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Original poster

Christmas is shite in a hot country

44 replies

Meid · 19/12/2009 18:33

The build up is just not the same, I know Christmas day won't be the same and it makes it worse to find out that its snowing at home!!!! How dare there be a snowy Christmas without me!!!

And I've just had tears remembering I normally put my glitter make up on Christmas day but this year it will just melt off so there's no point. Silly I know.

Tell me some good things about a hot Christmas please... I need some perspective on my thinking!

OP posts:
thighsmadeofcheddar · 19/12/2009 18:35

Prawns, swimming in the pool, lovely buffets of cold food. Just a couple of things I loved.

I miss christmas in Australia alot.

mulledfruitshootandcheese · 19/12/2009 18:35

Can't go anywhere here its all slippery and dangerous and I hate driving in snow.

It will probably be mild by Christmas day and will then be all muddy and drizzly and yukky.

and you can cook Christmas dinner on a Barbecue and save all the oven mess.

oopsandbabyJesusinacoconut · 19/12/2009 18:41

Where are you Meid?

I grew up in the Middle East and Africa, with an English Dad he desperately wanted to do the whole English Christmas thing but we did things according to the weather. Turkey and gammon were done the day before and eaten cold with salads and we made Christmas pud icecream. We used to swim in the morning and opened our pressies then were kicked outside to play with our new toys. I miss our hot sunny Christmas' the kids are all tired a fractious from being in all day by the time lunch is done, we go for a walk and put up with whinging 'Im cold and I'm wet can we go home yet'

I know it is very different but if you tyr and make it exactlyl like here it may be a little dissapointing.

currycrazy · 19/12/2009 18:42

i have just returned to the uk having lived in spain for 6 years and i feel your pain..........you just have to make the most of it,i know exactly how you feel

Original poster
Meid · 19/12/2009 18:47

Thanks!

I'm in South Africa.

I had been determined to do the whole proper xmas dinner thing, but I think I'll go with the flow and have a braai (bbq) and salad. That will probably be more practical and I like the idea of it saving the oven mess.

I guess the problem is also that its my first Christmas here, away from the family.

OP posts:
oopsandbabyJesusinacoconut · 19/12/2009 18:48

Want to swap? - all my family are in Cape Town. I miss them, the sun and it's cold and colder here and the chance is it will rain here on Christmas day!

newkiwi · 19/12/2009 18:51

Ah, the first one is odd. But I love the lack of expectations. We can just do what we want. We also save a fortune cos we don't feel obliged to buy a lot. We'll treat ourselves to some European food we don't normally buy and hopefully manage a walk by the beach for ice cream as well. OH has to work a bit though :-(

Marne · 19/12/2009 18:52

I will swap your sunny South Africa with my cold icy Dorset .

kreecherlivesupstairs · 19/12/2009 21:23

We had three in Oman and then four in Bangkok, now we are in central Switzerland and I'd swap snow and f-r-e-e-z-i-n-g temperatures for a tiny bit of warmth. It was very strange the first time we had a hot christmas, but you do get used to it.

Awassailinglookingforanswers · 19/12/2009 21:27

oh I had 2 amazing "hot" Christmases.

1st I spent in SA (near Haut Bay), had a lovely lunch and then went swimming.

2nd was even better - at "home" in Zimbabwe, - we dragged the table outside and sat and had the biggest turkey I've ever seen and all the trimmings under the car port. Then I seem to recall we got very drunk (was pre-kids)

LilySwalLoosHerTurkeyBaster · 19/12/2009 21:30

Must be hard sil in Aus and she tried to do Blighty xmas with all the trimmings for her first year.
Now she goes to the beach and joins the others with barbecue.
MIL went when she had her first xmas and didn't like it either must be really tough.
Skype is great though , sil always get's to watch dc open her pressies which she probably wouldn't do if she was in the UK!

Sibble · 20/12/2009 04:35

OK it's taken me 7 years to get to this point but this year I've given up feeling sad about the ds's not having family around them, hankering after England, familiarity, Christmas decorations, songs, windows, the cold, the dark etc etc and am doing it kiwi style. We're having presents at home Christmas morning then heading to the beach house (bach) for dinner, afternoon on the beach and won't return until 4th Jan. We'll have a BBQ, salads, swim, play tennis, cricket, walk, fish, collect mussels and no it will never be Christmas to me (really). I don't know if you're there long or short term but try to enjoy it. It will always be different because at the end of the day it's familiarity we always miss rather than the weather (who wants to spend Christmas in shite weather really!)

Sibble · 20/12/2009 04:39

also should say your children, if you are long term will know this as Christmas so as hard as it is to shop, light the tree (when who can see the poxy lights anyway it's day light!), will know this as Christmas as hard as it is it's what they will remember.

dh is in and out strangely enough doing a bbq and wanting to know who I'm typing too, hence the distorted answers. He's very protective of his kiwi Christmas.

Themasterandsnowballs · 20/12/2009 04:43

Oh Meid, poor you, I think you will always feel a tiny bit sad at not being at home for Christmas whether you are in a hot country or a cold one!

It will be 28 degrees today and our decorations are up, mince pies are made and there are lots of lovely outdoor parties to go to this week. Tonight we will go and sing carols outdoor.

