On the day after Christmas Day, December 25, we celebrate a holiday called Boxing Day on December 26. That means that you are getting a day off from your English courses in Vancouver on December 26. Boxing Day is originally from the United Kingdom and is celebrated in many countries which used to belong to the British Empire. December 26 is also known as Saint Stephen’s Day, Day of Goodwill, or Second Day of Christmastide. Instead of Boxing Day, some European countries, such as Germany, Hungary, the Netherlands, Poland, and Scandinavia celebrate December 26 as a Second Christmas Day.
We have some ideas for you on what you can do on your free day. The term Boxing Day comes from the tradition of receiving a Christmas box which is a present so it is related to shopping. Similar to Black Friday, Boxing Day is referred to as a shopping holiday in many English speaking countries such as Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the United Kingdom. So it is a great day for you to go shopping because there will be a lot of special sales and good deals.
If you are interested in hockey you can also spend your Boxing Day at the Rogers Arena in Vancouver to experience the Hockey Canada World Juniors Championships. At 1 pm you can watch the Czech Republic versus Switzerland and at 5 pm you can watch Canada versus Denmark.
There are still a lot of Christmas attractions happening on Boxing Day. You can enjoy Christmas lights, outdoor decorations, glowing plants, live entertainment and fun for all ages at different locations such as Langley Glow Christmas, Festival of Lights at VanDusen Garden, Lights at Lafarge around Coquitlam’s Lafarge Lake, Christmas at Canada Place, Bright Nights at Stanley Park, Aurora Winter Festival at Concord Pacific Place, Heritage Christmas at Burnaby Village, and Holiday Heights at Bloedel Conservatory at Queen Elizabeth Park.
Enjoy your free day and have a nice Boxing Day.