In Europe, the Christmas holidays come earlier than in Russia, because Catholic Christmas is celebrated on December 25th. Russians are increasingly going abroad to spend this holiday in an interesting way and plunge into the past in advance. good New Year spirit.

Bo All the cities of Europe, the celebration of the New Year takes place approximately the same.

The decision to celebrate Christmas on December 25 was made at the Third Ecumenical Church Council in the 5th century. Since then, the December pre-holiday period and Christmas itself have been the most fun and hectic time of the year.

Christmas fairs and markets are starting to work in almost all European cities, houses and shops are decorated with special decorations: illuminated garlands, decorated Christmas trees and white fluffy snow.

Already closer to Christmas itself in Europe, children begin to go home with caroling - they sing holiday songs and say good wishes family. And in return they receive gifts: roasted chestnuts, gingerbread and sweets.

It is not easy to choose exactly where to go for Christmas and New Year- 2019. And this is not surprising, because the New Year is a fabulous time, and even if you do not believe in Santa Claus since childhood, with the onset of December 31, something freezes inside in anticipation of a miracle. If you are a romantic and the pre-holiday fuss inspires you, we advise you to celebrate the New Year in Europe - in an atmosphere of antiquity and magic.

The most popular destinations in Europe for the Christmas holidays 2018-2019

If you are planning to spend new year holidays in Europe, then you need to decide in advance which country you would like to visit and what exactly to see. The fact is that the established traditions are different everywhere. For example, the Spaniards and Italians are used to celebrating the New Year on a grand scale, the French are closer to romance, and the Finns believe that there is nothing better than a warm home environment.

If you want to spend the New Year, holidays and Catholic Christmas in Europe, we advise you to fly out on December 22, 23 or 24, and return back in early January. Book everything a few months before your trip.

As for the statistics, most of our compatriots planning to celebrate the New Year 2019 in Europe noted that they would like to visit:

• Czech Republic;
• Italy;
• France;
• Germany;
• Switzerland;
• Turkey.

Rest abroad is an opportunity to create a romantic atmosphere for your loved one. Tours for two for Christmas in Europe - the magic of ancient cities and fabulous architecture in festive decoration. When you are in Prague or Germany, you immerse yourself in the magical atmosphere of Christmas, drinking mulled wine or coffee and watching the decorated old streets. Probably, many in childhood had a dream to see the Christmas atmosphere and Santa Claus?

Finland - Helsinki and Lapland

Where to celebrate the New Year - 2019 and Christmas in Europe, if not in the homeland of Santa Claus? At the end of December, it is frosty outside, down to -15 ° C, there is a lot of snow. People go to Finland for solitude and a winter fairy tale. Rent a cottage and devote the New Year holidays to outdoor activities - skiing and snowmobiling, for example. See the northern lights, explore the local cuisine and visit the Joulupukki residence in Lapland.

Tours from Moscow for 4-5 nights cost from 65 thousand rubles.

Flights from Moscow to Helsinki and back cost from 11 thousand rubles. Petersburgers can get there by train or bus.

Hotels. Inexpensive hotels - from 40 € for two in the center of Helsinki (3 * hotels - from 85 euros), renting a cottage in Rovaniemi - from 130 €. Dinner in a restaurant - about 50€ per person.

Czech Republic, Prague

The Czech Republic is another country in Europe where you can celebrate the New Year - 2019 nicely. In Prague, on the Old Town Square, a shining main Christmas tree is set up. There is a fair, tourists and locals walk around, eat roasted almonds in spices, delicious trdelniki and drink mulled wine and mead.
The weather in Prague at the end of December is good: during the day it can be slightly above 0°С, at night - up to −5°С. Snow cover is not always available.

Tours to Prague for 7 nights for the New Year can be purchased from just 65 thousand rubles.

Air tickets. A flight for the New Year holidays from Moscow to Prague and back costs from 16 thousand rubles.

Hotels. Rent a hotel room for two in the center - from 90 € per night and more. New Year's Eve dinner in a restaurant will cost 100-170 € per person.

Germany - Berlin and Munich

The best New Year's Eve in Europe, in our opinion, is in Germany. Do you want to plunge into a real Christmas fairy tale? We advise you to go to Berlin, Munich, Cologne, Nuremberg or other cities. Visit fun fairs with all the gastronomic attributes of Christmas and New Year: caramel apples, gingerbread houses and hearts, stollen and fragrant hot mulled wine. The weather at this time of the year in Germany is usually pleasant, from 0 to -4 ° C, snow does not always fall.

