They close off the largest street in bustling downtown Santa Barbara and everyone bunches together on the sidewalks with blankets, snacks, and family. I look forward to going every year.
Christmas is one of the few times of the year that my entire family gathers together (that includes a whole lot of aunts, uncles, cousins, nieces, and nephews). We catch each other up on what we've been doing all year, tell jokes, and play games. In addition, the unique aspect of my own family traditions for the holiday is that I am part of a Chinese-American family and raised in a heavily Mexican influenced community. As a result, many of our traditions reflect this melting pot of cultures. Some of the American aspects of Christmas that my family has kept as our own are finding and decorating a Christmas tree, baking cookies together, and hanging up lights around the house. For dinner, we have American foods, such as mashed potatoes, turkey, ham, and stuffing. However, we also have Asian foods such as egg rolls, noodles, and curry in addition to our traditional Mexican soup, posole. This year, someone brought Bingo and Twister and it was so much fun. There was even a 5 dollar gift for each winner. I think this is why Christmas is such a big holiday in my family: it brings people together. It is the time of year that everyone makes time in their schedule to spend time with family.
