English

Cuban Missile Crisis

Its  not hard to imagine a world where at any given moment, you and everyone you know could be wiped out without warning, at the push of a button. This was the reality for millions of people during the 45 year period after the ww2, now known as the cold war.

As the United state and the soviet union faced of across the globe, each knew that the other had nuclear weapons capable of destroying it. And disturction never loomed closer than during the 13 daysof the Cuban Missile Crisis. In 1961 the US unsuccessfully tried to overthrow cubas new comuniost government. That failed attempt was known as the Bay of Pigs. And it convinced Cuba to seek help from the USSR.

Soviet Premier Nikita  Khruschev was happy to comply, by secretly deploying nuclear missiles to cuba. Not only to protect the island, but to contract the us missiles in Italy and in turckey. By the time the US inteleggence discovered the plan the materials to create the missiles were already in place.

At an emergency meering at October 16 , 1962 militiary advisers urged an airstike missile sights, and  invasion of the island. But president John F Kennedy chose a more careful approach. ON October 22 he announced that the us navy would intercept all shipment to cuba, There was just one problem, a naval blockade was considered an act of war. Altough the president called it a Quarantin  , that did not block basic nececities, the soviets didn’t apreciete the distinction. IN an outraged letter to Kennedy Khrushchev wrote the violation of freedom to use the international waters and international airspace is an act of aggression which pushes mankind toward the Abyss of world nuclear missile war. After that ensude the most intense 6 days of the cold war. While the US demanded the removal of the Missiles, Cuba and the USSR insisted that were only defensive. And as the weapons continued to be armed, The US prepared for possible invasion. ON October 27 1962 a spy plane pilotated by major Rudolf Anderson was shot down by a Soviet missile, The same day a nuclear- armed soviet submarine was hit by a small-depth charge from u US navy vessel trying to signal it to come up. The commanders on the sub too deep to communicate whit the surface, thought war had begun and prepared to launch a nuclear torpedo. That decision had to be made unanimously by three officers.

The captiain and political officer both authorized the launch,but Vasili Arkhipov second in command, refused, his decision saved the day and perhaps the world.  But the crises was nt over for the first time the US military set itself to defcon 2, the defence readiness one step away from nuclear war. With hundreds of nuclear missiles ready to launch, but diplomacy carried on. In Washington DC attorney General Robert kennedy,  secretly met whit Soviet Ambassador Anatoly Dobryin, After intense negotiation, they reached the following proposal. The US would remove their missiles from turckey and Italy and promice to never invade cuba in exchangefor the Soviet to whithdray from cuba under UN inspection. Once the meeting had concluded, Dobryinin cabled Moscow saying time is of the essence and we shouldn’t miss the chance. And  at 9 am the next day , a messenger arrived from Khrushchev  anouncning th e Soviet missiloie would be removed from cuba.  The crises was now over. While criticizes at the tume by their respective governmetns for  barfaining with the enemy,  contemporary historicl analysis shows great admiration for Kennedys and Khrushchevs ability to diplomatically solve the crisis. But the disturbing lesson was that a slight communication erroror split=second decision by commander coul have thwarted all their efforts, as it nearly did if not for Vasili Arkhipovs courageous choice. The Cuban missile Crisis revealed just how fragile human politics are compared to the terrifying power they can unleash. 

Motivation

Every action we take, wanted or unwanted, it’s followed by an amount of motivation. But what is this motivation, that determines us to do the  stuff?  Well in dictionaries Motivation is described as A reason or reasons for acting or behaving in a particular way, Desire or willingness to do something; enthusiasm. Well, that does cover the word, however, because all of us are different and unique our motivations are as well as different. Everyone has different motivations, the different ways of getting motivation, but for everyone, there is a motivation to do something. For me, Motivation isn’t something that’s hard to find. I get excited to do everything. It’s not a problem. The main problem for me is keeping the motivation.  So today I am going to talk about "How to keep your motivation going!"

First, you need to  Remind yourself of your goals. This way you won't forget about your goal and how much you want it.  Usually, before devoting time to any specific attempt, we tend to make short- and long-term goals. Remember to keep your goals realistic, that way you won't be saddened if you don't reach them. That doesn't mean you can't push and challenge yourself though, if you don't challenge yourself, then it's not really a goal. If you start to lose sight of your goals, then you may be less motivated than if you were always checking to see how much closer you are getting throughout the whole process. Keeping track of your goals and checking your progress can help keep you motivated day in and day out.

Make weekly checkpoints to track your progress. Everyone needs to see how they are keeping up with their goals if they want to stay motivated. If you see that you are on track or even,  you will be motivated and happy that you are getting there. If you see that you are lagging on your goals, it may be the kick start you need to help get you back on track.

Don't be too hard on yourself.  Every goal has a success and failure, the important thing is to continue after the failure to reach success. Everyone has their ups and downs, it’s okay to fail you just have reminded yourself of your goal to keep the motivation.

I also think that giving yourself Breaks is also important. When you get overwhelmed it is more likely you will lose your motivation, therefore, you won't reach your goal.

My last advice is when you feel like you are losing your motivation always try to watch or read motivational speeches or stories. Everyone deserves a great pep talk every once in a while. I often feel like this so I can assure you, it always helps to have a little help.

The Evolution of Religion: Faith, Myths, and Mysticism

Designed by Simon E. Davies from the Human Odyssey, The Evolutionary Tree of Religion provides a timeline for the origins of faith, myths, and mysticism dating as far back as 40,000 BCE to the modern day and spread all across the globe.There are roughly 4,200 known religions in the world, which often drive morality, ethics, laws, and lifestyle.  Many of these religions have narratives, symbols, traditions, and histories that are intended – for better or worse – to give meaning to life or to explain the origin of life or the universe.Of course, the graphic does not contain all 4,200, but still represents some of the more historically significant faiths.

Նախագծված Սիմոն Դեվիսի կողմից  Մարդկային Ոդիսականից «Կրոնների էվոլուցյոն ծառը»   ցույց է տալիս հավատքի, առասպելի եւ միսիստության ծագման ժամանակացույցը մ․թ․ա․ 40,000 թվականից մինչ ներկա ժամանակը և տարածվում է ամբողջ աշխարհում։
Մոտավորապես աշխարհում կան  4,200 ճանաչված կրոն, որոնք հաճախակի վարում են բարոյականություն, էթիկա, օրենքներ և ապրելակերպ։  Այս կրոննեից շատերը ունեն պատմություններ, սիմվոլներ, ծեսեր և պատմական դեպքեր, որոնք նախատեսված են ՝ լավ թե վատ  կյանքինիմաստ տալու կամ էլ բացատրելու կյանքի և տիեզերքի ծագումը։
Իհարկե, պատկերում նշված չեն ամբողջ 4,200ը, բայց այն ներկայացնում է  պատմական նշանակություն ունեցող հավատքներից մի քանիսը:

Today I chose to write about how I see our country’s architecture.Well because I am fascinated with general architecture, I can say that Yerevan is a city filled with an amazing architecture. Armenia has an architectural style that is very unique in its own way. I bet every one of you has a unique building that they feel connected to. Wheather r it is your home or just some pretty building its there. When talking about Armenia's architecture, I always like to take them apart as eras.

The ancient times, Soviet Union, and modern. Armenia entered a new phase of architectural development with the adoption of Christianity as a state religion in 301 A.C. City building and other forms of architecture entered a new and long-lasting developmental phase while persevering older traditions. From ancient time the only thing that has survived is a small part of the religious places. After that comes Soviet. 1920, with the founding of the Armenian Soviet Socialist Republic, Yerevan became the site of fast urban transformation in accordance with the state’s new ideology. Such high-rise building blocks replaced the bazaars, baths, mosques and churches that had made up the fabric of the city. Much like in other post-Soviet states, these blocks remain the predominant source of housing. Following the Sovietization of Armenia in 1920, two architectural directions competed for dominance: the national and the modern. This twin-track of architecture produced various phases of Armenian architecture, even during the short Soviet period. In Armenia today one can easily see the differences in style between the nations; the Government Buildings of Republic Square, the State Opera House, the Matenadaran, the Genocide Monument, and the modern: the Youth Palace, the Sports complex, the Ararat movie theatre, and the Zvartnots Airport.

our architecture is mostly connected to our history, we can easily see the change of those both things reflected on one another. There are so many details to our architecture, that most of us don’t see it, but when we give attention to these things we find a lot of small but beautiful features.

These ones are for Izmir, But I thought I can use them as they are in English.

About my Summer Plans

Now I honestly feel very bad admitting that astronomy didnt interest me when i was growing up.  Well, that’s not all true. When I was too young and small, I remembered myself asking my mother for answers. Answers about our universe. Questions that are still just a question to the world. But sadly as a, I grew older the urge in knowing all the answers in me faded. Until the beginning of this year. When I founded myself fascinated with Physics and Astronomy. I can assure you it’s never late to find new interests, to find new ways. And my new way is Izmir’s space camp. Where I am hoping to learn a lot, have new experiences, and probably have the best time of 15 years of my life. I know my expectations are very high, but I mean this is a Space Camp, how can my expectations not be high. This opportunity is filled with countless goods. For me I am mostly looking forward to learning, Secondly, it’s the cultural difference between me and the friends I  hope to make. Understanding and learning about someone’s culture are like an endless journey, you never stop finding new and interesting things about one and the other. The training and learning about the technologies, developing teamwork and leadership are the best way for us young people to get into science and astronomy. So as you can understand Izmir’s space camp is a very big deal to me, and I would like to participate in it.