Tours for 4 nights cost from 60 thousand rubles for two.

Air tickets. Flight Moscow - Berlin and back costs from 16 thousand rubles (direct flights), to Munich - about the same.

Hotels in the center of Berlin - from 120 € per night for two. New Year's Eve dinner in a restaurant costs about 100-200 € per person.

Even with a small budget, you can meet a winter holiday on warm shores

Up to 70 thousand rubles for two. This is the minimum budget with which, when planning where to go for the New Year, you can count on the beach. And there is a very interesting option - Jordan, Aqaba Resort On The Red Sea. A week of rest for two in a 3-star hotel with breakfast and a Nordwind flight costs from 70-72 thousand rubles. In addition to swimming in the Red Sea, you can go to the Dead Sea, to the castles of the Crusaders and the ancient city of Petra in pink rocks.

Cheaper - Tunisia. This year, tour operators have extended charters to the North African country through the winter. But here swimming is only in the pools, the Mediterranean Sea is already cold. But there will be sun and thalassotherapy. The price of the issue is from 55 thousand rubles for two per week in a three-star hotel, with All-inclusive meals, in four stars- from 65 thousand. This is with flights.

How long do the New Year holidays last in different countries

January 1 New Year is celebrated in countries living on the Gregorian calendar, and this is most of the world. But not everyone attaches such sacred significance to this holiday as the Russians do. We love the New Year and love to celebrate it, so we do it for 10 whole days. And how many days do New Year and Christmas holidays last in other countries?

CHINA

In China, the New Year is celebrated on the first new moon after January 21, and this date changes every year. New Year's Eve Eastern calendar arrives between January 21 and February 21. At this time, the moon completes its full cycle, the new moon and the new year come. In addition to China, this order is followed in Korea, Singapore, Vietnam, Mongolia, and Malaysia. The government gives the Chinese 3 days off.

GERMANY

In Germany, as in almost all of Europe, Christmas is held in higher esteem than the New Year, so the Germans have a rest on December 24, 25 and 26. January 31 is a shortened working day, January 1 is a day off, and on January 2 the Germans go to work.

USA

In the US, the working population rests only on December 25 and 26 for Christmas. Duration New Year holidays depends on the state and on the enterprise, basically, the population has a rest only on January 1. But in many states, a system of accumulating time off is practiced, which Americans just take on New Year's holidays.

DOMINICAN

In the hot Dominican Republic, Christmas and New Year holidays are also celebrated. December 24 is a shortened day for employees, 25 is a day off. On December 31 you have to work until noon, and on January 1 and 6 it is legal to rest. Sometimes the day off is moved from January 6th to January 4th to make it a long weekend.

BELARUS

In Belarus, neighboring Russia, there are no New Year holidays. Only January 1 and 7 are marked in red in the calendar - New Year and an Orthodox xmas.

UKRAINE

Ukrainians celebrate the New Year from January 1 to 3, and go to work on the 4th. From January 7th to 10th, our neighbors get a holiday on the occasion of Christmas.

KAZAKHSTAN

In Kazakhstan, they also have a short rest, on January 1, 2 and 7, except when holidays fall on weekends, as this year. Then the weekend schedule shifts and there are more of them.

It is known that Christmas in Russia and Europe is celebrated on different dates, despite a single calendar and chronology. In Russia, the holiday is celebrated on January 7, in Europe - on December 25. What is the reason for such a discrepancy?

origins

In ancient Rome, March 1 marked the beginning of the year, however, when Gaius Julius Caesar modified the calendar, the shortest day of the year, December 22, became the starting point for new years.

It is well known that the Romans revered the pantheon of gods, where the day of the winter solstice was a symbol of the victory of Saturn (approx. God of the earth and crops) over winter.

At the beginning of the 4th c. The Christian Church took over in the territory of Rome and it was customary to abolish the objectionable holiday with pagan roots. So, the feast of Saturn was replaced in the 10th century. the date of Christ's birth.

The difference in church chronology

To date, the difference in the dates of Christmas can be explained by the fact that the Orthodox Church focuses on the calendar introduced by Julius Caesar, and the Catholic - on the Gregorian.

