ITALY is host to the Vatican City, the headquarters of Catholicism. Catholicism is the largest Christian denomination in the world and Christmas of course is the most colorful celebration of the year. It expands from Advent which starts four weeks before December 25 and ends on the second Sunday of January which is the Feast of Epiphany. During Christmas at the Vatican City, there are masses but the most climactic of them all occurs during the eve of December 24 at St. Peter’s Square where Pope Benedict XVI himself delivers homily.

Aside from that, in churches all over Italy particularly in the parishes, a prominent family stands each week during Advent to sponsor the Advent candle. The family will together light the candle and place it in a wreath at the front of the church where it remains lighted every mass until December 25. Also during this period, priests are exhorted to wear the purple garment which is symbolic of Advent or preparation for the birth anniversary of the Messiah.

Then nine dawns before Christmas Eve, people are waking up every morning to hear mass at 4 a.m. These masses are said to contemplate and complete the pre-Christmas vigil. Temperatures here in Italy particularly in Rome, Milan and Florence, tend to be at -3 degrees Celsius during that time or even lower than that so people here must be wearing layers and layers of clothing in enduring the whole morning mass. Just make sure that if you’re a visitor here, you wear what the locals are wearing so you can overcome the cold.

Visitors here usually have their own vacation homes to rent during Christmas. It is advisable to book vacation homes ahead before you come on vacation here before they become to be filled up. To do this, you need to have a visa to come here if you come outside Europe. There are reputable travel agencies online which can assist you if you need help in securing reservations for vacation homes here. Among these travel agencies are Expedia and Travelocity. They have 24-hour staff that can help you every way they can wherever time zone you are located in, whether you’re in North America or Europe or even Mexico or Israel.

Never doubt the number of people who come here every Christmas because there are Catholics all over the world from Africa to Tonga, from Alaska to Greenland. Each year, each of these countries and territories send contingents to hear mass at St. Peter’s Square at Christmas Eve. That’s why people in Italy are eager to welcome them every Christmas because tourism will surely be boosted in this city. Anyway, people here, particularly the children, also do caroling during Christmas just like they do the rest of the world. But they particularly target vacation homes such as the ones near the Mediterranean areas because they know that foreign tourists are generous to Italian kids during Christmas time. Italian kids are as sweet as ever not just during caroling season but all throughout the year and it is this virtue that foreigners admire the most.