 Our Future in 300 years(with our without war)

There is always this “rumour” that in the future, their won't be wars, there won't be any hate. The earth will live in peace, and the people will love each other. But I mean, hasn’t History taught us anything?. We have been living on this planet for 2 million years(maybe less, maybe more) and we still live in a world where we like to imagine the future our saviour, our hope. What will take to understand that without changing the present, we won't change the future? Our every move, our actions are going to affect our future. The future doesn’t control us, we control our future. However, we all sit around thinking about the greatness of the Future. So I don’t like to talk about the future, I like to think about the consequences of my actions, not the other way around. Because our actions decide the future, not the future decides our actions.

Astronauts and their almost unbelievable lives

I believe as we get older, our questions in life pretty much leads to this question  (What job do I want to do?) And let me tell you it is very annoying to find a Passion. It’s a cool word, isn’t it? Passion, it’s that map leading to your treasure, right! Except that the map is very hard to find. It’s almost exhausting trying to find something that you will enjoy doing. Something that will give you fulfilment, satisfaction. The more  I look into this stuff, the more I get lost in it. All the jobs in the world and almost each of them is very much similar to the other. But except one job. Astronauts, sometimes feel like it’s not a real job. I honestly think astronauts are like superheroes with big helmets and puffy clothes. Sure it’s not the ideal case, but their job is so interesting and risky, that I I have always had the feeling that they’re not real. One thing I like to do. Is to find letters and photos of astronauts. Which are very interesting by the way. Their missions, their days in space, their thoughts, everything is summed up in those letters. I strongly recommend reading this letters. Because for me their job takes the more courage, the more will, and at the end, you end up going to a trip to outer space. If that’s not a passion then what is?First Impressions         

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                               Hi everyone.

So before telling you the topic, I will discuss, let's imagine a scenario.` You want to read a book, so you go to a bookstore to buy a book, you don’t have any specific book on your mind, you’re just searching. Now let’s imagine you have found 2 books, they are the same, the same prize, same story. But the first one’s cover is colourful, it’s trendy, and you know it’s like a new edition.  So we can say like it’s a petty book. The second one is just like pages put together. It doesn’t have any cover, it’s old and it’s not in very bad condition, but you can still read it. Now when you want to buy a book, you will obviously choose the pretty one.

As for me  "Don’t judge a book by its cover. It doesn’t make any sense. Because literally the covers are there so we can judge it. And unfortunately, we live in a society where everything we do is and will be judged. What you do, what you wear, how you act, everything, want it or not is going to be judged.

So basically knowing this, we try to fit in with other expectations, so we won't be too much judged. Like even our social media. Like it or not, if you have an account you become a public figure, so people can easily judge you before even meeting you. They can make an opinion about you based on your profile. Which for example for me sucks because my profile doesn’t represent me, it says nothing about me, because for me Social Media is just somewhere I am connected with my friends. Everything we do is going to be judged whether we like it or not. So we have to learn how to make others have a  positive judgement about us.

 First Impressions

First impressions stick around, well actually bad first impressions stick around. Let me tell you how.

Imagine you are at a football match, a very loud person is sitting next to you, he spills his drink on you, he makes fun of your team, and he is very annoying. So now you have made a first impression of this guy, and it’s not positive. Days later, you are caring a lot of heavy bags, and who shows up to help you the same guy from the football game, now you have a second impression and it’s positive. So your brains basically like counts all this so it can guess the future actions of the person in the future. And unfortunately the bad weighs more than the good, this happens because of your brain. the bad is more revealing and the good is not so much as good as normal. Anyone could have helped you, it was what a decent human being would have done. So you cant change your impression based on a good impression. Although when talking about skills and abilities, the impression can change. For example, when a football player scores a goal, it has more impact then if he misses it. So, in conclusion, first impressions are very important both in work and in personal life. So I’ll tell you to make great and memorable impressions, but trust your impressions of other both equally and fair.

How to make a good impression

Now all this impression stuff is all about delivering the right message to the other person

We all know this, what matters to make a good impression, the posture, confidence, how you are dressed, you know… But for me I am not a confident person, and in personal life I don’t find it right to fake it and become like a confident person, because that’s not me, sure at  work  it matters but in your personal life my advise is just try to be yourself, try to deliver you description clear. And while making impressions of others give everyone a chance.

Nelson Mandela/ One of the greatest leaders.

No one needs an introduction for this great man. He  was the first democratically elected President of South Africa. He was the leader and the face of the Anti- Apartheid movement and all through his life, he relentlessly fought against racial discrimination. For his actions, he served a long prison sentence but even that did not deter him. He came out as a hero and led the country into a free, equal future. His determination, focus and will-power were tremendous that even after serving almost 30 years in jail, he got out and worked again for what was right.

NELSON MANDELA’S CHILDHOOD AND EDUCATION

Nelson Mandela was born on July 18, 1918, into a royal family of the Thembu tribe in the South African village of Mvezo, where his father, served as chief. His motherwas the third of his father four wives, who together bore him nine daughters and four sons. After the death of his father in 1927, 9-year-old Mandela was adopted by the leader of the Tembu tribe. He grew Nelson for leadership and sent him to the finest schools.

The first in his family to receive a formal education, Mandela completed his primary studies at a local missionary school. There, a teacher gave him the name Nelson  as part of a common practice of giving African students English names.

After learning that his guardian had arranged a marriage for him, Mandela fled to Johannesburg and started to work.while completing his bachelor’s degree by correspondence. He studied law at the University of Witwatersrand, where he became involved in the movement against racial discrimination and forged key relationships with black and white activists. In 1944, Mandela joined the African National Congress (ANC). That same year, he met and married his first wife, Evelyn Ntoko Mase , with whom he had four children before their divorce in 1957.

NELSON MANDELA AND THE ARMED RESISTANCE MOVEMENT

In 1961, Nelson Mandela co-founded and became the first leader of (“Spear of the Nation”), also known as MK, a new armed wing of the ANC. Several years later, during the trial that would put him behind bars for nearly three decades, he described the reasoning for this radical departure from his party’s original tenets: “t would be wrong and unrealistic for African leaders to continue preaching peace and nonviolence at a time when the government met our peaceful demands with force. It was only when all else had failed, when all channels of peaceful protest had been barred to us, that the decision was made to embark on violent forms of political struggle.”

Life behind bars

Nelson Mandela spent the first 18 of his 27 years in jail at the brutal Robben Island Prison, , where he was confined to a small cell without a bed or plumbing and compelled to do hard labor in a lime quarry. As a black political prisoner, he received scantier rations and fewer privileges than other inmates. He was only allowed to see his wife, Winnie Madikizela-Mandela (1936-), who he had married in 1958 and was the mother of his two young daughters, once every six months. Mandela and his fellow prisoners were routinely subjected to inhumane punishments for the slightest of offenses. On February 11, 1990, Mandela was released.

NELSON MANDELA AS PRESIDENT OF SOUTH AFRICA

After his freedom, Nelson Mandela led the ANC in its negotiations with the governing National Party and various other South African political organizations for an end to apartheid and the establishment of a multiracial government. Though fraught with tension and conducted against a backdrop of political instability, the talks earned Mandela and de Klerk the Nobel Peace Prize in December 1993. On April 26, 1994, more than 22 million South Africans turned out to cast ballots in the country’s first multiracial parliamentary elections in history. An overwhelming majority chose the ANC to lead the country, and on May 10 Mandela was sworn in as the first black president of South Africa.

As president, Mandela established the Truth and Reconciliation Commission to investigate human rights and political violations committed by both supporters and opponents of apartheid between 1960 and 1994. He also introduced numerous social and economic programs designed to improve the living standards of South Africa’s black population. In 1996 Mandela presided over the enactment of a new South African constitution, which established a strong central government based on majority rule and prohibited discrimination against minorities, including whites.

NELSON MANDELA’S LATER YEARS AND LEGACY

After leaving office, Nelson Mandela remained a devoted champion for peace and social justice in his own country and around the world. He established a number of organizations, including the influential Nelson Mandela Foundation and The Elders, an independent group of public figures committed to addressing global problems and easing human suffering. In 2002, Mandela became a vocal advocate of AIDS awareness and treatment programs in a culture where the epidemic had been cloaked in stigma and ignorance. The disease later claimed the life of his son Makgatho (1950-2005) and is believed to affect more people in South Africa than in any other country.

Treated for prostate cancer in 2001 and weakened by other health issues, Mandela grew increasingly frail in his later years and scaled back his schedule of public appearances. In 2009, the United Nations declared July 18 “Nelson Mandela International Day” in recognition of the South African leader’s contributions to democracy, freedom, peace and human rights around the world. Nelson Mandela died on December 5, 2013 from a recurring lung infection.