Russia at the beginning of the 20th century introduced a calendar adopted by the Western world, but the church tradition remained unchanged.

Key Facts

• Both calendars have the same number of days;
• The leap year occurs in both calendars at different intervals of time;
• According to the Julian calendar, a leap year occurs every three years, while according to the Gregorian it happens every four years.

So, the difference in the celebration of the dates of Christmas can be explained by purely historical reasons. In the course of the development of civilizations, their decline and the formation of new customs, a new faith, and with it the change of the chronology, the dates of the feast of the Nativity of Christ also shifted.

Due to the above reasons, the Western Catholic world meets him on December 24, and the Orthodox Church on January 7.

There is hardly anything more fabulous than the atmosphere of magic in Europe during Christmas and New Year. She briefly dips even adults into a fairy tale, forcing them to remember their childhood and become a little happier and more carefree. We are sure that best gift, which you can do for your children, family and yourself - is to celebrate the New Year in Europe.

When to go

The date of Christmas in Europe is December 25th. The New Year is celebrated in the same way as ours, on January 1, but the Christmas festivities are much more fun and larger. So if you take tickets for December 22-24, you will definitely be in the midst of the holiday.

If time permits, you can arrive around mid-December, when fairs and sales open, to get into the Christmas atmosphere.

If your New Year's weekend starts only on December 29-30, you should not worry - large-scale Christmas markets often do not close until the first days of January, and fireworks, street festivities and other no less await you for the New Year itself. interesting events.

Trade fairs

The main entertainment that awaits you in Europe in 2017 at Christmas is fairs, The best way immerse yourself in the atmosphere of wonders and acquire interesting souvenirs and gifts. Even if you don't like to shop, you'll be swept up in this whirlpool of fun and pre-holiday hustle and bustle.

Fairs take place in every European city, but we have compiled a list of the most interesting and famous for you.

WeihnachtsZauber Gendarmenmarkt, Berlin, Germany

By the end of December, all of Berlin, whose heart is located on the Gendarmenmarkt. Everything is decorated with bright lights - the tents from the roof of the French Cathedral look especially festive. The atmosphere of lightness and idleness reigns here - just wander around and drink mulled wine, try traditional gingerbread and buy amazing souvenirs handmade. You can dilute simple walks with sledding or skating and absorbing all kinds of pastries - we especially recommend the legendary German puff pies Baumkuchen.

Tallinna Jõuluturg, Tallinn, Estonia

The Tallinn Fair is becoming more and more magnificent every year. In the center of the Town Hall Square, a richly decorated Christmas tree is set up, from which shopping arcades with souvenirs and delicacies diverge in all directions. Here you can buy handmade dolls, fancy-painted crockery and incredibly smelling juniper coasters. Children will get acquainted with Jõuluvan - the Estonian Santa Claus. It is especially pleasing that many people in Estonia speak Russian.

Marchés de Noël, Strasbourg, France

For many, France is not associated with a magical Christmas atmosphere, but only until it comes to Strasbourg - the capital of Christmas. Cafes and restaurants offer a unique winter menu, and numerous craft shops sell not just souvenirs, but real works of art. The center of all this festive action is the celebrations on Place Kleber, around a 30-meter Christmas tree.

Christmas on Covent Garden, London, UK

The London Fair captures the whole city, but its spirit is especially felt in the Covent Garden area. All shops are decorated with colored lights, visitors inside are treated to cookies and jam. A special attraction is the pudding race, in which you must not only be the first to finish, but also not drop the traditional Christmas pudding.

Main Fair on the Old Town Square, Prague, Czech Republic

Close to us, the Czech Republic is a popular place to celebrate the New Year and Christmas. Fairs are open here in all districts, but it is on the Old Town Square that the tallest and most richly decorated Christmas tree stands. You will find music, souvenirs, Christmas cookies and a ride through the Old Town in elegant carriages. On January 1, a grand fireworks display completes the festivities.

Vacation with children

Of course, if you go to Europe for New Year and Christmas with children, they will like it in any city you choose. However, several destinations are considered the most "childish" - the impressions of such a trip will definitely remain with your baby for life.

Finland

Rovaniemi is a village in Lapland where the Finnish Santa Claus, Joulupukki, lives. Many settle here and the classic European Santa, so the place can be called universal.

