By Kristin Kunz
Santa Claus makes his way around the world, interrupting fat feasts, adding to cultural traditions in every country and all the while, helping to unite families. One nostalgic member of a family, who will remain away from home this Christmas season, reminisces about missed merriment.
Cristian Radu is from Timisoara, a large Romanian city with a population of more than 400,000 people. The city is nicely decorated at Christmas-time. The Romanians always buy natural Christmas trees because they love the smell, said Radu, a BYU junior, majoring in Political Science.
In Timisoara, Christmas carols play while shoppers scramble around buying presents, Radu said. The songs are different because they are usually performed with no instruments.
'I love all sorts of Christmas carols, but I love the Romanian Christmas carols,' Radu said. 'They are very traditional, very spiritual, focused on the real message of Christmas, on the Savior and it really softens the hearts of the people and reminds them of the real message of Christ.'
Santa Claus comes early in Romania, visiting children on Christmas Eve.
Mos Craciun, meaning 'old man Christmas,' is Santa Claus for Romanian children. He brings gifts to the young on Christmas Eve and asks them if they have been good, Radu said. The excited children share a little Christmas poem or song they prepared with Mos Cracium.
Christmas caroling is one of Radu''s favorite Romanian Christmas-time activities, he said.
'In the past, we used to receive fruits and walnuts, things that you would bring home and you would prepare a little cake from those things that you received, especially in the countryside,' Radu said. 'You would bring it to your mom or your grandma and she would make something out of it and it would be yours.'
Although it''s not required, most people prepare something to give to the carolers. In Romania, many give money rather than food.
'Kids make tons of money during Christmas-time,' Radu said. 'It''s kind of like Halloween here, you just can''t wait for the Christmas carolers to come and knock.'
Food is an important part of a Romanian Christmas.
Saloane is traditional Romanian candy that looks like a round piece of chocolate filled with nuts, caramel or jelly, Radu said.
The children decorate the Christmas tree, using saloane, which is wrapped in nice paper, by stringing the pieces together, Radu said.
Sarmale is a Romanian dish consisting of spices, pork, rice and vegetables wrapped in a cabbage leaf, Radu said. Romanians eat a lot of homemade sausages as well.
Romanians enjoy Christmas Day together as a family.
'We spend time as a family, we watch TV and we read the story recorded in the scriptures,' he said.
Radu said all he wants for Christmas is just something that will make him happy, but is unsure what that is. Romanians enjoy Christmas Day together as a family, reading about the Christmas story
'My favorite thing for Christmas, is decorating the Christmas tree with my brother and sister and hanging around our house and seeing our mom decorating and making food,' Radu said. 'I have not had a Christmas back home for five years.'