What do Australians have on their Christmas cards?

[TheIckabog]

Discussion with DH brought about by watching a TV program based in Australia where they were celebrating Christmas. DH remarked he’d feel a bit discombobulated celebrating Christmas when it’s hot.

It got me thinking- what do Australians put on their Christmas cards? In the UK and Europe and I suppose in America/Canada too they would have snowy scenes, robins nestled in holly bushes etc etc. What about down under where it’s Christmas during their summer? A scene of Santa on the beach in a red fur trimmed speedo?

If anyone can enlighten me I’d be grateful

Pavlova, now that’s fighting talk

It is, I've started something 😂

The ones we get sent from relatives in Australia have things like koalas or kangaroos in Santa hats, or surfing santa, Christmas trees.
They are also a lot thinner than ours, they feel more like paper than card, although they do stand up like a normal card.

You can get funny ones with Australian animals, beaches, beer etc.

The ones I receive are usually religious, so they're fairly international (nativity scene, magi, stars etc.).

Apparently the idea of a 'white' Christmas comes from the US anyway, because snow in December really isn't very common in most of the UK (if it snows at all it's much more likely in late January) so most UK robin in a snowy village scenes are not exactly realistic depictions of a UK Christmas.

@TheFormerPorpentinaScamander either they are some sort of special lightweight airmail cards, or your rellies are just really cheap 😉

@Inthebleakmidwinteriwouldsing

Oops forgot Christmas bush link: en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ceratopetalum_gummiferum

Yy to everything @jcurve said. I love an Aussie Christmas, with the tree decorations all faded from years in the midsummer sun. Carols by Candlelight, the Myer Christmas windows, breaking up for 8 weeks off school...

Christmas Bush, wow I never knew! Here's the Kiwi Pohutukawa...this is most if our Christmas cards in one image. 😉 It evokes everything about our Christmas - summer, sun, beach bbqs...uh oh, getting homesick!

My sister deliberately buys the "Santa on the beach" cards to send to the UK but she says there are plenty of snowy type of cards. Plus shop window displays with people in scarves etc.

The worst thing is that there is no Christmas Telly. It's just ordinary telly. It's because you are supposed to be outside I suppose, but still, it's really disappointing.

Apparently the idea of a 'white' Christmas comes from the US anyway

I was taught that it came from Dickens Christmas Carol, as it was written at a time when it was unusually cold for a few years. I could be wrong though.

I've lived in the southern hemisphere (not Australia) and weirdly enough Christmas cards had scenes of snow, robins and Santa in a sleigh. I'm only thinking now how odd it was the cards didn't reflect a summer Christmas

Interesting about White Christmas. I was just thinking, I don’t think I’ve ever had snow at Christmas (SE England).

This year it will be Santa or Elfs in face masks

I'm Aussie and mostly grew up with wintry European/American style scenes on cards. We used to spray fake window snow on our windows as part of our Christmas decorations. Always had a ham with all the trimmings for Christmas, and a christmas pudding cooked in the slow cooker overnight so the kitchen was stinking hot. However my grandma and grandpa were English and like a lot of families of European heritage we also had a Christmas meal in June (Aus winter). No gifts at June Christmas though!

When I lived in Sydney I sent home koalas on the beach cards

And my US based friend..a very PC 'happy holiday' family photo card...complete with the 'successes and achievements' of the year....

Dh is South African. He grew up with our snowy scene type cards, even though he never saw any snow until he moved to UK! They didn’t have a traditional Christmas dinner, they had a bbq buffet. Dessert was Christmas pudding flavour ice cream apparently.

I've bought with a Pohutukawa on or ones with a fern leaf shown like an Xmas tree.

Whatever you want
Traditional, santa, snow, wreath type stuff
Or Aussie, summer/animal themed ones. Santa at the beach or out fishing in shorts and tshirt
religious ones

I love the heat we have in summer, we can go out, to the beach, its also the long school holidays.
Long summer days mean it all lasts longer, outdoor presents can be used straight away
We can go watch new years fireworks and not freeze out tits off
Swimming at midnight, watching fireworks is so fun

We eat anything from bbq, cold meats, ham, salami type stuff, salads, seafood, to roasts with the trimmings. We a cold meats, bbq family
Alcohol flows, even normally non drinkers drink lol
Then there is the boxing day test, an aussie tradition to at least have it on the tv in background

Pavlova, now that’s fighting talk
Wars will start over the origins and approved toppings lol
I wont even give my opinion for fear that Jacinda Ardern will have me hunted down lol

We have Pavlova or Baked Alaska for Xmas Lunch! everyone prefers it and we are very English.
I can only remember (I am very old) only one Christmas during my lifetime when we had snow in London at Christmas day and that was in 1969!!! We got close in 2010

I doubt if Tony Abbott is on them.

My grandparents lived in Australia they used to send Christmas cards just like our? A robin in the snow, a winters night, Father Christmas in the North Pole etc, never a sunny, beachy kind of card.

I have family in NZ who seem to think that Xmas cards are a very English tradition. Apparently they don't have them at all over there

Erm, yes we do. I can send you a few samples if you'd like?!

There's the traditional ones with snow, Santa, robins and all that jazz, and there's the ones that celebrate our own Christmas experience - pohutukawa, pavlova, a barbie on the beach, tui, piwakawaka. . .

Oh, and pukeko! (The ones I hauled over here when we came are of a siamese cat climbing into a fishbowl, go figure. . .)

[quote Inthebleakmidwinteriwouldsing]@TheFormerPorpentinaScamander either they are some sort of special lightweight airmail cards, or your rellies are just really cheap 😉[/quote]
they do seem to have got thicker the last few years. They are less of a cheapskate than me. I don't send cards

I'm not in Aus but in the Southern Hemisphere and we get both versions Iof cards. So the snowy ones which are obviously imports and then there is Santa doing a BBQ or surfing and laying in the sun.

We don't eat a roast on Christmas day as it's too hot. So we have our big meal on Christmas eve night and leftovers, so cold meats and salads on Christmas day. It's usually a pool day so it's much easier.

Happy Christmas.

@Planterpots

Interesting about White Christmas. I was just thinking, I don’t think I’ve ever had snow at Christmas (SE England).

It snowed in the southwest and South Wales the year DS2 was born 2010, as we drove down to Devon for Xmas at MILs and we were worried we wouldn’t be able to go. It snowed in ilfracombe which it never normally does at right by the sea!!