Bonnie and Clyde were American criminals who traveled in  United States during the Great Depression, robbing banks and generally causing chaos. They were responsible for more than thirteen murders, and bank robberies that are too many to count.

Biography 

Bonnie Parker was born on October 1, 1910 in  Texas. She was fond of creative writing and the arts, and her poem The Story of Bonnie and Clyde . 

Clyde Barrow was born on March 21, 1909, in again Texas as one of many children in a poor farming family. His life of crime began when he was arrested in 1926 for auto theft.  After meeting Bonnie in 1930, he was arrested and taken to prison. His  escape plan  was only partially successful--he was free for a week before being caught --and so Clyde remained in jail  until for 2 years.

After his release, he and Bonnie stole a car in Texas. But When they were caught , Clyde escaped and Bonnie went to prison for a few months. 

The duo became the leaders of a small group of like-minded criminals. They called them Barrow Gang . Clyde's brother  and his wife  were also the members of the group. But after awhile , His Brother was killed and his wife captured.

They were among the first celebrity criminals of the modern era.  Bonnie's poem, The Story of Bonnie and Clyde, was published in several newspapers.
In 1967 Arthur Penn directed a rather romanticized movie version of the story,

In 1967, Arthur Penn directed a rather romanticized movie  version of the tale. Bonnie and Clyde, which starred Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway, was critically acclaimed   to be a more glamorous image of the couple .

The Story of Bonnie and Clyde

You've read the story of Jesse James
Of how he lived and died;
      If you're still in need
      Of something to read,
Here's the story of Bonnie and Clyde.

Now Bonnie and Clyde are the Barrow gang,
I'm sure you all have read
      How they rob and steal
      And those who squeal
Are usually found dying or dead.

There's lots of untruths to these write-ups;
They're not so ruthless as that;
      Their nature is raw;
      They hate all the law
The stool pigeons, spotters, and rats.

They call them cold-blooded killers;
They say they are heartless and mean;
      But I say this with pride,
      That I once knew Clyde
When he was honest and upright and clean.

But the laws fooled around,
Kept taking him down
And locking him up in a cell,
      Till he said to me,
      "I'll never be free,
So I'll meet a few of them in hell."

The road was so dimly lighted;
There were no highway signs to guide;
      But they made up their minds
      If all roads were blind,
They wouldn't give up till they died.

The road gets dimmer and dimmer;
Sometimes you can hardly see;
      But it's fight, man to man,
      And do all you can,
For they know they can never be free.

From heart-break some people have suffered;
From weariness some people have died;
      But take it all in all,
      Our troubles are small
Till we get like Bonnie and Clyde.

If a policeman is killed in Dallas,
And they have no clue or guide;
      If they can't find a fiend,
      They just wipe their slate clean
And hand it on Bonnie and Clyde.

There's two crimes committed in America
Not accredited to the Barrow mob;
      They had no hand
      In the kidnap demand,
Nor the Kansas City depot job.

A newsboy once said to his buddy;
"I wish old Clyde would get jumped;
      In these awful hard times
      We'd make a few dimes
If five or six cops would get bumped."

The police haven't got the report yet,
But Clyde called me up today;
      He said, "Don't start any fights
      We aren't working nights
We're joining the NRA."

From Irving to West Dallas viaduct
Is known as the Great Divide,
      Where the women are kin,
      And the men are men,
And they won't "stool" on Bonnie and Clyde.

If they try to act like citizens
And rent them a nice little flat,
      About the third night
      They're invited to fight
By a sub-gun's rat-tat-tat.

They don't think they're too tough or desperate,
They know that the law always wins;
      They've been shot at before,
      But they do not ignore
That death is the wages of sin.

Some day they'll go down together;
And they'll bury them side by side;
      To few it'll be grief
      To the law a relief
But it's death for Bonnie and Clyde.

-- Bonnie Parker

Dear Diary

Today at english lesson  we were talking about keeping diaries. I had a diary, actually i had lots of diaries. But I never can finish them . I forget to write or my diary, or my hand hurts or i sometimes i loose my diaries. But if i think about it i really don’t need any diary: So people write on their diaries about their feelings or emotion. And why they write it . imagine your friend tells you a big secret and you don’t know what to do. You have to tell anyone or you can write it down and you will feel calm again. Now imagine it’s your secret. And you just need to tell someone. And that someone is your diary. So as i was saying people share their emotions with diaries. But why do you need a diary, if you have a friend that you can share . I think friend can do more than diary. A friend can also give you advice. That was it from my english class. I hope someday i can be able to have a diary and finish it :P

Is it necessary to choose homework?

I think it doesn't matter. When you  like the language, you can learn it with homework or without it. If you really want to learn a language, you will. And I don’t think if you don’t choose homework it doesn't mean you can just sit around and do nothing. You can read a book, you can surf the internet and find activities for you. You can be the teacher of you. Well that would be fun. But doing your homework is a really good thing to. Like some people are not very responsible, for example me. I also think that the Teacher knows more that me and the teacher knows what is best for me. So i as you can see it doesn't matter, if you want to learn you will. But if you don’t  then you will never learn. It’s up to you :)

King Lear by William Shakespeare   (Part I)

Author: Once upon a time there lived a king whose name was Lear. He was the king of Britain. He had three daughters: Goneril, Regan and Cordelia.

One day King Lear called his daughters and said to them:

King Lear: I am very old and tired. I want to divide Britain into three parts and give one part to each of you. But first you must tell me how much you love me.

Author: Goneril and Regan were not good daughters. They did not love their father. But they were very greedy. They wanted to become queens very much. So Goneril said:

Goneril: Dear father, I love you very much. I love you more than my eyes, more than my beauty, more than my life. No child loves his father more than I love you.

Author: Then Regan spoke:

Regan: Dear father, I love you so much that I will give my life for you, I will care for you. I love you more than anything else in the world.

Author: King Lear was very glad. Then he asked his youngest daughter Cordelia to speak. She was his favourite daughter.

Cordelia loved her father very much, but she didn’t want to repeat the words of her sisters. So, she said nothing. Only when King Lear told her angrily that she must speak, she said:

Cordelia: I don’t understand why my sisters say that they love you more than anything else. They are married. Don’t they love their husbands? You are my father, and of course, I love you. But when I marry, I’ll love my husband, too.

Author: King Lear did not like Cordelia’s words. He shouted at her and said:

King Lear: Get out. I don’t want to have such a daughter. You won’t get anything.

Author: So, he divided the country between Regan and Goneril and gave Cordelia nothing.

Me

Hi am Nanor I live in Yerevan. My favorite singer is Ariana Grande,  favorite actor Debby Ryan, favorite color blue, favorite band Little mix, Black eyed peas, favorite food pizza, favorite fruit pineapple, favorite vegetable broccoli, favorite country  New York, and that’s all.

Ariana Grande

My favorite singer and actor is Ariana Grande . She born  in 1993 June 26. She has long hair and she is very beautiful. She born in Florida. She has 3 albums. My favorite song is Love me harder and Santa tell me. She is 22. She is very smart, beautiful and funny. Now she lives in Hollywood, she is very famous. I love her because she is very clever and her songs are very cool.  

My day

Every day I wake up and have breakfast. Then I get dressed and I go to school by bus. In bus we play games and have fun. Sometimes we just sit and we keep silence. When the classes start we sit and listen to our teacher. When classes are over I come back home. First I have dinner next I do my homework. When I finish my homework I can go out or stay at home and play games. At 10:30 0 clock I go to bed and sleep.

 Conversation

   Oh hi Emma Where are you moving.

-          To Russia and you.

-          Me too.

-          But the plane.  hurry we’ll miss the plane.

-          No why, we are not late The plane is moving at 2:00 now it’s 1:20 .

-          What No my clock is 1:57.

-          I think your clock is wrong.

-          Ok let’s ask someone else to tell us the clock.

-          Ok.

-          Hey Sir sorry what time is it?

-          1:57.

-          Oh no we’re late Emma .

-          Yes we’re.

   

Թարգմանություն

The ghost of Genny Castle

In english

In Armenian

 The Colors of Christmas 

There are several colors which are traditionally associated with Christmas. This site uses Red, Green and Gold. But why do we have them and what do the colors represent?

Most the colors and their meanings come from the western/northern european traditions and customs, when Christmas is in the middle of winter and it's dark and cold.

Green

Evergreen plants, like Holly, Ivy and Mistletoe have been used for thousands of years to decorate and brighten up buildings during the long dark winter. They also reminded people that spring would come and that winter wouldn't last forever!

The Romans would exchange evergreen branches during January as a sign of good luck. The ancient Egyptians used to bring palm branches into their houses during the mid winter festivals.

In many parts of Europe during the middle ages, Paradise plays were performed, often on Christmas Eve. They told Bible stories to people who couldn't read. The 'Paradise Tree' in the garden of eden in the play was normally a pine tree with red apples tied to it.

Now the most common use of green at Christmas are Christmas Trees.

Red

As mentioned above, an early use of red at Christmas were the apples on the paradise tree. They represented the fall of Adam in the plays.

Red is also the color of Holly berries, which is said to represent the blood of Jesus when he died on the cross.

