In Brazil, however, the dinner is served before Midnight Mass so, as the legend goes, the Holy Family can have some while everyone is gone. A popular Christmas meal for Brazilians consists of turkey, fish and champagne. Because of Brazil’s unique multi-cultural population and European influence it is quite common to find an Italian panettone or a German stollen as part of the meal as well as many other delicacies from around the world.

For Eastern countries such as Japan and China, the holiday season centers around the New Year. The New Years celebration, Shogatsu, is the most important and popular holiday in Japan, lasting for three days. Traditionally the Japanese enjoy a meal of toshikoshi soba (buckwheat noodles) that symbolize long life. They also eat zoni, a soup containing mochi (pounded rice), vegetables and fish. Zoni refers to the foods offered to the God of New Year that are cooked together in a pot and eaten by the entire family during the three day celebration of the New Year. Otoso, sweetened rice wine, is the traditional drink for the New Year.

In China, food is served in abundance for the New Year celebration. Many of the foods enjoyed at this time have special meaning. For example, special cakes called nian-gao are prepared which serve as a symbol of prosperity for the family. The Chinese also dine on a twelve-course meal, each course filled with symbolic meaning. One of the courses, fish, symbolizes surplus, mustard greens (a leafy vegetable) represents longevity, while the turnip is thought to bring good fortune. The most significant of the foods eaten on New Year’s Eve is the Chinese dumpling that symbolizes wealth because its shape is similar to the ancient Chinese gold and silver ingots. A coin is cooked into one of the dumplings and whoever ends up with the coin will be the most successful and luckiest person that year.

In the United States, celebrations vary tremendously from house to house, as the traditions are derived from other cultures. Some meals include roast beef and popovers or perhaps turkey, mashed potatoes, cranberry sauce and various other dishes such as green beans or squash. Cookies and pies are enjoyed for dessert. A popular holiday drink is Eggnog, which is made with eggs, milk, sugar and sometimes rum. Here in New England a traditional dish is Lumberjack Pie that is made with a mashed potato crust filled with meats, onion and cinnamon. New Year’s Eve in the United States is celebrated with family and friends and usually ushered in with a champagne toast.

We hope that your holiday celebrations are festive and that that we have satisfied your "appetite" for a greater understanding of global culture. Best wishes for a happy and healthy 2000 from all of us here at Transparent Language