My first ever Christmas in Australia was during a holiday here in 2005. Here’s me, Mrs Bobinoz and the back of Elizabeth’s head in a picture taken on Boxing Day of that year…
Yes, Christmases are a little different here. A few days later, we were on the beach, Elizabeth just loved playing in the sand…
Of course, that was the very holiday in which we fell in love with Australia and had The Idea. Now we are here, permanently, and this Christmas will actually be our eighth spent in this country. There are just 12 days left to go, does it feel like Christmas?
No!
No matter how many Christmases I spend here in Australia, I don’t think I will ever get used to the hot summery version of the festive season. But hey, I’m not complaining. Elizabeth, on the other hand, will probably grow up remembering only hot Christmases and for her I suspect it will feel quite normal.
UK vs Australia at Christmas
To give you some idea of the massive differences between the UK and Australia at this time of year, I’ve put together two Christmas TV adverts from major stores, one for each country.
First, let’s see how John Lewis from the UK see it…
Now it’s the turn of Aldi in Australia, see if you can spot the difference…
“I’m dreaming of a hot Christmas…”
Christmases here in the UK have started obscenely early recently – a few years back Asda even went so far as to open Santa’s Grottos in their stores as early as August! Since then I think it’s been pushed back, so I honestly can’t comment. I know I start shopping generally in September or October.
I was in Australia during November and (some of) December 2010 and didn’t really notice much Christmass-y – Sydney had a big Christmas Tree up which just seemed… weird… and the adverts I saw most on TV over there were a warning of bugs clogging up your windscreen (I thought they’d at least come through the vents too, swamping the car and devouring people inside like something out of a horror film).
No, our bugs haven’t started doing that yet, but I’m sure they are thinking about it.
Santa’s Grotto in August? Absolutely insane. Still, I bet the price was right*.
* Asda’s slogan last time I was in England, for anyone who didn’t know.
what country do you prefer personally in Australia and UK
Not sure exactly what you are asking Daniel.