Red is also the color of Bishops robes. These would have been worn by St. Nicholas and then also became Santa's uniform!

Gold

Gold is the color of the Sun and light - both very important in the dark winter. And both red and gold are the colors of fire that you need to keep you warm.

Gold was also one of the presents brought to the baby Jesus by one of the wise men and traditionally it's the color used to show the star that the wise men followed.

Silver is sometimes used instead of (or with) gold. But gold is a 'warmer' color.

White

White is often associated with purity and peace in western cultures. The snow of winter is also very white!

White paper wafers were also sometimes used to decorate paradise trees. The wafers represented the bread eaten during Christian Communion or Mass, when Christians remember that Jesus died for them.

White is used by most churches as the color of Christmas, when the altar is covered with a white cloth (in the Russian Orthodox Church Gold is used for Christmas).

Blue

The color blue is often associated with Mary, the mother of Jesus. In medieval times blue dye and paint was more expensive than gold! So it would only be worn by Royal families and very rich people. Mary was often painted wearing blue to show she was very important.

Blue can also represent the color of the sky and heaven.

During Advent, purple and sometimes blue is used in most churches fort he colour of the altar cloth (in the Russian Orthodox Church red is used for advent).

 Traditions of Christmas Bells 

Bells, especially Church Bells, have traditionally been associated with Christmas for a long time. In the Anglican and Catholic churches, the church day starts at sunset, so any service after that is the first service of the day. So a service on Christmas Eve after sunset is traditionally the first service of Christmas day! In churches that have a Bell or Bells, They are often rung to signal the start of this service.

In some churches in the UK, it is traditional that the largest bell in the church is rung four times in the hour before midnight and then at midnight all the bells are rung in celebration.

In the Catholic Church, Christmas is the only time that Mass is allowed to be held at Midnight. This is because in the early church, it was believed that Jesus was born at midnight, although there has never been any proof of this! A lot of Churches have midnight services on Christmas Eve, although not every church will have a mass or communion as part of the service.

In many Catholic countries such as France, Spain and Italy, the midnight mass service is very important and everyone tries to go to a service.

In Victorian times, it was very fashionable to go carol singing with small handbells to play the tune of the carol. Sometimes there would only be the bells and no singing! Handbell ringing is still popular today.

Christmas Around the World 

 Christmas in Argentina 

In Argentina the weather is warm at Christmas. Preparations for Christmas begin very early in December and even November. Many people in Argentina are Catholic and they also celebrate Advent.

House are beautifully decorated with lights and wreaths of green, gold, red and white flowers. Red and white garlands are hung on the doors of houses. Christmas Trees are also very popular and they are often decorated by 8th December (the feast of the Immaculate Conception - when Catholics celebrate when Mary was conceived). Some people like to put cotton balls on the Christmas Tree to represent snow! Any tree might be made into a Christmas Tree - not just the traditional fir tree!

The Nativity scene or 'pesebre' is also an important Christmas decoration in Argentina. The pesebre is put near to the Christmas tree.

The main Christmas meal is eaten during the evening of Christmas Eve. It might be served in the garden or be a barbecue! Some popular dishes include roasted turkey, roasted pork, stuffed tomatoes and Christmas bread and puddings like 'Pan Dulce' and Panetone.

At midnight there will be the sound of lots of fireworks! People also like to 'toast' the start of Christmas day. Some people like to go to midnight services, but other prefer to stay at home and let off fireworks and then open their presents under the tree!

 Christmas in Australia 

In Australia, Christmas comes in the middle of the summer holidays! Children have their summer holidays from early to mid December to early February, so some people might even be camping at Christmas!

Because it's so hot at Christmas time in Australia, there are quite often massive bush fires across the country. Many volunteer bush fire fighters are involved in saving people and property and travel from all over Australia to help in other states.

Australians hang wreaths on their front doors and sometimes go out Christmas carol singing on Christmas eve. People also decorate their houses and gardens with Christmas Trees and Christmas lights. Neighbors sometimes have little competitions as to who has got the best light display. The neighbors often visit each other to look at the light displays at night. Sometimes the displays are put out as early as December 1st. One street in Sydney raises over $(AUS)35,000 every year for charity with their co-ordinated street display!

Australians also decorate their houses with bunches of 'Christmas Bush', a native Australian tree with small green leaves and cream coloured flowers. In summer the flowers turn a deep shiny red over a period of weeks (generally by the week of Christmas in Sydney).

In each State capital city there is a large Carols by Candlelight service. Famous Australian singers like The Wiggles, John Farnham, Anthony Warlow, Colin Gery, Niki Webster and many more help to sing the carols. These carol services, held in different cities, are broadcast on TV across Australia. There are also huge Christmas pageants in each state capital city, that are also broadcast across the country. Most towns and cities have festivals and parades. In some places, there is a fireworks display at the local park.

Many towns, cities and schools also hold their own Carols by Candlelight services, with local bands and choirs sometimes helping to perform the Christmas Carols and songs. As it is the middle of Summer in Australia at Christmas time, the words to the Carols about snow and the cold winter are sometimes changed to special Australian words! There are also some original Australian Carols.

When he gets to Australia, Santa gives the reindeer a rest and uses kangaroos or 'six white boomers' (a popular Australian Christmas song!). He also changes his clothes for less 'hot' ones!

On Boxing Day most people go and visit their friends and often have barbecues at the beach. A famous Yacht race from Sydney to Hobart in Tasmania is also held on Boxing Day.

 Christmas in Austria 

Austria shares many Christmas traditions with its neighbour Germany, but also has many special Christmas customs of its own.

During Advent, many families will have an Advent Wreath made from evergreen twigs and decorated with ribbons and four candles. One each of the four Sunday in Advent, a candle is lit and a carols or two might be sung!

Most towns will have a 'Christkindlmarkt' (Christmas market) from late November, early December selling Christmas decorations, food (like gingerbread) and Glühwein (sweet, warm mulled wine). Cities like Vienna, Innsbruck and Salzburg have huge markets and people from all over the world to visit them.

 Christmas in Belgium 

In Belgium there are three official languages, Dutch (a Belgium version of Dutch is known as Flemish, this is mainly spoken in the northern area of Belgium called Flanders), French (mainly spoken in the southern Walloon Region) and German (spoken by about 1% of Belgium's in the east of the country).

In Belgium Dutch/Flemish Happy/Merry Christmas is 'Vrolijk Kerstfeest', French it's 'Joyeux Noël', in German it's 'Frohe Weihnachten' and in the Walloon language (spoken by somepoel in the Walloon Region) it's 'djoyeus Noyé'. Happy/Merry Christmas in lots more languages.

On Christmas Eve ('Kerstavond' in Flemish and 'le réveillion de Noël' in Walloon), a special meal is eaten by most families. It starts with a drink (apéritif) and 'nibbles', followed by a 'starter' course such as sea-food, and then stuffed turkey. The dessert is 'Kerststronk' (Flemish) or 'la bûche de Noël' (Walloon) a chocolate Christmas Log made of sponge roll layered with cream. The outside is covered with chocolate butter cream and made to resemble a bark-covered log.

As in The Netherlands, children in Belgium have two Christmas visitors! On December 6th, St. Nicholas' Day, 'Sinterklaas/St. Niklaas' (Flemish) or 'Saint Nicholas' (Walloon) is believed to bring presents to children.

Children put their shoes in front of the fireplace, together some for Sinterklaas like a drawing or biscuits; they might also leave a carrot for Sinterklass's horse and something for Zwarte Piet (Black Peter, Sinterklass's assistant). Then in the night, Sinterklaas arrives on the roof on his horse with Zwarte Piet. Zwarte Piet climbs down the chimney and leaves the presents in and around the shows. Sinterklaas has a book in which he keeps all the names of the children and tells if they've been bad or good. Children are told that if they've been bad, Zwarte Piet will put you in his sack and take you back to Spain! Traditional foods that are left for Sinterklaas include tangerines, gingerbread, chocolate and 'mokjes' (cookies made in the shapes of letters. There are lots of songs that children sing about Sinterklaas. Different regions of Belgium have different customs and traditions about St. Nicholas.

Some people celebrate Advent and have Advent Wreaths/Crowns made from fir or leylandii greenery. The wreaths have four candles and a candle is lit each week counting down to Christmas. These are very popular in Elementary/Primary Schools where an Advent song is sung when the candles are lit. Lots of children also have paper Advent Calendars with chocolate behind the doors for each day!

In the weeks before Christmas, people also like to go to Christmas Markets. You might spot Santa Claus at the market! Poeple go to buy Christmas presents, decorations and food. You can also drink jenever (gin) or Glühwein (hot wine) and eat some Smoutebollen/oliebollen (deep fried sweet dumplings) are also very popular. Going ice skating with friends is also something very common.

 Christmas in Brazil 

Many Brazilian Christmas traditions come from Portugal as Portugal ruled Brazil for many years. Nativity Scenes, known as Presépio are very popular. They are set-up in churches and homes all through December.

Christmas plays called Los Pastores (The Shepherds), like the plays in Mexico are also popular. In the Brazilian versions of the play, there's also traditionally a shepherdess and also a woman who tries to steal the baby Jesus!

