Magazine

Czech cuisine is calorie-packed at the best of times, but Christmas presents a real challenge. Although most people have fried carp and potato salad on Christmas eve – which might pass as a relatively light meal, they make up for it by eating non-stop over the Christmas and New Year holidays. The tradition of baking Christmas cookies –where sugar, butter and chocolate are the main ingredients – goes back many generations and some families make as many as 18 different kinds – a process that starts in mid-November. Once December 24th comes round, out come boxes and boxes of cookies – with cookie plates being refilled as soon as they are empty. Most Czechs consume kilograms of the stuff between meals and the last cookies only disappear in the first days of the new year. Despite advice to the contrary from nutritionists Czechs are not ready to give up this treat and so each year the papers carry advice on how to survive the onslaught. The most frequently cited recommendation is “if you must eat all those cookies don’t spend the holidays on the sofa”. There are even tables showing how many calories different sports or household activities will burn. Some make hilarious reading. For instance most Czechs would have to build at least 80 snowmen to make up for their Christmas indulgence. And there is certainly not enough snow in the country for all of us. Luckily, Czechs have now taken a fancy to adrenalin-packed presents.

With less than a week to go to Christmas it is high time to send Baby Jesus a letter asking for something special. And there’s plenty of ways to get the letter delivered. Most Czech kids put it on their window sill at night. The older ones send it to the Boží Dar post office in a small town high up in the mountains which every year handles all the mail addressed to Baby Jesus and stamps it with a special Christmas stamp. But you can also attach it to a balloon and let it fly. That’s what thousands of kids in 140 Czech towns and cities did this year, sending brightly coloured balloons up into the sky each bearing a wish – a notebook, a mobile phone, a car or a Barbie doll. The balloons will presumably go straight to heaven where Baby Jesus resides. Although Santa plays a lead role in advertising and is present in department stores across the country the Czech tradition of Baby Jesus as the bearer of gifts is holding its won. In a recent survey an overwhelming 87 percent of respondents said they uphold the Czech Christmas tradition and tell their offspring it is Baby Jesus who brings the Christmas gifts - unheard and unseen -on Christmas eve. In order to get a visit from him kids must steer clear of the room with the Christmas tree and can only rush in after the tinkle of a bell has signaled that Baby Jesus has come and gone. Which is why small bells – be they made of metal, glass or clay are a necessity in every Czech household. Unfortunately they only work magic on that one night of the year.

Buy a Real Gift Electronics top the ladder when it comes to what most Czechs want for Christmas but they can also enjoy the refreshing experience of giving someone a goat or a cow – and the bonus is you do not have to worry about wrapping them. People In Need have launched a special aid scheme under which people in this part of the world can send a gift to someone in the developing world. The charity project is called Buy a Real Gift and people are invited to buy a goat or cow for a family in the Congo, Afghanistan or Sri Lanka, one can choose to give a gift of twenty hens, a sewing machine or water canisters. Most of the gifts cost less than what Czechs spend on a gift for a member of their family and they are sure to be far more appreciated. So if you think you may have got your loved ones all the wrong things this year – your heart will be warmed by the fact that a goat is just what that family of nine in the Congo wanted for Christmas!

Angel made of wood An exhibition at Prague Castle documents the changing trends in Christmas decorations over the last 200 years. The earliest exhibits date back to 1601 when people decorated their homes with hand made items made of wood, lead, wax, paper, straw, nutshells and dough. Among the oldest are nativity scenes, wreaths and paper chains. The Christmas tree, first mentioned in a Bremen chronicle in 1570, did not come to the Czech lands until 1820 and was first decorated with objects made of straw, wood, corn husks and feathers as well as home-made gingerbread cookies and pretzels. Originally it would hang upside down over the dinner table and some would even hang it with sausages and smoked meats. The exhibition called “From One Christmas to Another” was put together with the help of a husband and wife team of collectors – Eva and Ivan Steiger who have spent 30 years collecting old decorations from peoples attics and bought stuff on their travels in Europe. Their own Christmas tree is decorated with authentic hand-made toys which originated between 1860 and 1940.

Photo: CTK Although many Czechs are slowly developing a liking for the simple, hand-made decorations from the days of our grandmothers, they do go mad in other areas and what they don’t put on the Christmas tree they put on their nails. Apparently this year’s hit in nail salons are Christmas characters, Christmas trees and 3D-effects where the nail decor appears to float and move as you gesticulate. Some clients want a different picture on every nail – Santa, Rudolf, a Christmas tree, a wrapped present, a snowflake, bells, fireworks and so on. Getting this done requires hours of patience– but then if you have all that on your hands – Santa, Rudolf and the presents – you don’t need to bother with anything else –just flash your nails at the dinner table to give your family that special Christmas feeling.