Santa's Residence is the perfect place to spend Christmas with your child. Here you can ride real reindeer, feed baby reindeer with reindeer moss, and even personally communicate with Santa and receive a gift from him. By the way, all these entertainments are also available for adults.

In addition, Rovaniemi has numerous attractions in winter, and nearby Ounasvarra Ski Center offers skiing, snowboarding and sledding.

England

We have already talked about the English Fair, but if you are in London with children, be sure to visit Hyde Park. During Christmas, it is turned into a real Disneyland with a huge roller coaster, a Ferris wheel, a skating rink for thousands of people and the Santa Express train. The circus puts on Christmas-themed performances. You need to pay only for tickets for attractions - you get the entrance to the park itself and a wonderful New Year's mood for free.

Christmas in Europe is considered the main holiday of the year. In almost all countries, they begin to prepare for it already a month in advance, and these preparations are very bright, very noisy and very colorful - with fairs, music, performances, original national traditions and dishes.

On Christmas Eve itself, people gather in a narrow family circle, at home, with the closest people.

Where to go for Christmas in Europe?

Catholic Europe celebrating Christmas strikes with its magnificence. Christmas trees and street illuminations, fairs and costume processions, gingerbread towns and chants - all this, long before the holiday itself, makes it clear that it is approaching.

Europeans celebrate Christmas with their families, it makes no sense to go there on this day.

When is the best time to go to Europe for Christmas? Since all people spend the evening from December 24 to 25 at home, with their families, cities are dying out and there is practically nothing for tourists to do there. Therefore, it is better to go on a visit ten days before the holiday, on the tenth of December.

So you will surely get a lot of pleasure from the trip and have a good rest, admiring the shimmering houses and shops, choosing souvenirs and enjoying delicious food and hot wine.

Is it necessary to stay in hotels in the capital to fully experience the Christmas spirit? Not at all - the holiday is also celebrated in small towns. The provinces also have beautiful cathedrals, town halls, squares, castles, and often they have an atmosphere more fabulous and magical than in megacities.

Festive Czech Republic

If you want to enjoy a classic Catholic Christmas, you should consider visiting the Czech Republic. And one of the most alluring cities, of course, is its capital. Expectations Christmas, Prague is completely transformed - trees and houses sparkle with decorations, snow flakes like powdered sugar lie on tiled roofs, and the streets are filled with the aroma of roasted chestnuts.

In the Czech Republic, you can buy a horseshoe for good luck, made by a blacksmith in front of your eyes.

If you want to walk, merging with the crowd, Wenceslas and Old Town Squares, known for the most beautiful and noisy Christmas markets, are the best for this. Here you can enjoy old Bohemian rich trdelnik and drink mulled wine-svarzhak from painted ceramic mugs, which you can keep as souvenirs.

Here you can buy for luck a horseshoe made by a blacksmith in front of your eyes. And here you can also have fun watching costumed performances and curly-haired sheep chewing hay. From the town hall located on the Old Town Square, Christmas carols are heard all day long, and lovers of organ music concerts can visit the Church of St. Mikulas.

In the Czech Republic, you can buy a horseshoe for good luck, which will be forged in front of you.

For good shopping, you need to walk along the main shopping street Na Przykole, if you are looking for gifts made by Czech craftsmen, Manes Gallery is your destination. Guests of the city who want to see Prague from a bird's eye view - 66 meters, can visit the bistro of the same name, located on the top floor of a skyscraper.

If you want to relax in solitude, away from thousands of people celebrating Christmas, pay attention to the medieval castles of Cesky Krumlov and Karlstejn located a few hours drive from Prague. Them gingerbread houses and bridges will plunge you into a quiet Christmas fairy tale.

Christmas Germany

Germany leads among European countries in terms of celebrating Christmas, here the festive period is called the “fifth season”. Preparations for the holiday begin already in November, on the eleventh day, at 11:11 am. At this time, the first Christmas services begin to be held in churches, people begin to visit them for repentance and communion.

A week later, fairs officially open on the old squares, noisy, cheerful, attracting thousands of citizens and guests of the cities. Although fairs traditionally close in Europe on the afternoon of December 24, in Germany the fairs last much longer, until the New Year. So, on the eve of 2019, the Berlin fair will last from November 25 to December 25, Strasbourg - from November 26 to December 31.

In Germany, the festive period is called the "fifth season".