Most people, especially Catholics, will go to a Midnight Mass service or Missa do Galo (Mass of the Roster). The mass normally finishes about 1.00am. On Christmas day, people might go to church again, but this time the services are often in the afternoon.

After the Missa do Gallo there are often big firework displays and in big towns and cities there are big Christmas Tree shaped displays of electric lights.

In Brazil, Santa Claus is called Papai Noel & Bom Velhinho (Good Old Man). Many Christmas customs are similar to ones in the USAor UK.

Sometimes children leave a sock near a window. If Papai Noel finds your sock, he'll exchange it for a present!

Taking part in a 'Secret Santa', known as 'amigo secreto' (secret friend) is popular in Brazil at Christmas. It is traditional to give small gifts all through December using a pretend name (apelidos). On Christmas Day, people reveal who their amigo secreto was!

The most popular Christmas song in Brazil is 'Noite Feliz' (Silent Night).

Favourite Christmas foods in Brazil include pork, turkey, ham, rice, salad, pork and fresh and dried fruits, Brazil nuts and Panettone.

Epiphany, when people remember the Wise Men visiting Jesus, is widely celebrated in Brazil.

 Christmas in Canada 

Canada is a very large country and people of many different cultural backgrounds live there. Because of this, there are lots of different Christmas traditions in Canada. Many of the traditions and celebrations come from French, English, Irish, Scottish, German and native/first nation influences.

The Eastern Canadian province of Nova Scotia is known all over the world for its fir and pine Christmas Trees, so most families in Canada have a fir or pine Christmas Tree. One Canadian tradition is to send the biggest, best fir tree (grown in Nova Scotia) to Boston, USA because of the assistance given during the disaster, known worldwide, as the Halifax Explosion. This tradition has carried on for many years. Bostonians always love and appreciate the Nova Scotian Christmas tree. They place this tree in the city and then light it during a ceremony to begin the Christmas season.

Mummering is a tradition which takes place in the provinces of Newfoundland and Nova Scotia, more commonly in small towns and villages rather than large towns and city's. People dress up in costumes and knock on someone's door and say in a disguised voice, "Are there any Mummers in the night?" or "Any mummers 'loud in?'", meaning 'are mummers allowed in the house?' Then they sing and dance and have Christmas cake and a cup of something nice before moving on to the next house. In some places, if the host does not guess who the Mummers are, the host must join the Mummers in their merry-making. Going Mummering is a fun Christmas season activity for adults. Mummers usually come out between December 26th and January 6th (The 12 Days of Christmas). However, some come out only before Christmas Day. In some places Mummering is now banned because people used it as an excuse for begging.

On the south shore of Nova Scotia, over Christmas, there's the tradition of Belsnickeling where people dress up in funny Santa costumes and go from house to house until the home owners guess who you were. It was especially popular in West & East Green Harbour. The Belsnicklers often brought musical instruments nd sang. They were served Christmas cake or cookies. This tradition was brought to Nova Scotia by the 1751 Germans immigrants who settled Lunenburg and South shore.

People in Canada send Christmas Cards to their friends and family.

In northern Canada, some people plan a Taffy Pull. This is held in honour of Saint Catherine, the patron saint of single women. This party provides an opportunity for single women to meet eligible single men!

Many Canadians open their gifts on Christmas Eve. Some only open their stocking on Christmas Eve. Others choose one gift to open, then save the rest until Christmas Day.

Canadian children also believe in Santa Claus. Canadians are especially proud to say that their country is the home of Santa Claus. (Although I'm sure the people in Finland would disagree!!)

"Sinck Tuck" is a festival started by the Inuit that is celebrated in some provinces of Canada. This celebration consists of dancing and gift exchanging.

Labrador City in Newfoundland holds a Christmas Light-up Contest each year. People dress the outside of their houses up with lights and often have big ice sculptures in their front gardens! They have no trouble finding enough snow or ice, because Labrador City has about 12-14 Feet of snow every year!

Many Canadian families have cookie-baking parties. They bring a recipe for Christmas cookies, bake them and then exchange them with the members of their family. At the end of the party, each family goes home with a variety of different cookies to enjoy over the Christmas season.

 Christmas in China 

In China, only about one percent of people are Christians, so most people only know a few things about Christmas. Because of this, Christmas is only often celebrated in the major cities. In these big cities there are Christmas Trees, lights and other decorations on the streets and in department stores. Santa Claus is called 'Shen Dan Lao Ren' and has grottos in shops like is Europe and America.

In Chinese Happy/Merry Christmas is 'Sheng Dan Kuai Le or 圣诞快乐' in Mandarin and 'Seng Dan Fai Lok or 聖誕快樂' in Cantonese. Happy/Merry Christmas in lots more languages.

In China, Santa is known as 'Sheng dan lao ren' (Traditional: 聖誕老人, Simplified: 圣诞老人; means Old Christmas Man).

One a few people have a Christmas Tree (or celebrate Christmas at all!). If people do have a tree it is normally a plastic one and might be decorated with paper chains, paper flowers, and paper lanterns (they might also call it a tree of light). The Christmas Trees that most people would see would be in shopping malls!

Christmas isn't that widely celebrated in the rural areas of China, but it's becoming more well known.

The strange thing is that most of the world's plastic Christmas Trees and Christmas decorations are made in China, but the people making them might not know what they are for!!!

A tradition that's becoming popular, on Christmas Eve, is giving apples. Many stores have apples wrapped up in colored paper for sale. People give apples on Christmas Eve because in Chinese Christmas Eve is called 'Ping An Ye' (which means quiet or silent night) and the word for apple in Chinese is 'Ping Guo' which sounds similar.

Some people go Carol singing, although not many people understand them or know about the Christmas Story. Jingle Bells is a popular Carol in China!

People who are Christians in China go to special services. Going to Midnight Mass services has become very popular.

Thank you to Lisa, Gu Yuhong and DeAnn for their help in giving me information on Christmas in China!

 Christmas in Costa Rica 

During Christmas in Costa Rica, people like to decorate their houses with beautiful tropical flowers. A model of the nativity scene, called the Pasito or Portal, is the center of the display. It's also decorated with flowers and sometimes fruit. Some of the scene take a long time to make and all the family is involved. As well as the traditional figures, people add other models including houses and lots of different sorts of animals.

Christmas wreaths are made of cypress branches and are decorated with red coffee berries and ribbons. Most homes, shops and important buildings are decorated with Christmas lights.

In Costa Rica, the gift bringer is often 'Niño dios' (Child God, meaning Jesus) or 'Colacho' (another name for St. Nicholas).

On Christmas Eve, everyone puts on their best clothes and goes to Midnight Mass. In Costa Rica it's called the 'Misa de Gallo (Mass of the Rooster); it's also called that in Spain.

After Midnight Mass the main Christmas meal is eaten. It normal includes chicken and pork tamales that have been wrapped for cooking in plantain leaves. To drink there's lots of egg nog and rum punch!

After Christmas, and into January, there are lots of fiestas, parades, rodeos, street parties, bull runs and choral and dance festivals. On 26th December (Boxing Day) there is an important horseback parade called the Tope. The next on the next day (27th), many towns and cities have 'Carnaval' with a big parade featuring dancing and big floats.

 Christmas in Denmark 

Some people in Denmark give and receive extra Advent presents on the four Sundays of Advent.

Different types of Advent candles and calendars are popular in Denmark. A Kalenderlys (calendar-candle) is an Advent candle and most people have one of these types of candles. A Pakkekalender (gift calendar) are also a fun way to countdown to Christmas Eve. There are 24 small gifts for the children in the calendar, one for each day until Christmas Eve.

Julekalender (christmas calendar) is a television series with 24 episodes. One episode is shown each day in December with the last one being aired on Christmas Eve. The first Julekalender was shown on TV in Denmark in 1962. The two main Danish TV channels DR and TV2 both show different versions of Julekalender each year. The theme of the stories in the Julekalender normally follow a similar storyline, with someone trying to ruin Christmas and the main characters saving Christmas!

ber where everyone has a good time! Making cakes and biscuits is popular in the time before Christmas. Gingerbread cookies and vanilla ones are often favorites.

In Denmark most people go to a Church Service on Christmas Eve about 4.00pm to hear the Christmas Story. It's also traditional to give animals a treat on Christmas Eve, so some people go for a walk in the park or woods and take some food to give the animals and birds.

When they get home the main Christmas meal is eaten between 6.00pm and 8.00pm. It's served on a beautifully decorated table. Popular Christmas foods include roast duck, goose or pork. They are served with boiled and sweet potatoes, red cabbage, beetroot and cranberry jam/sauce.

Most families have a 'ris á la mande' (a special kind of rice pudding, made of milk, rice, vanilla, almonds and whipped cream) for dessert. All but one of the almonds are chopped into pieces. The person who finds the whole almond gets a present called a Mandelgave (almond present) and it's often a marzipan pig!

After the meal the lights on the Christmas Tree are lit, poeple might dance around the tree and sing carols and then it's time for people to open their presents. The Christmas tree normally has a gold or silver star on the top and often has silver 'fairy hair' on it to make it glitter.

