Santa Claus In our country we have separate days for Xmas and Santa Claus. On 6th of December Santa Claus puts chocolates or little gifts into our boots, if we put them in the window. Santa Claus comes – like in other countries - with the reindeers. We have 2 words for Santa: Mikulás & Télapó. Mikulás comes from Saint Nikolas-name day and Télapó’s meaning is Winter’s Dad,who brings the winter. Bad kids may also get onions, raw potatoes, unpainted virgács or a lump of coal in their boots next to their presents as a warning that next year they might get only these. Kids usually get sweets, chocolate, candy and different nuts,fruit, little presents and virgács into their boots.(The virgács is a gold painted or unpainted branch from a bush, if you’ve been good this year, you’ll get gold painted virgács BUT IF YOU haven’t: )

The celebration season starts with Advent in Hungary, too. Advent wreaths can be seen in stores, schools, offices, and in almost every home. This time of the year is the preparation for Christmas. Most children get Advent calendars with a small gift or candy for every may before Christmas. Lights and decoration however stay inside the houses - streets and houses are not as spectacular there as they are in the US. Every year a sale of Advent is being organised in Budapest.Also, we never decorate a tree before the Holy night. Christmas in Hungary

Christmas is a private, family holiday. Every member of the family is there. Every member of the family is there. Gifts lie around the tree with small labels saying the name of someone in the family.Family-members sing in the family.Family-members sing Christmas songs together, then open their gifts, they eat together and spend the night together. Christmas is a 2-day holiday here. During the 2 days of Christmas big families meet, often travel to another big families meet, often travel to another town, or maybe very close friends visit town, or maybe very close friends visit each other. But these days are private each other. But these days are private days of our rush lives. We don’t work for 2 days of our rush lives. We don’t work for 2 days and we turn toeach other, because days and we turn toeach other, because Christmas is the holiday of love and heart. Christmas is the holiday of love and heart. Celebrating Christmas at Hungary Unlike the American children Hungarian children do not participate in decorating the Christmas tree. On Christmas Eve the children are generally sent out of the room while the elders deck up the Christmas tree. then they go into the living room where the Christmas tree stands all lit up!

'Epiphany In Hungary', 6 th January Most Hungarians associate January 6 th with a quite new custom – taking down the Christmas tree decorated on December 24 th (Twelfth Night tradition). However, the customs of this day root much deeper. January 6 th does not only end the Christmas tide on this, the Twelfth Day of Christmas, but it also marks the beginning of the carnival season.