Sydney is a great place to be during the Christmas period. There are many activities which you can see and do throughout Sydney. Sydney has never experienced a traditional "White Christmas" with activities such as ice skating and cold weather; it has a variation on the theme. Christmas in Australia is celebrated during our summer months which means no snow, no cold weather, no need for hot chocolate and definitely no fires! The heat of the early summer has had an impact on the way in which we celebrate our Christmas therefore creating our own Christmas traditions and festivities.
In Sydney, to mark the beginning of the annual Christmas celebrations, there is a Christmas concert on the 26th of November which symbolises the beginning of Christmas. Each year the City of Sydney presents a Christmas Concert in Martin Place, right in the centre of the city. Within Martin Place there is a 20 metre high Christmas tree covered from top to bottom in Christmas decorations and lights. The most anticipated feature of this celebration is annual the tree lighting ceremony. This celebration is popular with children and families with entertainment highlights including The Hooley Dooleys, Play School, Australian Youth Choir and of course, none other than Santa Clause himself!
Another major Christmas event in Sydney's calendar is the Carols In The Domain. Every year thousands of people come together to celebrate the Christmas season and also raise money for The Salvation Army Oasis Youth Support Network. Some of Australia's biggest names from the entertainment industry have graced the stage of Carols In The Domain over the past 26 years and the 2009 lineup of the celebration is nothing short of that, with the likes of Delta Goodrem, Guy Sebastian and more planning on performing at this year's celebration. There are also Carol's by Candelight throughout Sydney with smaller suburbs and local communities holding their very own versions of the traditional carols.
The Sydney Christmas Parade is also not to be missed. It is an annual event which is held on the last day of November in the centre of the city and aims to bring back the spirit of the Christmas season into the city. The parade is aimed at all types of people - children, adults, teenagers and families. It has parade floats, celebrities, sporting heroes, Christmas carols and music, cartoon characters, dancers and more - there is something for everybody.
In the Queen Victoria Building, which occupies a whole block on Sydney's George Street, you will see a huge tree sparkling with 15,000 Swarovski crystals and over 40,000 Christmas lights. This tree forms a large canopy over the frantic Christmas shoppers and takes 30 decorators, eight riggers, two electricians and more than three nights to install. With the tree scaling four levels, it would be no surprise that this is Australia's largest indoor Christmas tree - also the most expensive. Even by taking a trip to Sydney's suburbs you will find that many homes and families get into the Christmas spirit by decorating their houses and gardens with many decorations and Christmas lights, competing for best in their street.
'Christmas at the house' is a favourite upcoming event for many young children across Sydney. At the Opera House, Jonathan Biggins hosts a celebration of all your favourite and most loved Christmas tunes, including 'Silent Night', 'O Come All Ye Faithful', 'Hark The Herald Angel's Sing' and many more Yuletide tunes with the help of the choir and the Opera House Orchestra.
Due to the summer season, many Australians spend Christmas outdoors by going to the beach, doing sport, going swimming or having outdoor barbeques and picnics. It has become traditional for international visitors who are in Sydney at Christmas time to go to the famous Bondi Beach and it is not surprising to know that up to 40,000 people visit on Christmas day.
What is Christmas without a Christmas feast and a stocking full of gifts? Sydney is famous for it's local community markets, night markets and Christmas stalls. When it comes to affordable food and delicacies, Sydney markets have got you sorted. Shopping centres can be almost too stressful in the lead up to Christmas and the frantic Christmas rush. Christmas markets are much more peaceful and you have a greater chance of finding that one-off-vintage-piece and that apricot marmalade you have been searching everywhere for. Some top gift markets include Paddington Markets, Surry Hills Markets and Glebe Markets. The top food markets for the Christmas season include the Sydney Fish Markets, the Eveleigh Christmas Markets, the Mosman Christmas markets and the Pyrmont Growers Markets.
The Christmas break in Sydney is also an opportunity for everybody to relax and have some down time before entering the New Year. This is done by enjoying the season's two major sporting events - one of them being the Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race. For more than 63 years, the Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race has become an icon of Australia's summer sport. It is hosted by the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia and it starts in Sydney on Boxing Day and finishes in Hobart. The approximate distance of the race is about 1170 kilometres and it is one of the most prestigious ocean races in the world. The beauty of this race is, to watch, it is free and watching the race can be enjoyed peacefully on the side of the harbour. The race can be seen from Sydney's harbour foreshore and the Sydney Harbour Bridge.
Although Australia has never experienced a traditional "White Christmas" - and never will, I think all Australians, and Sydneysiders, can agree that we are all quite happy with the celebrations and festivities on offer in Sydney and around Australia, in fact I can't imagine a true Christmas without our beloved Bondi beach, singing to our favourite carols in the Domain, the seafood feasts and of course the sun!
For more information visit:
www.cityofsydney.nsw.gov.au/WhatsOn/html/custom/2234-event-details.asp?EventID=77594www.carolsinthedomain.comwww.sydneychristmasparade.comwww.qvb.com.auwww.opera-australia.org.au/scripts/nc.dll?OPRA:PRODUCTION:0:pc=PC_90729www.sydneyfishmarket.com.auwww.paddingtonmarkets.com.auwww.mosman.nsw.gov.au/mosman/culture/marketwww.eveleighmarkets.com.auwww.rolexsydneyhobart.com/default.asp