Many people would agree that December is the best month of the year as it is a month of holidays. Besides Christmas, many other popular festivals are celebrated during this month. Here are some of them.
■ Eat a Red Apple Day
Thanksgiving Day to New Year's Day is considered the "holiday season" in the US. This season is connected with lots of food, including cookies, cake and candy. So "Eat a Red Apple Day", which falls on first day of the month, encourages people to take a break from sweet and fatty food by eating a nutritious, delicious apple.
■ Saint Nicholas Day
Celebrated throughout Western Europe on the sixth day, this festival honours St. Nicholas. Giving up everything he owned he became a priest who was well-known for helping needy people. Children leave their shoes out the night before. The next morning, they find them filled with sweets and gifts left by St Nicholas
■ Boxing Day
In the Middle Ages in England, servants had to work on Christmas Day, but the following day employers gave their boxes with gifts and money and the day off. The servant would return to their own homes and give boxes to their families. Today, Boxing Day is a public holiday in England. People celebrate it by doing sports and shopping on the day after Christmas.
■ New Year's Eve
One of the first major cities to celebrate New Year's Eve is Sydney, Australia. On the last day of the month, native storytellers share experiences through art, song and dance at the celebration, and boats decorated with lights sail around Sydney Harbor. The celebration ends with spectacular fireworks.
