I stayed up well past midnight on Christmas Eve (eeeeek, it's almost 4am)

so brekkie (brekkie = first meal of the day!) was around noon - 2 egg omelette with cooked king prawns on top, followed by yoghurt & fruit, instead of my normal muesli with fruit & boiled egg.

4 hours later I was visiting friends carrying a lovely cheese & crackers & we ate them & some other nibblies, including smoked salmon on toast - yum! until it was time for dinner.

I drank water or orange juice, the host opened his new bottle of a very expensive whiskey, a present from his very rich brother, & he & the other guest enjoyed a nip, while the hostess drank wine, then we settled down to a lovely light dinner of the lunch leftovers - salad, sliced turkey, sliced ham, followed by fruit & the most wonderful home-made apple pie with thick cream. YUM.

Host's children & grandchild live interstate, the other guest had lunch with her mother who lives in a nursing home, & my sister lives in Brazil, so we gathered for dinner.

Australian Christmas meals are normally larger when all the family attend - they traditionally include a hot stuffed turkey, leg of ham, roast chickens, seafood, many salads, cheeses, an assortment of desserts, soft drinks, wine & beer. Nibblie stuff is always scattered around for folks to pick up when needed (? - wanted?) Meals are often taken in the back yard or on a beach or riverbank etc.

Mid summer is really not the time for elaborate cooking, but that does not stop traditionalists.

sandra