On Christmas day people meet with their family and have a big lunch together with danish open-faced sandwiches on rye-bread.

In Denmark, children believe that their presents are brought by the 'Julemanden' (which means 'Christmas Man'). He looks very similar to Santa Claus and also travels with a sleigh and reindeer. He lives in Greenland, likes rice pudding and is helped by 'nisser' which are like elves.

 Christmas in Egypt 

In Egypt about 15% of people are Christians. They are the only part of the population who really celebrate Christmas. Most Egyptian Christians belong to the Coptic Orthodox Church and they have some very unique traditions for Christmas.

Christmas Day isn't celebrated on the 25th December but on 7th January (like in Ethiopia and by some Orthodox Christians in Russia and Serbia).

The Coptic month leading to Christmas is called Kiahk. People sing special praise songs on Saturday nights before the Sunday Service.

For the 43 days before Christmas (Advent), from 25th November to 6th January, Coptic Orthodox Christians have a special fast where they basically eat a vegan diet. The don't eat anything containing products that come from animals (including chicken, beef, milk and eggs). This is called 'The Holy Nativity Fast'. But if people are too weak or ill to fast properly they can be excused.

On Coptic Christmas Eve (6th January), Coptic Christians go to church for a special liturgy or Service. The services normally start about 10.30pm but some chapels will be open for people to pray from 10.00pm. Many people meet up with their friends and families in the churches from 9.00pm onwards. The services are normally finished shortly after midnight, but some go onto 4.00am!

 Christmas in France 

In France, a Nativity crib is often used to help decorate the house. French cribs have clay figures in them, not wooden ones. During December, some towns and cities such as Marseilles have fairs that sell Nativity figures. As well as having the normal Nativity figures in them, French scenes also have figures such as a Butcher, a Baker, a Policeman and a Priest.

In French Happy/Merry Christmas is 'Joyeux Noël'. In Breton (spoken by some people in Brittany, Northern France) it's 'Nedeleg Laouen' and in Corsican it's 'Bon Natale'. Happy/Merry Christmas in lots more languages.

Yule Logs made out of Cherry Wood are often burned is French homes. The log is carried into the home on Christmas Eve and is sprinkled with red wine to make the log smell nice when it is burning. There is a custom that the log and candles are left burning all night with some food and drinks left out in case Mary and the baby Jesus come past during the night.

In France, Father Christmas / Santa Claus / St. Nicholas is called Père Noël (Father Christmas). In eastern France he is accompanied by Le Pere Fouettard, a man dressed in black. He might be the same person as Zwarte Piet in Holland.

The main Christmas meal, called Réveillon, is eaten on Christmas Eve/early Christmas morning after people have returned from the midnight Church Service. Dishes might include roast turkey with chestnuts or roast goose, oysters, foie gras, lobster, venison and cheeses. For dessert, a chocolate sponge cake log called a bûche de Noël is normally eaten.

 Christmas in Germany 

A big part of the Christmas celebrations in Germany is Advent. Several different types of Advent calendars are used in German homes. As well as the traditional one made of card that is used in many countries, there are ones made out of a wreath of Fir tree branches with 24 decorated boxes or bags hanging from it. Each box or bag has a little present in it. Another type is called a 'Advent Kranz' and is a ring of fir branches that has four candles on it. This is like the Advent candles that are sometimes used in Churches. One candle is lit at the beginning at each week of Advent.

Christmas Trees are very important in Germany. They were first used in Germany during the Middle Ages. If there are young children in the house, the trees are usually secretly decorated by the Mother of the family. The Christmas tree was traditionally brought into the house on Christmas eve. In some parts of Germany, during the evening the family would read the Bible and sing Christmas songs such as O Tannenbaum, Ihr Kinderlein Kommet and Stille Nacht (Slient Night).

Sometimes wooden frames, covered with coloured plastic sheets and with electric candles inside, are put in windows to make the house look pretty from the outside.

Christmas Eve is the main day when Germans exchange presents with their families.

In German Happy/Merry Christmas is 'Frohe Weihnachten'. Happy/Merry Christmas in lots more languages.

Germany is well known for its Christmas Markets where all sorts of Christmas foods and decorations are sold. Perhaps the most famous German decorations are glass ornaments. The glass ornaments were originally hand blown glass and were imported in the USA in 1880s by the Woolworth stores. The legend of the glass 'Christmas Pickle' is famous in the USA, but it's that, a legend. Most people in Germany have never heard of the Christmas Pickle!

 Christmas in Greece 

On Christmas Eve, children, especially boys, often go out singing 'kalanda' (carols) in the streets. They play drums and triangles as they sing. Sometimes the will also carry model boats decorated with nuts which are painted gold. Carrying a boat is a very old custom in the Greek Islands.

If the children sing well, they might be given money, nuts, sweets and dried figs to eat.

Christmas Trees are becoming more popular in Greece, but they aren't traditional. Instead most houses will have a shallow wooden bowl with a piece of wire is suspended across the rim. A sprig of basil wrapped around a wooden cross hangs from the wire. Some water is kept in the bowl to keep the basil alive and fresh. Once a day, someone, usually the mother of the family, dips the cross and basil into some holy water and uses it to sprinkle water in each room of the house.

This is believed to keep the 'Killantzaroi' (bad spirits) away. The Killantzaroi are meant to appear only during the 12-day period from Christmas to the Epiphany (January 6th). They are supposed to come from the middle of the earth and get into people's house through the chimney! The Killantzaroi do things like putting out fires and making milk go off. Having a fire burning through the twelve days of Christmas is also meant to keep the Killantzaroi away.

Every December, in Aristotelous Square in the city of Thessaloniki (which is the second biggest city Greece) a huge Christmas Tree and three masted sailing ship are put up. It's a popular tourist attraction.

Going to a Midnight Mass Service is very important for most Greeks. After the service people can go home and end their Advent fast.

The main Christmas meal is often Lamb or pork, roasted in an oven or over an open spit. It's often served with a spinach and cheese pie and various salads and vegetables. Other Christmas and new year foods include 'Baklava' (a sweet pastry made of filo pastry filled with chopped nuts and sweetened with syrup or honey), Kataifi (a pastry made from a special form of shredded filo dough and flavored with nuts and cinnamon), Theeples (a kind of fried pastry). Another popular Christmas dessert are melomakarono, egg or oblong shaped biscuit/cakes made from flour, olive oil, and honey and rolled in chopped walnuts.

 Christmas in India 

Compared to other religious festivals, Christmas is quite a small festival in India, due to the number of people who are Christians (about 2.3%) compared to people who belong to other religions. Having said this, the population of India is over 1 Billion, so there are over 25 million Christians in India!

One of the largest Indian Christian Communities in a city is in Mumbai. A lot of the Christians in Mumbai (previously known as Bombay) are Roman Catholics. In India's smallest state, Goa which is on the west of India, about 26% of people are Christians. Many of the Christians in Mumbai came from or have roots in Goa. The states of Manipur, Meghalaya, Nagaland and Mizoram (all on the very east of India) have high populations of Christians as well.

Midnight mass is a very important service for Christians in India, especially Catholics. The whole family will walk to the mass and this will be followed by a massive feast of different delicacies, (mostly curries) and the giving and receiving of presents. Churches in India are decorated with Poinsettia flowers and candles for the Christmas Eve Midnight Mass service.

 Christmas in Indonesia 

Although most people in Indonesia (about 85%) are Muslims, about 10% of the population are Christians - that's still about 20 million people! Indonesian Christians love to celebrate Christmas!

Indonesian Christians usually go to church services on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. In most churches and cathedrals, people create nativity scenes and use them as part of the Nativity drama performance.

 Christmas in Hungary 

In Hungary, Christmas Eve is very important and is called 'Szent-este' which means Holy Evening. People spend the evening with their family and decorate the Christmas Tree. Sometimes only the adults decorate the tree (without the children there), so when children come in and see the tree, it's a great surprise and they are told that angels brought the tree for them!

The main Christmas meal, which is also eaten on Christmas eve, consists of fish and cabbage and a special kind of poppy bread/cake called 'Beigli'.

The Midnight Mass service is very popular in Hungary. Most people go to Church after their Christmas meal.

On Christmas Day people visit their families.

St. Nicholas also visits Hungary on the 6th December. In Hungary he is known as 'Mikulás'. Children leave out shoes or boots on a windowsill to be filled with goodies! Presents might also be brought by Télapó (Old Man Winter).

 Christmas in Italy 

One of the most important ways of celebrating Christmas in Italy is the Nativity crib scene. Using a crib to help tell the Christmas story was made very popular by St. Francis of Assisi in 1223 (Assisi is in mid-Italy). The previous year he had visited Bethlehem and saw where the stable, where it was thought that Jesus was born. A lot of Italian families have a Nativity crib in their homes.

The city of Naples in Italy is world famous for its cribs and crib making. These are known as 'Presepe Napoletano' (meaning Neapolitan Cribs). The first crib scene in Naples is thought to go back to 1025 and was in the Church of S. Maria del presepe (Saint Mary of the Crib), this was even before St. Francis of Assisi had made cribs very popular!

