Crimbo, Mince Pies and Mulled Wine

I haven't done a good job lately of including many posts on the local culture. As you are all too familiar, it's been about biking and my dog of late. So I thought I'd share a few things I've learned about Christmas here in the UK.

1. Crimbo : Another term for Christmas. It took me a few times to understand that it didn't refer to a random bayou or Louisiana tradition.

2. Mince pies: Mince pies are very, very popular here at Christmas time. Don't confuse them with the other mince pie that you have the rest of the year. That's basically a lamb pot pie. Because mince generally means 'meat' except at Christmas time where it means 'sweet'. Confused? Me too.

3. Mulled wine: Wine that is hot? Yes. That's the tradition. It's very popular in Germany as well where you are supposed to wander the Christmas markets drinking mulled wine. Sadly, I didn't have my act together and missed them this year.

4. Christmas dinner: It's basically American Thanksgiving. The traditional Christmas dinner is turkey, brussel sprouts, pigs in a blanket (yes, there is sausage wrapped in bacon on top of your turkey), stuffing, gravy a few other things and then Christmas pudding.

5. Christmsas pudding: Fruitcake. No wonder it's a running joke in the States. It really only tastes good when fried in butter and covered with cream. Then again everything tastes good when fried in butter and covered in cream....

There you have it. Christmas 101 in the United Kingdom. And here you have a picture of my dog being sad. My evening commute took 4 hours last night due to some ice and sleet and idiot drivers. Therefore, he was unhappy with my being gone for 13 hours.

I'm off to Oz tomorrow so hopefully I'll keep you entertained from Down Under. Otherwise, you'll get photos in the New Year. Merry Christmas!