International students share holiday traditions, celebrations
For families around the world, holidays evoke memories of warm celebrations, countless plates of food and family gathered to celebrate.
For United States citizens, the thought of celebrating differently rarely crosses peoples’ minds as they attempt to wrap presents and decorate in haste for the holiday season.
Around the world however, many people of all races and creeds prepare to celebrate, often with traditions vastly different from those celebrated in the United States.
“I really enjoy celebrating Christmas,” Laura Mesén, a GCSU international student from Costa Rica, said. “Since it is like summer (in Costa Rica), everything is outside and my whole family is eating and drinking and we grill out, because it is still warm.”
In Costa Rica, a country that is majority Catholic, many parents try to take the focus off of Santa Claus and put the focus on Jesus, Mesén said. She added that the influence from the United States greatly affects how Costa-Rican children view Christmas.
“Children see all of these movies about Christmas that are made here, so they see Santa,” Mesén said. “So sometimes a father or uncle will dress up as Santa and come to the house and say, ‘Jesus asked me to bring this to you,’ to combine the traditions.”
Even children in Japan, few of whom believe in Christ, still celebrate Christmas by receiving gifts from Santa or receiving gifts from a Buddhist monk and deity Hotei-osho who acts like Santa Claus and brings gifts to every house.
People of the Jewish faith celebrate Hanukkah, known as the “festival of lights” in which a family celebrates for eight days and each night lights a candle on the Menorah to celebrate. Traditionally, on each evening, family members receive a gift, but often other cultural traditions are added.
In Southern France, on the final day of Hanukkah, people travel from town-to-town, opening and tasting new flasks of wine. In Yemen, children went from house-to-house collecting wicks for the Menorah.
Also in France, Christmas celebrations begin on Dec. 6 with the feast of Saint Nicholas. Children later place their shoes in front of the fireplace on Christmas Eve, in hopes that Papa Noel will fill them with gifts.
In Latin American countries, where people commonly celebrate Christmas in accordance with the Christian and Catholic faiths, traditions differ from those in the United States and Europe.
“The nine days before Christmas Eve we pray and we get ready for Jesus, it’s called ‘novena’ in Spanish and we start praying every night until Christmas Eve,” Jessica Ramirez, a GCSU international student from Colombia, said. “On that Christmas Eve, we have a special dinner and mass and open presents, we don’t open the presents like we do (in the United States), on Christmas morning.”
Ramirez, who spent last Christmas visiting the United States, looks forward to going home for Christmas to celebrate with her entire family.
Also from Colombia, GCSU international student Andres Ibarra looks forward to returning home for the holidays.
“I don’t think there is that much difference (between Christmas in the United States and in Colombia),” Ibarra said. “We gather around and open presents, but then we go out and party.”
Ramirez and Ibarra both mentioned that Christmas parties in Colombia rage all night long, in the warm weather, until 3 or 4 a.m.
“Usually after Christmas, people start preparing for Carnival too,” Ibarra said. “The celebration is in February and it’s like the loudest party in the city.”
Though the Carnival celebration officially lasts only four days, the party continues all month long with costumes, concerts and festivals.
“I wish we could celebrate here, but we are in class,” Ibarra said. “It’s quite an experience.”
Whether preparing for Carnival or Hanukkah, celebrating Christmas or partying all night long, the holidays mark a time for family celebrations shared the world over.
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