Having cribs in your own home became popular in the 16th century and it's still popular today (before that only churches and monasteries had cribs). Cribs are traditionally put out on the 8th December. But the figure of the baby Jesus isn't put into the crib until the evening/night of December 24th!Sometimes the Nativity scene is displayed in the shape of pyramid which can be meters tall! It's made of several tiers of shelves nd is decorated with colored paper, gold covered pinecones and small candles. A small star is often hung inside the top of the pyramid/triangle. The shelves above the manger scene might also contain fruit, candy and presents.

One special thing about Neapolitan cribs is that they have always been displayed not only characters and figures from the Christmas Story, but also 'every day' people and objects (such as houses, waterfalls, food, animals and even figures of famous people and politicians!). Naples is also the home to the largest crib scene in the world, which has over 600 objects on it!

 Christmas in Ireland 

In Ireland, people celebrate Christmas in much the same way as people in the UK and the USA, but they also have many of their own Christmas traditions and customs.

Christmas for Irish people, who are Catholics, lasts from Christmas Eve to the feast of Epiphany on January 6th, which some Irish people call 'Little Christmas'. Epiphany isn't now widely celebrated in Ireland.

There is an old tradition that in some Irish houses (although now not many), people put a tall, thick candle on the sill of the largest window after sunset on Christmas Eve. The candle is left to burn all night and represents a welcoming light for Mary and Joseph.

In Irish (or Gaelic) Christmas is 'Nollaig', Santa Claus is known as 'San Nioclás' (Saint Nicholas) or 'Daidí na Nollag' (Father Christmas) and Happy/Merry Christmas is 'Nollaig Shona Dhuit'. Happy/Merry Christmas in lots more languages.

 Christmas in Jamaica 

Christmas is a very special time in Jamaica and like a lot of other countries, radio stations play carols all through the Christmas period.

Lots of people paint their houses and hang new curtains and decorations for Christmas. Most families spend Christmas Day at home with friends and family members.

The Christmas day meal is usually prepared on Christmas Eve. The traditional Jamaican Christmas meal include fresh fruits, sorrel and rum punch and meat. The Christmas Day breakfast includes ackee and saltfish, breadfruit, fried plantains, boiled bananas, freshly squeezed fruit juice and tea. Dinner is usually served in the late afternoon and this may include chicken, curry goat, stewed oxtail, rice and peas.

Jamaican red wine and rum fruitcake is traditional and is eaten in most homes. The fruits in the cake are soaked in red wine and white rum for months before Christmas. (I have some friends who come from Jamaica and Jamaican Christmas Cake is really nice!)

Thank you to Lola Adegoke for her help in giving me information on Christmas in Jamaica!

 Christmas in Japan 

Christmas is not widely celebrated in Japan as not many people there are Christians. However, several customs have come to Japan from the USA such as sending and receiving Christmas Cards and Presents.

In Japan, Christmas in known as more of a time to spread happiness rather than a religious celebration. Christmas eve is often celebrated more than Christmas Day. Christmas eve is thought of as a romantic day, in which couples spend together and exchange presents. In many ways it resembles Valentine's Day celebrations in the UK and the USA. Young couples like to go for walks to look at the Christmas lights and have a romantic meal in a restaurant - booking a table on Christmas Eve can be very difficult as it's so popular!

Christmas is not a national holiday in Japan, so schools and businesses are normally open on December 25th.

 Christmas in Lebanon 

In Lebanon, 35% of the population follow a form of Christianity called Maronite Catholic. These Christians build manger scenes in their homes called a Nativity Crib. The crib is more popular than a Christmas Tree. It's traditional for the scene to be based around a cave rather than a stable. It's often decorated with sprouted seeds such as chickpeas, broad-beans, lentils, oats and wheat that have been grown on damp cotton wool in the weeks leading up to Christmas. The crib scene then becomes a focus for the prayer of people in the house.

Other common Catholic traditions such as going to a midnight mass service are also celebrated in Lebanon.

In the capital city, Beirut, big and glamourous Christmas parties are held in major hotels and lots of people like going to them, even if they're not Christian. Western-style commercial displays of poinsettias, Christmas lights, holly and community Christmas trees are also becoming more popular, although some people don't like as they think they are too commercial.

When people visit each other houses over the Christmas period, sugared almonds are often eaten with strong cups of coffee.

In Lebanon most people speak Arabic, so Happy/Merry Christmas is Eid Milad Majid (عيد ميلاد مجيد) which means 'Glorious Birth Feast' or you could say Kul 'am wa enta bi-khair which means 'may every year find you in good health'. French is also spoken so you could wish people Joyeux Noël! Happy/Merry Christmas in lots more languages.

 Christmas in South Africa 

Because South Africa is in the Southern Hemisphere, Christmas comes in the summer. So there's lots of sun and beautiful flowers in full bloom.

The schools are closed for the Christmas holidays and some people like to go camping. Going carol singing, on Christmas Eve, is very popular in towns and cities. Carols by Candlelight services are also popular on Christmas Eve. And many people go to a Christmas morning Church Service.

Traditional 'fir' Christmas trees are popular and children leave a stocking out for Santa Claus on Christmas Eve.

The Christmas meal is either turkey (or duck), roast beef, mince pies or suckling pig with yellow rice & raisins and vegetables, followed by Christmas Pudding or a traditional South African desert called Malva Pudding (sometimes also called Lekker Pudding) - get the recipe. People also like to pull Christmas Crackers! The meal is often eaten outside in the summer sun! If it's really hot they might even have a barbecue or 'braai'.

 Christmas in The Netherlands / Holland 

For most children in The Netherlands, the most important day during December is 5th December, when Sinterklaas (St. Nicholas) brings them their presents!

St. Nicholas' day is on the 6th December, but in Holland, the major celebrations are held on the 5th December. The name Santa Claus comes from the name Sinterklaas.

On the morning of St. Nicholas' Day, Sinterklaas travels to a city or town in The Netherlands, wearing his red bishop's robes. He travels with his servants called 'Zwarte Pieten' ('Black Peters'). When Sinterklaas and the Black Peters come ashore from the boat, all of the local church bells ring in celebration. Sinterklaas then leads a procession through the town, riding a white horse. If he visits Amsterdam, he meets the Queen in the Palace.

On December, 5th children leave clogs or shoes out, by the fireplace or sometimes a windowsill, and sing Sinterklaas songs. They hope that Sinterklaas will come during the night with some presents. They also believe that if they leave some hay and carrots in their shoes for Sinterklaas's horse, they will be left some sweets. They're told that, during the night, Sinterklaas rides on the roofs on his horse and that a 'Zwarte Piet' will then climb down the chimney (or through a window) and put the presents and/or candy in their shoes.

Children are told that the Zwarte Pieten keep a record of all the things they have done in the past year. Good children will get presents from Sinterklaas, but bad children will be put in a sack and the Zwarte Pieten take them to Spain for a year to teach then how to behave! Dutch tradition says that St. Nicholas lives in Madrid, Spain and every year he chooses a different harbour to arrive in Holland, so as many children as possible get a chance to see him. Every town in Holland has a few Sinterklaas helpers, dressed the same as Sinterklaas who help give the presents out. (and sometimes you might one see one Zwarte Pieten with Sinterklaas!)

If children are really lucky they might receive all their presents during the evening. This is called 'Sinterklaasavond' or 'Pakjesavond' (present evening). There might be a knock at the door and you might find a sack full of presents!

Sinterklaas parties are often held on St. Nicholas' Eve (5th), where treasure hunt games are played with poems and riddles giving the clues. Children follow the clues to find little presents left by Sinterklaas. Special biscuits and sweets are also eaten at the party. One type of biscuit is called 'letter blanket' or 'banketletter' (meaning letter cake), which is made from marzipan or pastry. The biscuits are made in the shapes of the first letter of the peoples names who are at the party. Another sweet biscuit that is eaten at the parties are 'pepernoot' which are made with cinnamon and spices in the pastry biscuit mix. Here's a recipe for peppernoot. AndHere's a recipe for kerstkrans, a Dutch Christmas Ring Cake.

 Christmas in New Zealand 

In New Zealand, like its neighbour Australia, Christmas comes in the middle of the summer holidays.

My relations that live in New Zealand tell me that there are lots of people out camping or at their Baches (holiday homes) for Christmas.

Many towns have a Santa parade with decorated floats, bands and marching girls. This can be any time from mid November onwards and is really a commercial event but much enjoyed by all.

Many people have a Christmas Tree in their homes and decorate it like people in the USA or UK.

Many New Zealanders have a barbecue for Christmas lunch and this is becoming more popular. The food cooked on the barbecue is often ham slices or even venison or some other kind of exotic meat. Shrimps and other fish are also barbecued!

Desserts are also very popular! Many still have a hot fruit pudding with custard and ice cream but cold desserts are popular. These include pavlova and whipped cream, meringues, cold fruit salad, jelly and ice cream. Drinks will include a range of soft drinks. Those who like it often over do the alcoholic drinks too. Here's a recipe for pavlova.

