Christmas Around the World

Have you ever wondered what Christmas was like, not just in your neck of the woods, but in Western Europe, the Nordic countries, Africa, the Middle East, even India? Introducing Christmas Around the World, a new podcast coming this holiday season. With Christmas Around the World, I take a look at not just how Christmas is celebrated everywhere, but other holidays like Kwanza, Hannukah, Navaratri, Diwali and many more.Did you know that the movie Krampus from 2015 was based on a real Austro-Bavarian devil monster character from the 1500s? He came to collect all the naughty children to take back to his mountain lair to kill and eat. A kind of anti-Santa Claus that the modern day character of the Grinch was based off of? Or that during Diwali, the Hindu harvest festival of lights that is celebrated around the globe, more than $300 million dollars per year is spent on fireworks alone? Imagine celebrating Christmas on the sand with a barbeque and a picnic playing beach volleyball like they do in South Africa. Did you know while most Biblical scholars agree that at least one of the Three Wise Men came from the Middle East to worship Jesus, that one or more of them could have been from China or India ? There also is no consensus that they were three in number, some debate there could have been 2, 4, 8 or even 12 Kings who made the journey.And Did you know that instead of a jolly, Santa Claus type being the figure representative of the season, both Italy and Iceland revere a good and an evil witch, respectively ?Learn about all of this and so much more like decor, food, religions and the holiday traditions that make the world go round during the very best time of the year. I will also be featuring interviews with special guests from around the globe who can tell us, in their own words, what special Christmas, religious, solstice and harvest festival holidays are like for them. Christmas Around the World premieres Tuesday, November 4th with a new episode every Tuesday. Available wherever you get your podcasts. And for more holiday mystery fun don’t forget to check out all three seasons of The Evergreen Murders with The Evergreen Murders: A Mackenzie Monroe Christmas Mystery, Murder at Mistletoe Manor and Return to Evergreen. Trilogy available wherever you get your podcasts.