Hey there my Freedom Seeking Friend,

I just wanted to pop in to wish you a wonderful Christmas.

I hope wherever you are in the world you’re surrounded by family or friends and are looking forward to a fun filled Christmas Day. 🥳🎄🎉

Just in case you’re playing Trivial Pursuit or something similar, here’s some quick Christmas trivia for you;

What country is credited with starting the tradition of putting up and decorating a Christmas tree?

Answer at the bottom of the newsletter!

Working Traveller News

We’re just back from a cold week in Tokyo. For a country that doesn’t celebrate Christmas, they sure know how to celebrate Christmas!

You can see my post with some of the highlights here;

Click here if you can’t see the embed post above.

I highly recommend adding a wintry few days in Tokyo at Christmas time to your bucket list. It’s a fantastic city, the Japanese are some of the friendliest people in the world and the illuminations were beautiful. So glad we went!

New Blog Posts

I’ve published some Christmassy content on the site this week.

If you’re planning future Christmas or NYE destinations you’ll enjoy these;

50 Best Christmas Cities in the World

55 Best Christmas Markets in the World

18 Best NYE Fireworks in the World

Lastly for a bit of fun…

Trivia Answer

Germany

Germany is widely credited with starting the tradition of putting up and decorating Christmas trees, a practice that dates back to the 16th century. This tradition evolved from earlier medieval customs involving evergreen boughs during the winter.

The modern concept of the Christmas tree, particularly its decoration, is believed to have originated among German Lutherans, with the first recorded evidence of a decorated tree dating from 1605 in Strasbourg. Initially adorned with simple items like apples, nuts, and paper flowers, the tradition gradually incorporated more elaborate decorations.

It spread across Europe in the 19th century, largely popularized by Queen Victoria and Prince Albert in Britain, and eventually became a central part of Christmas celebrations worldwide.

That’s All Folks

That’s it from me this week. I’ll be back next week with some tips on goal setting for real results in 2024, more details on my Zero to $10k Etsy Challenge that I’ll be starting on 1st Jan and more fun and travel frolics!

Enjoy the festive season my friend!

Merry Christmas 🎄😂🥳

Jo 😊