Having just spent the morning listening to the clock ticking in my in-law's living room while they puzzled over crosswords, I've been reminiscing about Christmases I've spent on the road.
My most memorable is a toss-up between a Christmas spent on a roof-top terrace of an old mudbrick house in Lamu drinking Tusker, eating seafood and listening to Galiano's In Pursuit of the 13th Note and a festive season spent travelling through Mexico watching processions of Saints through cobbled streets and hearing the song 'Felize Navidad' waaay too many times.
myWanderlust members shared stories from their Christmases on the road on a recent forum post.
Here's the best of them.
Okavango Delta, Botswana
"In 2000 I booked myself a camping trip from Cape Town to Jo'burg via Namibia and Vic Falls. It was fantastic to be away from the Christmas excesses in the UK. Christmas Eve was spent driving to Maun where I had a one hour flight in a tiny six seat Cessna over the Okavango – amazing – then getting very drunk in Ngepi (naughty South African drinking games – Springbok anyone?) and being woken in the middle of the night by a pack of dogs chasing donkeys through the camp!
"Christmas Day was a swim in the pool before we packed up to drive to a campsite in Nata where we had a Mongolian BBQ and it absolutely poured down. No alcohol either... I wonder why?" Bilbo Baggins
Slow boat in China
"My most memorable Christmas away from home was spent travelling overnight on a boat in China, packed like a sardine in the middle of a row of berths (the bottom row of two storeys), with my feet hanging out at the end. ‘Christmas dinner’ was a watery bone-soup, with rice at the bottom. Unfortunately, by the time I’d managed to pick up the rice with my chopsticks (no spoon provided), the main course had sold out.
"As for entertainment – well, judging by the number of faces grinning at my chopsticks performance, I think it was me!" Llamas
A Kiwi Christmas… and KFC in Japan
"I've only had two Christmases away from home, but both memorable.
"The first was as a backpacker in Taupo, New Zealand. The fairly small hostel I was in had a three-night Christmas deal, meaning you had to book for the duration over that period. That meant everyone staying there was together for several days and a good sense of camaraderie developed.
"On the day itself the hostel hosted a lovely barbecue Christmas dinner out on the terrace in the sunshine. It was a terrific feast, which was followed by a communal footy match in the adjacent park, tinnies included. Absolutely fantastic day.
"My other was when living in Japan. It was memorable because I had to work on Christmas Day – it not being a holiday there (although many Japanese do like to celebrate Christmas with a traditional visit to KFC... yes, really).
"I did my teaching in the afternoon, with only one student remembering to say Happy Christmas to me! Then it was round to a friend's house for a chicken dinner with a sushi starter, and copious amounts of sake and beer." Hideo
Disaster in Dublin
"On Christmas Day, just as all the guests had returned to their rooms for a rest after a huge dinner, the fire alarm went off and we were all evacuated outside into the cold and the snow. A lot of people were frozen as they had not picked up jumpers or coats in the panic.
"Being Christmas Day there was nowhere else to go, so we just stood outside watching the bellowing smoke and the fire brigade. Eventually coaches arrived to take us to another hotel where we sat in the lobby and were told that is where we would be sleeping – all the hotels where full. On Boxing Day all the guests where allowed back into the original hotel, as it was mainly undamaged. The fire had been started by staff smoking in the basement next to a load of discarded cardboard boxes. Whoops!" Roovilla
Sitting by the dock of the bay, Antigua
"Jamie and I met on Christmas Day in Antigua, at Nelson's dockyard. There were ice baths full of (cheap) champagne, 20ft speakers, too much rum and an all night jump up. It was messy. This year it looks like a curry and a film on board the boat in Kochi. Maybe a few Kingfishers to wash it down. And perhaps a little single malt to get us through too ;-)" Liz Cleere
A Christmas card Christmas in Switzerland
"The only time I have ever been away from home for Christmas was one year in Switzerland. I was an au pair back then and the family had a chalet in the Engadine. The house had views of the frozen lake covered in snow with jagged mountains behind. It was like a scene from a Christmas card. The cable car was just a few steps away for skiing. And it should have been an amazing Christmas but I was terribly homesick.
"I was young and naive and had no idea that Christmas on the continent was quite different. We had presents on the 24th – but nothing on Christmas Day – and certainly no turkey Christmas dinner with all the trimmings. Instead, we had fois gras with some toast. I kept thinking that was the starter and that the 'proper' Christmas dinner would eventually arrive. It never did! Needless to say, I was not impressed." hmoat 01
Tour of Duty, Afghanistan
"I suppose Afghanistan was mine – I celebrated it, somewhat bizarrely, in a house full of Russian women, and one Japanese guy. There was a lot of vodka being drunk and a real rag-tag bunch of people arrived, including a Hungarian ex-Foreign Legionnaire who spent all night in his thick Hungarian accent trying to convince me he was Canadian." Sergeant Pluck
Champagne in the Galapagos
"I've had several away – Australia, Tanzania, Argentina, Singapore and so on. Most memorable was possibly the Galapagos. I was on a terrific cruise, and there were a couple of dozen other passengers. Like many places, the celebratory meal was to be on Xmas Eve. There was a mounting sense of excitment as the meal approached, and the crew had decorated the dining room beautifully. We drank champagne, had the first course, and awaited the main event.
"I should explain at this point that four of us were vegetarian, and most of the rest of the passengers were Jewish. And so, when the lights dimmed and the crew carried in a whole roast pig, there was a stunned silence.
"Still, the champagne, the wine and the company were good. And the crew must have eaten very well that night!" Lyn Hughes
The Big Pineapple, Queensland, Australia
"My only Christmas away has been backpacking in Oz – we made a point of going to the beach even though it was cold and rainy and then had a huge buffet at the Big Pineapple plantation. Father Christmas arrived by helicopter. As I can't remember very much else, I'm guessing a good time was had by all..." Kathryn
Doi Inthanon, Thailand's highest mountain
"Going trekking in Doi Inthanon, to see Thailand's highest mountain made an enjoyable Christmas Day. Even if it was misty and the views weren't great, it was such a contrast to being at home. I met lots of monks too, who wanted me in their photos. I guess my curly hair had novelty value!" Natalya24
For more tales of Christmas spent abroad, visit the original forum post here.
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