NEW YEAR EVE

NEW YEAR EVE

England

England celebrates the New Year from the evening of December 31st into January 1st. Traditionally it is not as widely celebrated as Christmas, but people did not use to celebrate with fireworks,(they were reserved for Bonfire Night), but at presentthis all across England people have been setting off fireworks on the stroke of midnight.
More traditionally, on the stroke of midnight, people open the back door (to let the old year out) and ask the first dark haired man to be seen to come through the front door carrying salt, coal and bread. This means that the following year everyone in the house will have enough to eat (bread), enough money (salt) and be warm enough (coal).

Scotland

In Scotland they always seem to celebrate New Year better than anywhere else. The celebration of New Year's Eve is called "Hogmanay". The word Hogmanay comes from a kind of oat cake that was traditionally given to children on New Year's Eve.
In Edinburgh the celebrations always include a massive party from Prince's Street to the Royal Mile and Edinburgh Castle. Unfortunately due to overcrowding in the past the event is now ticket only.
On New Year's Day (actually from the stroke of midnight) the tradition of first footing is observed. This is because the first person to set foot in a residence in a New Year is thought to profoundly affect the fortunes of everyone who lives there. Generally strangers are thought to bring good luck.

Wales

New Year's Eve is called "Nos Galan" in Welsh, and whilst they also believe in letting out the old year and letting in the newif the first visitor in the New Year is a woman and a man opens the door it's considered bad luck. In addition, if the first man to cross the threshold in the New Year is a red head, that is also bad luck.
People in Wales also believe that you should pay off all debts before the New Year begins. Tradition states that ending a year in debt means a whole new year of debt.
On New Year's Day "Dydd Calan" in Wales the children get up early to visit their neighbors and sing songs. They are given coins, mince pies, apples and other sweets for singing. This stops at midday.
It can also depend on where you live as to when you celebrate New Year in Wales.  Some areas still celebrate Dydd Calan on January 12th.

BOXING DAY

History of Boxing Day

No one is quite sure where Boxing Day got its start.
One possible origin is from metal boxes that were placed outside of churches during the Middle Ages. These boxes were for offerings to give to the poor on the Feast of St. Stephen, which is also celebrated on the 26th.

Another possible origin is from when wealthy English Lords would give their servants the day after Christmas off as a holiday. They would also give them a box with leftover food or even a present on this day.

The day is likely a combination of these traditions and others.

Boxing Day has nothing to do with the fighting sport of boxing, but rather is a day when gifts are given to people in the service industry like mail carriers, doormen, porters, and tradesmen.

It is celebrated the day after Christmas, December 26th

This day is a holiday in the UK and most other areas that were settled by the English except the United States. Other countries that celebrate the holiday include New Zealand, Australia, and Canada.
What do people do to celebrate?

The main thing people do to celebrate is to tip any service workers who have worked for them throughout the year such as postal workers, the paper boy, the milkman, and doormen.

The holiday is also a day to give to the poor. Some people gather gifts in Christmas boxes to give to poor children throughout the world.

In many countries Boxing Day has become a large shopping day. Just like Black Friday after Thanksgiving, Boxing Day is a day of big markdowns on products that stores were not able to sell for Christmas.

In Ireland the 26th is generally called St. Stephen's Day or the Day of the Wren.

A Christmas box was sometimes placed on ships during the Aged Exploration.

The sailors would put money in the box for good luck, then the box would be given to a priest who would open it at Christmas and give the money to the poor.

CARTAS DE SANTA CLAUS

SANTA CLAUS MAIN POST OFFICE

Santa Claus Main Post Office

Welcome to the colourful Christmas world of beautiful cards, stamps and unique gifts. Sit by the fireplace and write to your friends all over the world. The cheerful Postal Elves will post your greetings for you, whether it’s Christmas or the middle of summer.
Make friends and relatives happy by ordering a Santa Claus Letter, which will be sent by Santa Claus before Christmas. All post will be stamped by hand using the special postmark of the Santa Claus Post Office.
P.S. The secret behind the red post box; all letters put through here will be sent for Christmas.
You can send a letter to Santa Claus using this address:
Santa Claus
Santa Claus Main Post Office
FI-96930 Arctic Circle
FINLAND

RUDOLPH THE RED-NOSED REINDEER

Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer is a male reindeer, usually depicted as a young calf who barely has antlers, with a glowing red nose, popularly known as "Santa's Ninth Reindeer." When depicted, he is the lead reindeer pulling Santa's sleigh on Christmas Eve. The luminosity of his nose is so great that it illuminates the team's path through inclement winter weather.

Rudolph first appeared in a 1939 booklet written by Robert L. May and published by Montgomery Ward.

 Rudolph has become a figure of Christmas folklore.  

