There are many holiday rituals that are celebrated by just about everyone around the world, whether that means exchanging gifts, family get-togethers or attending church services.
But there are different rituals celebrated by varying countries that tend to stand out the most during the holiday season.
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Here are five examples of things that go on in some of the other countries, that perhaps you haven’t heard of.
1. The KFC craze in Japan
If you can believe it, consuming Kentucky Fried Chicken is a major passion among many Japanese citizens on Christmas Day.
Demand is so great that reservations have to be made to eat at a KFC on Christmas Day, and an online service has been created for delivery purposes.
2. Not getting swept away in Norway
Before going to bed on Christmas Eve, Norwegians are known to hide all the brooms in their house.
There’s a belief that Christmas Eve means the arrival of evil spirits and witches, and thus why the brooms are hidden.
3. Pickle ornaments in Germany
There’s a Christmas tradition in Germany where a pickle-shaped ornament is hidden somewhere in the branches of the tree, with a gift given to whichever child in the household finds the pickle ornament. The tradition is believed to have been started in the 16th century.
4. Shoes serving as cupid in the Czech Republic
This is a different way for single women to determine if they will find a mate soon, but it’s a common practice on Christmas Eve. Unmarried Czech women toss one of their shoes over their shoulder with their back turned to the door. If the shoe lands with the toe facing the door, they will be married within the year.
If the shoe lands with the heel facing the door, then, well, at least they won’t have to worry about marrying a heel.
5. A red-underwear run in Spain
In Spain, it’s common for people to wear red underwear on New Year’s Eve in hopes of fulfilling a New Year’s resolution to fall in love.
But the town of La Font de la Figuera goes a bit further by having a New Year’s Eve run where participants run in just red underwear.
The average high temperature in the town for Dec. 31 is 54 degrees, so hopefully the participants run hard to stay warm enough. Otherwise, they might be turning blue or purple over their red underwear.