It is noteworthy that on the eve of the holiday, not only Berlin, but also small provincial towns are being transformed. Moreover, it is them that are interesting to visit for a complete immersion in the atmosphere and spirit of Christmas. In every corner of the country there is something that pleases winter tourists - squares, town halls, Christmas trees and Christmas markets. And the sights are complemented by cheerful people on the streets who eat burning sausages and drink punch or mulled wine.

Christmas Munich annually gathers connoisseurs of musical and theatrical art for

the Tollwood Festival, tickets for which are selling out instantly. Very popular on Christmas Eve and Nuremberg, known as the birthplace of the Nutcracker.

It is very original in the Catholic regions of the country, like Bavaria - on the streets of cities you can meet processions of mummers, whose faces are stained with soot or intimidate with terrible masks.

At the same time, nativity scenes are held everywhere with typical biblical scenes - a cave in which the newborn Jesus sleeps, the Magi who came to bow to him and a bright guiding star. Rothenburg ob der Tauber, famous for its year-round bazaar, looks very fabulous on Christmas dates. Christmas decorations and looks like a picture from a children's book.

Germans, like most Europeans, consider Christmas a family holiday and celebrate it with loved ones at home.

Austria and Christmas

As in the rest of Europe, preparations for Christmas in Austria begin a month before the date of the event. From the moment Advent, the Advent fast, is announced, the approach of the holiday begins to be felt in the country. People begin to decorate their homes with garlands and Christmas wreaths, in which four candles are inserted.

The Christmas tree in Austria is decorated not with toys, but with something edible: sweets or marzipans.

The first of them is lit on the first Sunday of Lent, the second - on the second, on the following Sunday - the third, and on the eve of Christmas, all the candles of the wreath blaze brightly. It is curious that the Austrians decorate their Christmas trees not with toy balls, but with edible decorations - marzipan and chocolate, recognized as the pride of the country.

Starting from the Middle Ages, street bazaars open up all over the country in the pre-Christmas period. On them, in specially installed and beautifully painted kiosks, you can buy a wide variety of sweets - beautiful cookies, candies, roasted chestnuts, fragrant mulled wine. If you are good at skating, you should definitely visit the "Vienna Ice Dream" - a huge ice rink with an area of ​​​​3 square kilometers, generously lit with festive illuminations.

How would you like to celebrate this New Year?

YesNot

Visiting St. Stephen's Cathedral, you can listen to Christmas carols, and climbing its South Tower - admire the wonderful view of Vienna. If it seems to you that you are starting to get cold on the elegant streets of the city, you can take a sightseeing tram, the route of which runs in such a way that you will see the main sights of the city.

Although the main festive events are held in Vienna, other cities in the country can also offer a lot of interesting entertainment. For example, you can go to Salzburg, which hosts annual music festivals and art exhibitions. And what about the Museum of the Nativity - a place where you can see the decorations of the 18th century, the nativity scene of the 19th century and the Christmas tree of the early 20th century? In the vicinity of Hellbrunn Palace, you can make friends with ponies. And if you are not seduced by the angelic picture, you can take part in the Krampus processions. These are furry devils with big horns, who are assigned the role of punishing naughty children.

Christmas in Spain

Christmas is an important holiday in Spain, where most of the population is Catholic. Although each region has its own traditions, most of them are national. Preparations for Christmas in this country, as in other European cities, begin in November - with the installation of Christmas trees, hanging garlands and the appearance of local Santa Clauses on the city streets.

The most important Spanish attribute of Christmas Eve is belen, the image of the picture of the birth of Christ in the form of a layout. These symbols can be seen everywhere - near houses, in city squares, in shop windows. At the same time, the Spaniards also use the Anglo-German tradition - Christmas trees, which complement the national henbane.

Christian denominations living according to the Gregorian and the so-called New Julian calendar celebrate Nativity two weeks earlier than Orthodox Christians, who adhere to the so-called "old style". Christmas in the Western religious tradition is considered the main holiday, which is associated with the joyful expectation of a miracle.

When is Catholic Christmas

Christmas according to the Gregorian and New Julian calendars is celebrated December 25. Christmas Eve is celebrated December 24, and in the evening on this day all the main Christmas services are held.

Who celebrates Christmas on December 24-25

When is Christmas celebrated in Russia and Ukraine

Russian Orthodox Church celebrates holidays according to the Julian calendar, so in Russia they will celebrate Christmas on the night of 6 to 7 January. This holiday is a public holiday in Russia.