ELECTION VOCABULARY

ELECTION VOCABULARY

ballot: votación
bill: proyecto de ley

cabinet: gabinete
campaign: campaña
candidate :candidato
capitalist: capitalista
centrist: del centro
citizen: ciudadano
coalition:coalición
communist: comunista
congress: congreso
congressman: congresista
Conservative Party: partido conservador
democracy: democracia
democrat: demócrata
democratic: democrático
Democratic Party: partido demócrata
electoral roll: padrón electoral
electorate: electorado

government: gobierno
ideology: ideología



Labour Party: partido laborista
law: ley
left-wing: de izquierda
legislature: legislatura



liberal: liberal
minister: ministro
ministry: ministerio
monarchy:monarquía
nationalist (náshonalist) - nacionalista
opposition (oposíshon) - oposición
parliament (párlament) - parlamento
party:partido
policy: política, plan de acción
political: político (adjetivo)
politician: político (persona)
politics: política
poll: encuesta, votación
president: presidente
referendum: referendum
republic: república
republican: republicano
Republican Party: partido republicano
right-wing: de derecha
rights: derechos
senate: senado
senator: senador
social pressure: presión social
socialist: socialista
suffrage:sufragio
supreme court: corte suprema
to elect: elegir
to govern:gobernar
to run for president: ser candidato a presidente
to vote: votar
voter: votante

CHRISTMAS VOCABULARY

Christmas expressions

• Merry Christmas!
• Happy Christmas
• Happy New Year!
• Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!
• Wishing you a prosperous New Year
• All the best for the coming year
• Seasons Greetings!

advent	the arrival of someone or something important
Advent	the coming (or second coming) of Jesus Christ; the month leading up to Christmas
angel	a spiritual being acting as a messenger of God (usually shown as a human being with wings)
berry	a small round fruit
Bethlehem	the small town in the Middle East believed to be the birthplace of Jesus Christ
candle	a cylinder of wax with a central wick (like string) which burns to produce light
chimney	a vertical pipe in a house that allows smoke and gases to escape from a fireplace (Father Christmas traditionally enters a house through its chimney)
Christ	the title of Jesus (also used as His name)
Christian	a person who believes in Christianity; also an adjective
Christianity	the religion based on the teachings and person of Jesus Christ
Christmas	the annual Christian festival celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ (Christmas Day is on 25 December)
Christmas cake	a rich fruit cake covered with white icing, eaten at Christmas
Christmas card	a greetings card that people send to friends and family at Christmas
Christmas carol	a religious song or popular hymn that people sing at Christmas
Christmas Day	25 December, the birthday of Jesus Christ
Christmas Eve	the evening or day before Christmas Day (24 December)
Christmas holidays	the holiday period for about a week before and after Christmas Day
Christmas present	a gift or present given at Christmas
Christmas tree	an evergreen tree (often a spruce) that people decorate with lights and ornaments at Christmas
cracker	a decorated paper tube that makes a sharp noise ("crack!") and releases a small toy when two people pull it apart
decoration	something that adds beauty; ornament
egg-nog	a traditional Christmas drink made of alcohol with beaten eggs and milk
Father Christmas	an imaginary being who brings presents for children on the night before Christmas Day (also known as Santa Claus) - traditionally an old man with a red suit and white beard
fireplace	a partly enclosed space in a house where people light a fire for warmth
frankincense	a gum used for incense, one of the gifts that the three wise men gave to Jesus
gold	a yellow precious metal, one of the gifts that the three wise men gave to Jesus
holly	an evergreen plant with prickly dark green leaves and red berries
Jesus	the name of Christ, the central figure of Christianity (believed by Christians to be the Son of God)
Joseph	the husband of Mary (the mother of Jesus)
magi	the wise men from the East who brought gifts for the baby Jesus
manger	a trough for food for horses or cattle (used by Mary as a cradle or bed for Jesus)
Mary	the mother of Jesus
mistletoe	a parasitic plant with white berries, traditionally used as a Christmas decoration
myrrh	a gum used for perfume or incense, one of the gifts that the three wise men gave to Jesus
nativity	the birth of a person
the Nativity	the birth of Jesus Christ
nativity play	a play that people perform at Christmas based on the birth of Jesus
new year	the start of a year; the period just before and after 1 January
New Year's Day	1 January
New Year's Eve	31 December
ornament	an object that adds beauty to something; a decoration
present	a thing given to somebody as a gift.
reindeer	a deer with large antlers found in some cold climates (believed to pull the sleigh for Santa Claus or Father Christmas)
Santa Claus	an imaginary being who brings presents for children on the night before Christmas Day (also known as Father Christmas) - traditionally an old man with a red suit and white beard (Santa Claus may be based in part on the historical figure of Saint Nicholas.)
shepherd	a person who looks after sheep
sleigh	a sledge or light cart on runners pulled by horses or reindeer over snow and ice
snow	water vapour from the sky that falls as white flakes and covers the ground
star	a bright point in the night sky which is a large, distant incandescent body like the sun
the star of Bethlehem	the star that announced the birth of Jesus and guided the wise men to find Him
tinsel	a decoration consisting of thin strips of shiny metal foil, traditionally used at Christmas
turkey	a bird like a large chicken, traditionally eaten at Christmas
white Christmas	a Christmas with snow on the ground
Xmas	abbreviation or informal term for Christmas