combination!), the smell of pine and roasted chestnuts in that big city square in San Francisco that I can't remember the name of, Home Alone, The 12 Days of Christmas, and the feeling of being miserably cold and totally euphorically happy at the prospect of getting my own 'real live' Christmas tree! I don't miss the smell of turkey...but did it snow? You know they celebrate Christmas in China right (its different but different isn't wrong -- just different). Were you inside enjoying your central heating? Or your fire place (fake as it might be)? Houses are not usually warm like that...trust me I know.

But we are happy here. Its been a tough ride this month, trying to make our 'own' traditions. We spent Christmas with a Korean family, eating Kim bob and kimchi pancakes. There was banana cake for desert. And very little sugar and calories (those I most emphatically, did not miss.) And today we watched a Chinese Christmas drama completely in Chinese except for the angel that said "Tidings" because there is no translation for that word in Mandarin and 'nǐ hǎo' doesn't have the same emotional connotations as 'tidings' now does it? And now I can officially start my countdown till we go to Vietnam and then to Cambodia and then to Thailand (and maybe Laos) -- Southeast Asia equals beaches people!!! Amongst other things but 'warmer weather' and 'getting a suntan' is all I'm dreaming about now! No white Christmas for me! (I never liked the Australian White Christmas either -- too much sugar.)

And finally, may all your days be merry and bright and may you have the opportunity to celebrate your Christmas a little differently sometime -- I think its good for the sole actually.

Rachel -- 26th of December, 2009