Nine strange and slightly scary Christmas traditions around the world

THERE are some strange and downright spooky Christmas traditions around the world. If you travel to these countries, would you dare partake?

IF YOU think leaving milk out for Santa is a little strange? Here are nine unusual, and slightly scary, Christmas traditions from around the world.

WALES: PARADING A HORSE SKULL The Mari Lwyd is a very old folk custom found in South Wales. A villager from the town is chosen to parade a horse’s skull decorated with ribbons mounted on a pole through the streets on Christmas Eve. A white sheet drapes from the back of the horse’s head and covers the person holding the skull. GUATEMALA: BURNING DEVILS In order to rid houses of bad spirits for the new year, Guatemalans do a full house clean in December. The dirt and dust is gathered from every home and each neighbourhood creates a large pile. A devil statue is built and placed on top of the offending dirt, and burned. The bad omens are said to burn up with the devil. SOUTH AFRICA: DON’T EAT SANTA’S COOKIES To keep kids from nibbling on Santa’s cookies, parents tell children a story about a boy named Danny who ate all of Santa’s cookies and really angered his grandmother. In her rage, she killed him — and now their ghosts haunt houses during Christmas time. Heavy. GREENLAND: RAW WHALE AND STUFFED SEAL Greenland has a few unusual holiday menu items. Mattak is raw whale skin served with a side of blubber. Another Christmas treat is kiviak: Auk birds stuffed into a seal skin, left to ferment for half a year. SWEDEN: BURNING GOAT Every year, villagers in the small Swedish town of Gavle build a 12-metre straw goat as part of a yule time tradition. But, pretty much every year since the tradition began in 1966, locals have succeeded in destroying it, either by burning it down, hitting it by cars, or almost stealing it with a helicopter. NORWAY: HIDE YOUR BROOMS Norwegians must put away their brooms on Christmas Eve. Legend has it that evil witches may come and steal them away if they are left out. ICELAND: FEAR OF THE YULE CAT Children who don’t receive new clothes by Christmas Eve will be devoured by a mythical monster from Icelandic folklore known as the Yule Cat. What is a Yule Cat? It’s a large and angry feline rumoured to lurk in the snow. The strange tradition comes from farmers who used the myth as an incentive for their workers to finish processing the autumn wool before Christmas. The ones who took part in the work would be rewarded with new clothes, but those who did not would get nothing and thus would be preyed upon by the monstrous cat. UKRAINE: A SPOOKY TREE If you find yourself in Ukraine around the holidays, you may be wondering: Is it Christmas or Halloween? Trees here are decorated with artificial spider weds and decorative spiders. The unusual tradition is a nod to a tale where a mythical spider wove a web around the plain tree of a poor family. When morning came, the white strands turned to precious metals and the family was rich. The webs today symbolise prosperity for the next year. ITALY: DON’T FEAR THE CHRISTMAS WITCH Italians aren’t looking for a jolly old man in a red suit on Christmas Eve. Instead, they look out for Befana, a friendly witch that brings toys and candy to all good children. This article was originally published on