For the last 12 years I have had only one Christmas in the UK and sure I enjoyed it, but it was terribly stressful and the hype started so EARLY!

The worst was in Tz trying to do a turkey in 33 degrees in a kitchen with no a/c.

This year we shall sit outside under a bombax tree, the dc will run around and play in the garden and some friends will come over. We shall all get quietly sozzled in the sunshine.

What have you got planned? Have you made plenty of friends yet? I always find the first Christmas in a new country can be quite quiet, then as time goes on and you make new and more friends, it becomes more interesting.

ClaudiaSchiffer · 20/12/2009 04:52

Meid, it sooooo gets better. My first hot christmas was AWFUL, lonely, miserable and just wrong. Now I'm onto my 4th one and totally looking forward to it.

We will have delish food, sit outside in the sunshine, the kids can play on their new swings (sshhhh don't tell'em yet) we'll have friends over in the evening and generally have a throughly good time.

It's not really Christmas, and it is bloody unreasonable for it to snow in the UK but you will get used to a different sort of celebration.

JumeirahJingle · 20/12/2009 05:19

I've got one word for you. BBQ.

differentnameforthis · 20/12/2009 06:34

Save for the Christmas tree & some decorations, you wouldn't think it was Christmas here.

Dd1 is in her paddling pool, dd2 is about to go in it but is currently walking around in her vest & shorts. Dh is drinking ice cold beer & I drinking ice cold lemonade.

4th Christmas here in Oz & I am no more used to it then I was the first.

I would LOVE to be looking out at snow or playing in it with the dds. This is the time of year I miss home.

WhatSheSaid · 20/12/2009 06:44

You do get used to it. It's my 8th Christmas in the hot weather and I love how relaxed Christmas is here. No competitive decorating/menus etc etc. Just a barbecue, stroll to the beach or park, watch dd playing with her pressies, sit out on the deck enjoying a few drinks...I really like it now.

And I was wandering around the shops in one of the supposedly busiest shopping areas of Auckland yesterday and it was pretty empty. No rushing, no fuss, no expectations, just a nice relaxed day.

The first one is a bit hard though. I soon learnt not to put chocolate Father Christmases on the tree after they all melted in the sun

WhatSheSaid · 20/12/2009 06:49

And I did go back to the UK one Christmas and while it was great to see family, it was frickin DARK virtually the entire time and the weather was just grey and rainy.

foxinsocks · 20/12/2009 07:30

I really miss christmas in cape town

sun , warm sun , nice steak on the braai, swim in the sea, bit of a surf, nice afternoon nap and then more warm sun

I know what you mean about it not feeling as christmassy but brrr, it really is absolutely freezing and totally unpleasant here in the UK atm!

bloss · 20/12/2009 08:21

Message withdrawn

TubbyDuffs · 20/12/2009 13:27

I'm in the Middle East and have to admit I don't feel a bit Christmassy! Have put the tree up and had a few mince pies, but haven't even been Christmas shopping yet.

It is really hard to get into the swing of it when it is beautifully sunny outside.

mumoverseas · 21/12/2009 15:30

I agree Tubby. I'm in the Middle East too and it just isn't right. We normally go back to the UK for Christmas but for some (crazy?) reason decided to stay here for Christmas and back to the UK on the 27th for new year.
We've got the tree up and decorations etc and this morning I got in the mood by wrapping up the DCs presents and felt almost christmasy until I walked to the shops. It was 25 degrees out.
Also, the shopping malls are not the same. No decorations.
Also, no pigs in blankets on christmas day or (real) alcohol
Where in the ME are you Tubby?

Weta · 21/12/2009 16:07

Well I'm a Kiwi in Luxembourg so it's the other way round for me... and I have to say, although I always miss my family at Christmas time I do really enjoy Christmas in Europe, especially with the snow. Somehow it all makes sense whereas in NZ it all felt the wrong way round! So I can certainlyk appreciate that it's hard for Europeans to have a hot Christmas.

But, as the others say, try to find ways of enjoying it and going with the flow, and maybe have a midwinter Christmas dinner in July.

I think your first Christmas away from home is incredibly hard wherever you are, as you feel you should be (and want to be) with your family.

ZZZenAgain · 21/12/2009 18:31

It will be alright. I bet you anything. Dd was saying to me the other day how much she loves snow and wouldn't it be great if it snowed every day?

Ha ha bloody ha ha. I hate the stuff. It looks pretty enough but it keeps me indoors. Then think of the short dismal dark days we get in Europe. Dark in the morning, dark again at 4.30pm. Do you need that, really now? I need to settle as close to the equator as possible and my feeling is you've seen one day full of snow, made a snowman, thrown a few snowballs - and you've seen enough of it.

Delving deep into my memory, seems to me in Africa we had a normal English Christmas meal with some big roast bird, pudding and brandy sauce, mince pies and Christmas cake - and then we played outside/swam in the pool till late (not right after the feast obviously). On boxing day we took turkey sandwiches etc to the beach. Non stop round of barbacue parties with booze for the dp as I remember.

I'd exchange with you in a flash tbh but it's missing what you know, isn't it? Maybe you need some nice nostalgic British expat get-together to get you through it?