Christmas Traditions Elsewhere
In Sweden, a Christmas straw one is traditional; here's the 42-foot, 4-ton example in Gävle (picture included)
What is a goat?
People magazine called Edmund Gwenn "the gold standard for cinematic Santa Clauses" after he worked up a "Miracle on" this
What is 34th Street?
Christmas commemorates Jesus' birth in a stable in this town, to which his parents came from Nazareth
What is Bethlehem?
It's the only team with an out-of-the-U.S. address
Who are the Toronto Raptors?
Vladimir Nabokov's books never earned more than a few hundred dollars until this 1955 novel about a young girl became a hit
What is Lolita
In Iceland, kids put their boots by a window & either get candy if they're good or rotten these tubers if not
What are potatoes?
After committing what some might deem accidental homicide in a 1994 film, this actor re-suited up in 2022 in "The Santa Clauses" on TV
Who is Tim Allen?
While we talk about the 12 days of Christmas, Hanukkah is celebrated over 8 nights, with lighted candles in this candelabra
What is a menorah?
It's the southernmost team in the NBA
Who are the Miami Heat?
Anton Chekhov refashioned his bomb of a play "The Wood Demon" & its character Uncle George into this huge success
What is Uncle Vanya?
Streets are closed to traffic as people roller skate to Christmas Eve mass in this capital of Venezuela
What is Caracas?
Saaannta! I know him! & it was the late, great Ed Asner who played the role in this 2003 film
What is Elf?
This fourth gospel mentions Jerusalem, Jesus & the Feast of the Dedication indicating that Jesus likely celebrated Hanukkah
What is John?
Once a head coach at Louisiana Tech, Teresa Weatherspoon became an assistant coach for this New Orleans team in 2020
Who are the Pelicans?
In Turgenev's "Fathers & Sons", Bazarov has this world view whose name comes from Latin for "nothing"
What is nihilism?
This country’s folk tradition has it that mischievous Kallikantzaroi, or hobgoblins, rise from the underground to wreak havoc during the 12 days of Christmas.
What is Greece?
A poster for "Bad Santa 2" had this thespian face down on a bar above the tagline "Giving the holidays another shot"
Who is Billy Bob Thornton?
Bah! Humbug! Starting under this Lord Protector, Christmas was canceled in England until the Restoration
Who is Oliver Cromwell?
In the 1990s they were the NBA champs 6 times, twice winning back-to-back-to-back
Who are the Chicago Bulls?
This (picture included) author saw conflict & harmony firsthand serving in the Russian army at the Siege of Sevastopol in the 1850s
Who is Tolstoy?
North of Quezon City, San Fernando is the "Christmas Capital of" this nation, holding a Giant Lantern Festival in December
What is the Philippines?
Vince Vaughn was older brother Fred Claus to this (picture included) actor as Nicholas
Who is Paul Giamatti?
Traditionally, Hanukkah celebrates a victory by this family led by Judah & the miracle of a small amount of oil lasting for 8 days
Who are the Maccabees?
This alliterative team is last alphabetically
Who are the Washington Wizards?
His 1995 autobiography "Invisible Allies" described his last years in the Soviet Union before he got deported
Who is Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn?