Describing Christmas in Australia
Hilary: An unusual Christmas tradition … Well, it’s not strange to me but, for my husband, uh, the entire Australian Christmas is, um, a bit unusual.
Hilary: Uh, it’s- it’s summer here now, uh, of course in the Southern Hemisphere, and, um, Christmas falls in the hottest time of year. So, we sit outside, um, or go to the beach or go to someone’s house with a pool to celebrate Christmas.
Hilary: But then, a lot of the Christmas decorations and traditions come from the Northern Hemisphere where it’s winter, so then you get these, like, reindeer, and Santa, and snow decorations that, uh, he finds that, um, a bit crazy.
Hilary: Uh, and in terms of food too i- it’s interesting. Um, i- it’s summer here, of course, so we’ve got the summer produce, you know, beautiful fruits … Um, we eat a lot of seafood and prawns. Um, summer foods …
Hilary: But then the food traditions often come from the Northern Hemisphere too. Um, so my family, for example, make mince pies, and my aunt always makes a really heavy, uh, Christmas pudding, which is a bit out of place. And he finds the- the mix of foods very strange too.
Vocabulary:
Southern Hemisphere – the half of the Earth that is south of the equator, “Countries in the Southern Hemisphere, like Australia and New Zealand, experience summer during the month of December.”
falls in – occurs, happens, or takes place during a specific time or period, “My birthday falls in the middle of July, so we usually celebrate with an outdoor barbecue.”
Northern Hemisphere – the half of the Earth that is north of the equator, “In the Northern Hemisphere, the winter season begins in December and brings snow to many countries.”
summer produce – fresh fruits and vegetables that are harvested and at their best quality during the summer season, “The local farmers’ market is packed with delicious summer produce like ripe watermelons and sweet corn.”
mince pies – traditional British sweet pastries filled with a mixture of dried fruits and warm spices, “My grandmother always serves warm mince pies alongside hot tea on Christmas Eve.”
Christmas pudding – a rich, heavy, dark-colored spiced cake made with dried fruits that is traditionally eaten during the holidays, “After a massive holiday dinner, we barely had enough room left over for a slice of the Christmas pudding.”
out of place – not fitting in properly or looking strange within a particular environment, context, or situation, “Wearing a heavy winter coat inside the heated shopping mall made him feel completely out of place.”
mix of foods – a combination or variety of different types of dishes served together at the same time, “The wedding buffet featured a strange but tasty mix of foods, including Italian pasta and traditional Mexican tacos.”