Grey skies, temperatures approaching zero degrees (32 F for my American friends) and possibly the first snow. Drinking tea, eating mandarins, peanuts and chocolate, a crackling fire in the background. Succumbing to the smell of roasted chestnuts on the way home if I am hungry or not. The aroma of fir and spruce filling the living room - dimly lit by a flickering candle. Elvira snuggling up to me under a blanket covering us both. These are all things I relate to this time of year - probably because, until now, no December has gone by without me spending at least a few days in Switzerland. So what is it like on the other side of the planet?
Well, blue and usually cloudless skies greet us every morning. 30 - 40 °C (86 - 104 F) is rather common and snow is just to be seen on posters hanging in windows of travel agencies that advertise summer cruises to Antarctica. Barbies are sizzling and smoking in place of the familiar steaming of chestnut ovens. Bright, blinking LED lights try to imitate their waxy counterparts and the only odour to be expected from the plastic conifere twigs is that of petrolium - if they are (mis)placed so unfortunately that the sun beats it out of them. For fear of proteins denaturing a "strictly no cuddling" policy had to be issued and he middle in our bed is marked by barbed wire... A rather stark contrast to my usual advent.
Then there are the things I just cannot get my head around. Walking through the streets to "Dashing through the snow, in a one horse open sleigh (...)" with sweat breaking from every pore somehow feels weird. And why would father Christmas wear fur boots along with a padded jacket when teenage girls in thong-esque hot pants display their butt cheeks on Rundle Mall (main shopping street in Adelaide)? Admittedly, seeing the guy in tight Speedos would be a rather disturbing sight but there is a bearable middle ground. Flip flops and Billabong trunks would be a start for example. Exchange the sleigh for a barbie on wheels and the reindeer for dingoes and you're in for a real, contradiction free Aussie Christmas. Even though I would just be putting tofu on the barbecue - not very Australian.
However, I am embracing this very different run up to the end of December and looking forward to spending 24th and 25th on the beach. After all, curiosity and the search for something new is what draws most of us to places far away from our families.
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