All around the world, people have different ways of celebrating Christmas.  In the Philippines, people like to celebrate Christmas as long as they can.  Carols can start as early as September, but the formal celebration starts on December sixteenth when people start going to morning masses.  The Philippines have Santa Clause, Christmas trees, and Christmas carols like us in the US.  One thing unique, however, is the “parol” which is a bamboo pole or frame with a lightened star lantern on it to represent the star that guided the Wise Men.  In Japan, Christmas is more like Valentine’s Day in the US and the UK.  Young couples like to go for walks and many people schedule reservations at popular restaurants.  Uniquely, KFC is very popular in Japan during the holiday.  My friend Solenn is from the Netherlands and is here at Bourbon County High School for the student exchange program.  When asked what some of her Christmas traditions are she said, “We have two days of Christmas.  The first day we open presents in the morning and go to the beach later that evening with our dog and family.  The second day of Christmas is spent with friends.”  I asked my other classmate, Katy Roberts, what she does every Christmas and she said, “My family and I go to Tennessee and I participate in secret Santa with my cousins. There’s also a Harry Potter marathon that comes on every Christmas that I love to watch. We also have a fun family game of Cards Against Humanity.”  Hannah Hamelback said her family traditions include sitting on the steps with her cousins while her parents and relatives organize the presents downstairs. She also said, “We have a really big and fancy Christmas Eve dinner and have a casual dinner on actual Christmas.”  I hope this article makes you think of your own traditions and have a Merry Christmas!