Happy Holidays everyone!!
Today we bring you Christmas news from New Zealand, in the middle of summer.
Creepy giant Santa finally retires
Every year, a giant Santa Claus appears on the corner of a building in the busiest street of Auckland, New Zealand's largest city (although Auckland is the largest city, the capital is Wellington).
Although he managed to avoid retirement in 2014, he finally retired this year.
This Santa Claus is a giant object weighing 5 tons and measuring 18 meters, created nearly 60 years ago in 1960 for the flagship store of Farmers, a major shopping center in New Zealand. It was later sold to Manukau Shopping Centre, and then sold again in 1998 for just $1, and repaired at a cost of $40,000 (about 3.2 million yen). In 2003, it was given to Whitcoulls, a large New Zealand bookstore chain, and in 2008, Whitcoulls gave it to the City of Auckland.
This Santa used to be able to move his fingers and wink, but these movements were lost during a $100,000 renovation in 2009.
In 2011, it was named the world's spookiest Christmas decoration. Admittedly, the face is a little creepy...
Since it is so huge, the maintenance costs are not insignificant. It also costs $200,000 (about 15 million yen) to display it every year. It was in danger of being retired in 2014, but a company came forward to help with the maintenance costs, and it was decided that it would be displayed until Christmas in 2019.
His retirement date will be January 10, 2020.
→ The Giant Santa is leaving Auckland
By the way, it is not yet decided what will be displayed in this Santa's place next year. Maybe a new Santa will appear again...?
Christmas message from NZ
The message from the NZ Herald (a daily newspaper published in Auckland, New Zealand) is a photo of the Pohutukawa flower, also known as the New Zealand Christmas tree. By the way, although it is not easy to find, Pohutukawa produces honey that has been presented to Queen Elizabeth.
Popular New Zealand media, NZ Stuff, also sent out a message along with photos of New Zealand's Christmas trees.
And Air NZ is also pohutukawa...!
On Christmas morning, December 25th, New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern posted a video to the Twitter account of the New Zealand Labour Party, of which she is leader.
"My request to you is that after watching this video (laughs), everyone put down your smartphones, get away from social media, and spend quality time with your friends, family, and loved ones."
He sent out a message saying:
🎄 🎅 A special Christmas message from the Prime Minister @jacindaardern ⬇ pic.twitter.com/P9cQ9vjq7f
— New Zealand Labour (@nzlabour) December 24, 2019
December 26th is Boxing Day
The day after Christmas, December 26th, is Boxing Day, which originally started in the UK and is a public holiday in many Commonwealth countries. It is also a statutory holiday in New Zealand, and people who have to work on this day will receive 1.5 times the usual salary.
When we hear the word "boxing," the first thing that comes to mind is the sport of boxing, but it is said that Boxing Day originated from the fact that servants who had to work on Christmas Day would receive a gift box called a "Christmas Box" on the following day, the 26th, and have the day off.
Today's Boxing Day is the biggest sale day of the year! It's like the "Black Friday" after Thanksgiving that has recently become popular in Japan, and the streets are bustling with shoppers.
Christmas in New Zealand is different from Japan in that it is the biggest and most important event of the year, celebrated by family and relatives. It may be similar to New Year's in Japan.
We hope you all have a wonderful Christmas and New Year!
