Speaker 1: Hey, they're holiday fans. Have you ever wondered what Christmas
was like not just in your neck of the woods,
but in Western Europe, the Nordic Countries, Africa, the Middle East,
even India? Introducing Christmas around the World a new podcast
coming this holiday season. With Christmas around the World, I
take a look at not just how Christmas is celebrated everywhere,
but other holidays like Kwanza, Hanukkah, Navratri, Devali, and so
many more. Did you know that the movie Crampis from
twenty fifteen was based on a real Austro Bavarian devil
monster character from the fifteen hundreds. He came to collect
all the naughty children to take back to his mountain
lair to kill and eat, a kind of anti Santa
Claus that the modern day character of the Grinch was
based off of. Or that during Divali, the Hindu harvest
festival of lights that is celebrated around the globe, more
than three hundred million dollars per year is spent on
fireworks alone. Imagine celebrating Christmas on the sand with a
barbecue and a picnic, playing beach volleyball like they do
in South Africa. Did you know that while most Biblical
scholars agree that at least one of the three Wise
men came from the Middle East to worship Jesus, that
one or more of them could have been from China
or India. There also is no consensus that there were
three in number. Some debate there could have been two, four, eight,
or even twelve kings who made the journey. And finally,
did you know that instead of a jolly Santa Claus
type being the figure representative of the season, both Italy
and Iceland revere a good and an evil witch respectively.
Learn about all of this and so much more, like decor, food, religions,
and the holiday traditions that make the world go round
during the very best time of the year. I will
also be featuring interviews with special guests from around the
globe who can tell us in their own words what
special Christmas, religious, Solstice, and Harvest festival holidays are like
for them. Christmas Around the World premieeres Tuesday, November fourth,
with a new episode every Tuesday, available wherever you get
your podcasts. And for more holiday mystery fun, don't forget
to check out all three seasons of The Evergreen Murders
with the Evergreen Murders of Mackenzie Monroe, Christmas Mystery Murder
at Mistletoe Manor, and Return to Evergreen Trilogy, available wherever
you get your podcasts.