Christmas time in Athens.
It’s the time of the season where we gather all together, we eat a bit more, we watch Christmas movies and we exchange Christmas presents.
I was raised in a family that celebrates Christmas a lot, since it’s my father’s name day (we celebrate name days in Greece). Also Epiphany (6th January), is my mother’s name day. Festive dinners have become a family tradition for almost four decades now non-stop.
Regarding the Christmas traditions in Greece:
We decorate the Christmas tree and place ornaments around the house around 6th December. I personally prefer the last days of November or a bit earlier) and we usually dedecorate on 8th January.
Children are going from door to door, singing the Christmas carols on Christmas Eve, on New Year’s Eve, the New Year’s Carols and on Epiphany Day, the Epiphany carols..
Our Christmas traditional cookies are Melomakarona and Kourambiedes.
Melomakarona are made mainly from flour, oil, and honey and you may find the recipe here in my blog. (They are delicious!)
The main ingredients of kourabiedes are butter and almonds, while they are layered with icing sugar and it tastes amazing!
We cut Vassilopita, the New Year’s cake at 00:00 on New Years Day. It contains a hidden coin, which gives a good luck for the New Year to the receiver. At that time, we exchange presents as Santa Claus (Agios Vassilis in Greece), is coming on New Year’s Day in Greece.
Generally, I am adopting whatever I love and I make it my tradition. For example, some years ago, I happened to bake Kanelbullar (cinnamon rolls), during Christmas time and I shared the treats with everyone. I know that Kanelbullar is not a Christmas treat, it is usually served in Fika (a Swedish coffee-break concept similar to English Afternoon Tea concept). Anyway it became my Christmas tradition these last years♥
Some of my suggestions if you are in Athens during Christmas:
Visit Noel and Little Kook. They can be very crowded, but have patience! It’s worth to pay a visit.
Below, there are some photos during my Christmas time in Athens. The places I visited in the photos are: Noel, (great for coffee, brunch or a cocktail later at night), Portatif, (a cozy café-patisserie), Mr Dim (Asian food in Athens), and Hοbbs (an amazing all day café bar in the suburbs).
What are your Christmas traditions?
Have a lovely and healthy new year everyone!