My relations have an English type Christmas meal in the middle of June (New Zealand's mid winter)! This meal will often be hot food such as roast chicken, roast lamb, cold ham, hot roast vegetables such as potatoes, pumpkin, sweet potato, and other root vegetables and also greens such as peas. Coleslaw is increasing in popularity. All with gravy!

They open their presents on Christmas day once the whole family is all together. This is usually before the Christmas lunch.

A CHRISTMAS DREAM

Lulu is a little polar bear who lives in an igloo on the polar ice cap.

On Christmas Eve, his eyes shining with excitement, he asks his mum:

- Mum, I’ve been good this year, haven’t I?
- Of course you have dear. You’re a very good little bear.
- Can I write my letter to Santa Claus then?
- Of course you can, replies his mum, but after that, you’ll have to go to bed, because it’s already late.

So Lulu gets down to work, fountain pen in paw before a blank sheet of paper.

"Dear Santa Claus,

I hope that you are well, and your little helpers too. This year, I would like:

- A long woollen scarf (I get cold on the ice cap sometimes)
- A wooden sledge
- A fishing rod

Please! (It doesn’t matter if you can’t bring every single present)

Thank you
Hugs and kisses

Lulu "

After having finished his letter to Santa Claus, Lulu went to bed. But before he went off to sleep, he thought once more about what he’d written.

Of course, he’d really, really like to have all these presents. But what he’d like to do most of all would be to meet Santa Claus himself and to go for a ride in his sleigh.

Lulu dozed off, dreaming of an old man with a white beard, a huge sack full of presents and a sleigh that was as fast as the wind.

Tomorrow, he’d post his letter at the top of White Angel Hill.

The next morning, Lulu got up very early. He got his backpack ready, in which he put his letter and his lunch – it was a long journey, after all. He said goodbye to his parents and started off.

It was still cold, but the sun had started to rise over the ice pack. Far off in the distance, Lulu spied the hill. It looked like it was a million miles away! But the brave, determined little bear kept on walking, although he was already exhausted. He went a little further and then decided to have a quick break. He sat down on a little block of ice and set his backpack down next to him. The sun’s rays warmed his hands and face just a bit.

He was so tired he closed his eyelids and dropped off to sleep. When he opened them again, he was seized with panic! The sun had melted the ice, and all around him there was nothing but water, it was like being trapped on a tiny island!

The sun was starting to set. He couldn’t go back home, or go on to the hill... He sank down onto the block of ice in despair and big, fat tears trickled down his furry coat. "I’m lost. I can’t get back home and I can’t post my letter to Santa Claus."

However, just as darkness was beginning to spread over the ice cap, a light shone in the sky and a very faint jingling sound reached his ears. Lulu looked up into the starry sky.

What do you think he saw? He could hardly believe his eyes... Santa Claus’ sleigh, pulled by its team of reindeer!

Above him the sleigh began to slow down, before landing on the ice, leaving a trail of silver stars in its wake. Lulu stood open-mouthed in amazement before the man with the white beard, who said: "Are you coming, my little fellow? I’m going to take you back to your home". All his sadness and fears forgotten, Lulu climbed into the sleigh.

The little bear was dumbstruck! He – Lulu – was flying over the ocean in Santa Claus’ magnificent sleigh! He was so excited at how fast they were going, he even forgot all about his letter and the presents he wanted for Christmas. None of that mattered any more – his dream had come true!

A few minutes later, the sleigh came to a stop outside his igloo. The little bear gave Santa Claus a big hug to thank him. The old man gave him a wink and his fine scarlet woolly hat. "The pleasure was all mine, little fellow! Merry Christmas!" and quick as a flash, he disappeared into the sky.

"Darling, you’re back!" Lulu’s parents rushed towards him and held him in their arms. "We were so scared, little cub, where were you?" his dad asked.

"Santa Claus gave me a wonderful present!" the little bear replied, still all excited.

"He’s given us the best possible present to us as well" said his mum, hugging her little bear cub very tightly in her arms.

The Carol singers| A Christmas Story
Every Christmas Eve, Rob, Fred and Micky sing in front of all the inhabitants of the ice pack. In return, they get a golden star to attach to the Christmas tree. However, on this particular Christmas Eve morning, Micky gets up and starts to sneeze. "You’ll have to sing without me tonight" he said, his voice all hoarse. "Oh no!" replied his friends, we can’t do that!" But then again, it would be terribly sad for the inhabitants of the ice cap if they couldn’t have their Christmas carols this year! They had to find a solution to cure Micky, and quickly! The three friends went to see doctor Lolo. He sighed: "There’s only one way we can cure this in such a short time…""How?" cried Rob and Fred as one, as Micky gave yet another sneeze, burying his beak in his handkerchief.  "The only thing that could cure this cold in a few hours is the golden seaweed to be found in the Indian Ocean" explained the doctor. "But we’re miles away from the Indian Ocean!" the little penguins said despairingly. "So no Christmas carols this year then!" sniffed Fred, letting a tear fall into the icy water. Pincho, the little icefish, was so surprised by this warm, salty drop of water that had fallen into the cold waters, suddenly popped his head out of the sea."What’s going on?" he asked. Rob and Fred told Pincho that Micky was ill and that the only thing that could make him better was the golden seaweed from the Indian Ocean.  "The Indian Ocean! exclaimed Pincho. Hang on, I’ve got an idea… Give me a moment…  
"And with that, the little icefish vanished back into the ice-cold water. In the depths of the Arctic Ocean, Pincho laid out his plan. There wasn’t a second to lose. With all the energy he could muster, the little fish sent signals out to all his friends all over the ocean.How proud they were to have the honour of attaching the beautiful golden star to the top of the Christmas tree once again! 

The little Christmas Tree


This is the story of a little fir tree who dreamt of growing up so that he could go and be a Christmas Tree amongst the Humans. The other, older trees, knew more about life, and they told him that being a tree with the Humans wasn’t as good as all that. But the little fir tree didn’t want to believe the older trees – and he didn’t have long to wait.He was so pleased when one day some children came with their parents to choose a fir tree to decorate their living room. The children adored him at first sight.
So he was dug up, then brought into the living room, where he was hung with decorations.
 After they had finished decorating him, the little fir tree shone with a thousand lights.
 Christmas was getting closer and everyone admired the little Christmas Tree. The young fir tree thought: “All the bigger fir trees were wrong” and he lifted his branches even higher so people could admire him better. 
 Up till January, he was the prince of the living room; but then he started to lose his needles.Now nobody looked at him, touched him, or even bothered to gather up the tiny needles that fell. Then, the whole family decided to put him down into the cellar. The fir tree started to feel very sad that he had even been chosen by the family. 
 After several days’ wait – it seemed never-ending to him -, the little fir tree was replanted. He was so happy to be back in this good old earth that he’d missed so much during those endless days when he was shut up in the cellar!! Suddenly he understood that the family had left him in the cold of the cellar to keep him healthy.Each year, the family dug him up again to put him back into the living room. He was very happy with his new family. And yes, in the end the bigger trees were wrong about something - some humans are good after all...

The Rope 

The night fell heavy in the heights of the mountains and the man could not see anything. All was black. Zero visibility, and the moon and the stars were covered by the clouds. As he was climbing only a few feet away from the top of the mountain, he slipped and fell in to the air, falling at great speed. He could only see black spots as he went down, and the terrible sensation of being sucked by gravity.

He kept falling, and in the moments of great fear, it came to his mind all the good and bad episodes of his life. He was thinking now about how close death was getting, when all of a sudden he felt the rope tied to his waist pull him very hard. His body was hanging in the air.

Only the rope was holding him and in that moment of stillness he had no other choice other to scream: “Help me God.”

All of a sudden a deep voice coming from the sky answered, “What do you want me to do?”

“Save me God.”

“Do you really think I can save you?”

“Of course I believe You can.”

“Then cut the rope tied to your waist.”

There was a moment of silence and the man decided to hold on to the rope with all his strength. The rescue team tells that the next day a climber was found dead and frozen, his body hanging from a rope. His hands holding tight to it. Only one foot away from the ground.

And We? How attached we are to our rope will we let go??? Don’t ever doubt about the words of God. We should never say that He has forgotten us or abandoned us.

My favourite writer

My favourite writer is Mark Twain. I read Mark Twain’s stories, and they are so interesting. He wrote interesting and when I read the book  I feel it. I feel like I’m the book’s hero and it’s so interesting I offer you to read Mark Twain’s books.

My School

  I ‘am studying  at Mkhitar Sebastatsi  Educational Complex Mijin school 6-2 grade. I like my School because  we’re studying with computers and It’s fun. I Love my teachers they are so Smart. I also have friendly friends, They are always with me. The school is very big ,we have a big  library, We are so happy and LOve my school.
Travelling

I Love travelling and I think that is so interesting. When I’m travelling I’m so exited. If you’re travelling you’re studying some things  and it’s fun. I like doing fun things and if you’re going to travel take your friend with you because It’s more fun then  going somewhere  alone. You can travel by train, by bus, by plane, by see etc. But I choose by see because it’s more interesting. More safe is plane I think.  So I think you understand me I offer you to travel all around the world. J