There are many different Christmas traditions families do every year. Ours in America is probably much different than people from all over the world. We have regular traditions that most families do in the US or we have some that are more special or more specific to different families. Some of the normal ones that most families do include decorating the Christmas tree, baking cookies, building gingerbread houses, going to look at Christmas lights, writing letters to Santa, singing Christmas carols, watching Christmas movies, doing advent calendars, and exchanging gifts. Another popular Christmas tradition that is popular with many families, but that not everyone does, is the elf on the shelf tradition. The elf on the shelf tradition is centered around scout elves who fly each day to the house and watch over the kids in the house and then report back to Santa at night. Then each morning when they fly back to the house, they hide in a different spot in the house for the kids to find them. Some elves even get creative and bring gifts for the children they’re watching or they play pranks on them. Some traditions that aren’t as common but are still well known in America can include ones like watching the Nutcracker ballet, watching Christmas concerts, or opening an early gift on Christmas Eve. America is a land of big cultural diversity. So, there is a mix of customs and traditions from almost every region of the world. Some unusual traditions around the world for Christmas include Bad Santa(Austria), A Cobweb Christmas(Ukraine), Colonel Santa(Japan), Pickle in the Tree(Germany), Festive Sauna(Finland), Shoes by the Fire(The Netherlands), and Belfana the Witch(Italy). Bad Santa is where children in Austria get ready for St. Nicholas to visit them. If they’ve been good they get presents, and if they’ve been bad then they get coal and have to face Krampus. A Cobweb Christmas in Ukraine is where Ukrainians decorate their Christmas trees with spider webs to bring good fortune and good luck for the upcoming year. Colonel Santa in Japan is where every Christmas, life-size Colonel Sanders statues are dressed as Santa, and families gather to share a bucket of fried chicken. For the pickle in the tree tradition in Germany, an ornamental pickle is placed on a Christmas tree as one of the Christmas decorations. On Christmas morning, the first person to find the pickle on the tree would receive an extra present from Santa Claus or would be said to have a year of good fortune. The Festive Sauna tradition in Finland is when all the family members bathe in a sauna on Christmas Eve in the afternoon. The Shoes by the Fire tradition in the Netherlands is just like how kids in the US leave treats for Santa’s reindeer. Children in the Netherlands fill their clogs or shoes with hay and carrots and place them by the fireplace or windowsill for Sinterklaas’s horse in hopes that the treats will be exchanged for some sweets. In Italy, they have a witch named La Befana who brings good children treats on the morning of Epiphany, January 6th, but she brings bad kids coal. All these different traditions from different countries around the world show the different variations in different countries. All families have their own special traditions they like to do every year to make the holidays special for them.