There is some magic inherent in the Christmas holidays, thanks to which people these days really become happier. They are sometimes associated with strange traditions, which to this day continue to adhere to the inhabitants of some countries. And, of course, almost everywhere, New Year and Christmas is a reason to spend a lot of money.
In early images, Saint Nicholas looks like a stern symbol of piety, and not at all the plump, cheerful old man whom modern children know.
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In Peru, there is a village where people resolve disputes that have accumulated over the year with the help of fist fights. Then they start the new year with a clean slate.
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In Western countries in the past centuries there was a now outdated tradition of telling scary stories on Christmas night.
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Some zoos accept used Christmas trees as animal feed.
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During Christmas, the inhabitants of the Canadian island of Newfoundland dress up in lurid costumes and walk from house to house singing and dancing while the owners try to recognize their neighbors under masks.
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Paul McCartney receives almost a million dollars in royalties every year for his Wonderful Christmastime, which some critics consider the worst of his songs.
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Since the 1960s, there has been a tradition in Sweden to watch Disney cartoons about Donald Duck at Christmas, gathering in front of the screens most of the country's population, young and old.
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On Christmas Day 1914, during the First World War, Germany and Britain entered into a truce. The soldiers got out of the trenches, exchanged gifts with the enemy, and even played football in the neutral zone.
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In 1867, a Boston industrialist was so moved by Charles Dickens's A Christmas Carol that he took a day off from his factories and gave each worker a turkey.
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The Nazis tried to reshape the Christmas holiday to fit their needs, dedicating it to the coming of Hitler - the Fuhrer took the place of St. Nicholas, and the tops of the trees were decorated with swastikas.
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An artificial Christmas tree must be used at least 20 times so that it does less harm to nature than a living tree cut down annually.
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Thanks to a successful advertising campaign 40 years ago, it is a tradition in Japan to dine at KFC on Christmas Day. Fast food is becoming so popular these days that a place must be booked two months in advance.
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Residents of the Norwegian capital Oslo send a spruce tree to Londoners every year to plant on Trafalgar Square in gratitude for their help during the Second World War.
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In the United States, Christmas shopping accounts for one-sixth of the nation's retail sales for a full year.
Evgeniya Yakovleva
