Carl Pettit

Christmas traditions around the world can be quite different from what we’re used to at home.

Christmas is the time of giving and families, but it also has a darker side.

Santa Claus, who without a doubt really does exist, doesn’t have time to make a personal appearance in every Hollywood movie about Christmas ever made. Instead, he relies on a number of talented actors to portray him on the silver screen.

Globes and angels and stars are fine, but for the folks who like to be a little more imaginative with their Christmas-tree decorations—whether from boredom or budget—we’ve come up with a list of five unusual ways to help get the creative wheels in your noggin spinning:

Christmas means toys, food, holiday cards, laughter, singing, family squabbles and lot of sweets stuffed inside your belly. The festive season also means a ton of money will be spent on those near and dear to us—and with so many sales going on, maybe just a bit on yourself as well.

“Come on! It’s lovely weather for a sleigh ride together with you.” Those famous words, from the song ‘Sleigh Bells Ringing,’ signal the arrival of lots of snow in the colder regions of the planet—and tons of winter fun. What better way to enjoy the crisp air, and the cold outdoors, than by taking a “cool” sleigh ride?

Candy canes have been around for hundreds of years, but they haven't always had that easily identifiable hooked shape. They also weren't red at all.

Santa Claus, that jolly fellow who races across the sky in his reindeer-pulled sleigh on Christmas Eve after judging who has been naughty or nice, needs no introduction. But his wife is another matter.

Christmas is a time for brotherly love, family, friends, good food and presents. It’s also a time, apparently, for setting some pretty astonishing—and often downright wacky—holiday records.

The Santa Claus the world knows—the “Coca Cola” Santa Claus decked out in red and white—is synonymous with Christmas, flying red-nosed reindeer, a big jolly laugh, and lots and lots of presents. Tales of old Saint Nick have spread across the planet and worked their way into numerous cultures. But do you know how the story of the fat man in the red suit first got started?