In Ukraine and Belarus, the majority of Orthodox people also celebrate Christmas together with the Russians - on January 6-7. But in Ukraine, for the sake of Catholics and representatives of other faiths who live according to the Gregorian calendar (and there are many such among Ukrainians, although not the majority), December 25 is also declared a day off. However, this is probably for the best, since an extra holiday day is always good, especially when it comes to Christmas.

History of Christmas

Christmas is associated with the gospel story of the birth of the son of God Jesus Christ at the virgin Mary.

According to the Gospel, in the year of the birth of Jesus, by decree of the emperor august in the Roman Empire, of which Judea was a part, a census was conducted. For the convenience of scribes, all the inhabitants of Judah were ordered to appear in the city of their birth. Husband of the Virgin Mary Saint Joseph was a descendant of the king David, and his "small homeland" was Bethlehem. Mary, at that time already pregnant, went to Bethlehem with her husband.

However, in Bethlehem, due to the influx of guests, Mary and Joseph could not get into the hotel. When the due date approached, Mary gave birth to the child Jesus in a cave in which cattle were hidden from the weather.

After the birth of Jesus, the first to bow to him were the shepherds, who were informed by an angel about the birth of the son of God. Next came the magi, who showed the way to the cave a star that appeared in the sky at the time of the birth of Jesus. The Magi brought Jesus royal gifts - gold, frankincense and myrrh. With this gift, the Magi made it clear that they see in the baby Jesus the king of God.

According to the Catholic tradition, the Magi, who themselves were kings (according to another version, magicians) were called Melchior, Caspar And Balthazar.

Having learned about the birth of the son of God, the then king of Judea is cruel Herod decided to destroy Jesus. Herod did not understand and ordered to kill in Judea all babies under the age of two years (the famous massacre of babies).

However, an angel of God saved Jesus and his family. The angel told Joseph, together with Mary and the child, to flee to Egypt, where the holy family hid until the death of Herod, after which they safely returned to Judea.

Catholic Christmas - holiday traditions

Catholics begin to prepare for Christmas in advance - a month in advance. The pre-Christmas period is called Advent, it includes prayers, fasting (not as strict as Christmas for the Orthodox), as well as various activities related to charity.

Advent is dedicated to the expectation of the miracle of Christmas, so various Christmas events are held in Europe at this time - fairs, performances, etc. The most grandiose pre-Christmas fairs are held in Germany.

Catholic Christmas Eve

On this day, it is customary for believers to keep a strict fast. It is advisable not to eat anything all day, and when the first star lights up in the sky, “break the fast” with juicy - grains of various cereals boiled in honey. At this time, festive services are held in Catholic and Protestant churches, and then people go home and sit down for festive table, which traditionally contains meat delicacies.

Catholic Christmas traditions

nativity scenes

Since the Middle Ages in Western Europe, a custom has appeared to arrange Christmas nativity scenes for Christmas - to make toy mangers with dolls in the form of the Virgin Mary, baby Jesus, St. Joseph, shepherds, wise men, etc.

carols

At Christmas, Europeans, especially children, love caroling - dressing up in carnival costumes and masks and walk the streets and houses singing Christmas carols. Singers are usually given sweets or money.

Christmas tree

The main Christmas custom, which came to Russia in the time of Peter the Great by visiting Germans, is to put a decorated fir tree in houses and squares, which symbolizes the tree of paradise.

Santa Claus

Santa Claus(he's a saint Nicholas) is a Christmas grandfather who brings gifts to children at Christmas. In Western tradition, it is believed that, like St. Nicholas, Santa enters houses at night through the chimney, leaving gifts under the tree or in a special sock hung by the fireplace.

***
As we wait for this wonderful holiday,
Again the world is lit up with magic,
How much joy, how much happiness
You and I will bring Christmas!

Holiday time, gift time,
Time of happiness, peace, miracles,
Let the star of Christmas shine bright
We love, sending from heaven!

***
Let Christmas light up
Every home
Strengthens faith in God
For in it -
Consolation, joy, and support.

And the hope is
What we will soon understand:
There is nothing more precious in the world than love,
With her, we seem to be higher from the earth.

Christmas will remind us of this again,
Let love give way to miracles.