Europeans are still shocked at the things we Australians do for Christmas. They can't get their heads around going to the beach in boardshorts and a Santa hat. They can't picture sitting in the sun and tearing through a big pile of prawns with seafood cocktail sauce on December 25.
They can't gel the ideas of summer holidays and Christmas cheer. The two don't go together. And they certainly don't see seven-odd hours of watching Test cricket as a reasonable use of Boxing Day.
That's an Australian Christmas. That's the kind of thing we like to do. But if you come from the northern half of the world it's just wrong.
And the thing is, those people might be right.
It's cold in Europe at the moment. The temperatures have been steadily dropping as the Christmas decorations have been steadily going up. It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas.
I've been in Seville, Spain, the last month or so and the changes there have been abrupt. It started in mid-November when the area around the city's huge cathedral began its transformation into a Christmas market. Stall after stall went up, more and more each day, until eventually they all threw their shutter doors open and began selling their wares.
There's a buzz in the air in Europe.
Over in London, the Christmas markets are open. Down by the Thames at Southbank people huddle on park benches under the lights of the London Eye, laughing condensation into the air as they sip their gluhwein and watch the holiday crowds go by.
They're all here for the stalls that sell everything from warm gloves to cold beer.
Some people browse through the stocking-fillers, others eat bratwurst from the German stand, others pose for touristy photos with Big Ben shimmering in the background.
It's Christmas here, you know it without even looking. It's in the bite of cold in the air, in the smell of wood-smoke at night, in the cheer on the faces of commuters and visitors.
The same thing is happening across the continent. In Prague the snow-covered city squares fill each evening with shoppers and revellers. The markets in Munich are just as busy. Same in Paris, and Rome, and Stockholm.
This is Christmas in Europe, and it's something we'll never be able to replicate back home.
We've come up with our own version, our own traditions, which have a quirky charm to them, but you only have to spend a little time in Europe in December to see Christmas the way it was intended to be.
The cold just works. Christmas should have snow. It should have beanies and gloves and scarves.
Read more: Why Europe does Christmas better than us
