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T H E J O U R N E Y
22
december
GET BUFF
At no other time of year
does daily pie eating
seem like a good idea,
but somehow this
month it’s unavoidable.
Run off all that pastry at
Barca’s Buff Epic Run –
an 8km dash in fancy
dress through mud pits,
foam baths, tyre jungles
and rope mazes starting
at 11am on 22 December.
Fly to Barcelona.
ocisport.net
21
december
JIVE, BUNNIES!
Ask Londoners about the
Rivoli Ballroom and they
might look blank: this
authentic 1950s dance
hall is a well hidden gem.
Revel in its retro glamour at
Jive Party on 21 December
– a bop beneath the
chandeliers will add
sparkle to any Christmas.
Fly to London.
jiveparty.com
HOWDID YOU DO?
15-20
YOU ARE SANTA
The rightful overlord of
Christmas, you scoff in the face
of any mere mortal who asks
you which winter berries to
add to a mince pie. Travelling
a mere 510,000,000km on
Christmas Eve is no problem,
so long as there’s a glass of
eggnog waiting for you when
you get home.
8-14
YOU ARE RUDOLPH
Unfortunately, your
ruminant mammal brain
prohibits you from absorbing
all things Christmassy, but
365 days a year under Santa’s
guidance has given you some
basic wisdom.
0-7
YOU ARE SCROOGE
Christmas isn’t your thing.
You prefer high-interest loans
and Victorian workhouses.
Try not to bah humbug your
way through the festive
season: retaining a certain
amount of information is
crucial if you want to become
less of a grump.
If you’re up for a Christmas challenge, how about
trying out geocaching? See how on p55
ILLUSTRATIONS
SODAVEKT
25
december
TEST YOUR
CHRISTMAS IQ
Can you spot festive falsehoods? Find out with
our special true-or-false Crimbo quiz. We,
erm, hope yule love it.
Answers on next page.
01
Scientists say Rudolph’s red
nose is the result of infection.
02
Santa Claus wears red
to symbolise Jesus turning
water into wine.
03
The ‘true love’ mentioned in the song ‘The
Twelve Days of Christmas’ refers to God.
04
Kissing under the mistletoe references
an affair between Víðarr, the Norse god of
the forest, and Elli, goddess of old age.
05
Crackers originally symbolised an
assassination attempt on Pope Julius III in 1752.
06
In Poland, spiders and spider webs are
common decorations.
07
Stockings come from the Hungarian
tradition of washing socks on 24 December.
08
The Swedish made the
first artificial trees out of
dyed pheasant feathers.
09
120 million Christmas trees
are grown each year in Europe.
10
Christmas pudding was
originally a thick soup with
raisins and wine in it.
11
Presents used to be
wrapped to prevent rats from
eating them.
12
Workers in Spain get a Christmas bonus
of one month’s salary by law.
13
In Serbia, Santa is a woman who gives the
children a kiss while they’re sleeping.
14
In the Middle Ages, the traditional
Christmas meal in England was pig’s head
and mustard.
15
In Estonia, the festive meal is a stew made
from seal meat and chestnuts.
16
Since 1947, Oslo has sent
a Christmas tree to London
to thank the British for their
help in World War II.
17
The first bit of music played in space was
‘Jingle Bells’.
18
Christmas is the most common time of
year for couples to break up.
19
Christmas trees are fed dried banana peels
during germination to help them develop their
deep green colour.
20
In Russia, it’s considered unlucky to give
teddies as presents, because bear attacks
are common in wintertime.
