If you are fed up with staying home at Christmas and doing the same old things then why not have a complete change and spend Christmas in the largely Christian area of Mumbai. People all over India, whether or not they are Christians, celebrate Christmas. For the mainly Catholic Christians in Mumbai Christmas week is very special and often involves a week long parade of people singing carols. Groups travel to neighbouring villages to sing their carols and tell the story of Jesus to those who want to listen. When you apply for Indian visas, give yourself two to three months before the festival to get the visa – without that document you won’t be allowed into the country. Christmas Eve is especially important to Indian Christians and for most of them midnight mass is the most important service of the year. In India the churches are decked out with poinsettia flowers and candles for the Christmas celebrations. After mass there is usually feasting, consisting of a variety of curries and snacks and people will then exchange presents with their friends and extended family members.
It’s easy to get Indian visas these days because you can simply apply for the document online. You shouldn’t apply any earlier than three months before you plan to travel or you could invalidate the visa. Make sure that when you are ready to make your online you have all the required documents to hand, along with a couple of stamped addressed envelopes and two passport size photographs.
Don’t forget that when you are travelling abroad to countries that require visitors to have an entry visa you will need to have at least six months and a couple of clean pages left in your passport. Never travel to countries like India without the requisite visa or you could be refused entry to the country.
At Christmas time stores across India are decked out to celebrate the celebration and one can find Christmas trees, adornments and christmas gifts in abundance. Children of those families that do celebrate Christmas in India, both Christian and non-Christian, also believe in Father Christmas. In India the aged man does not appear on a sleigh along with his reindeers , in a cart as he goes to children’s homes. In areas akin to Mumbai you’ll discover that a lot of the bigger businesses have Father Christmas in residence for the children.
source:http://articles.submityourarticle.com/Travel_&_Leisure
