With the Christmas holidays upon us comes the realisation that one must spend several days with members of the family.

Now, in times gone by this may not have been such a major issue but these days some couples are finding that the family get-together is something they are not quite accustomed to.

In fact many couples will be finding ways to avoid the family get-together altogether. So, what else are you likely to be doing?

Go to a wedding 
It is highly likely most of us will be attending a wedding over the holidays. Due to the lack of available dates at venues the holiday period could well be renamed ‘The new Asian Wedding Season’. 

Shazia, aged 32, says she is attending three weddings this year.“Over the holidays our household is going to be busy. Everyone is off and it is great time to have a wedding.

“People look more forward to a winter wedding. I know people who have got married on Christmas Day and New Year’s Day.

“It is okay for men. They don’t need to worry about clothes and accessories. We women do!”

Get ready for the sales
Thanks to the internet you can spend the whole of Christmas Day shopping. This is a  common past time for many people who will spend hours researching the latest offers or grabbing bargains from the comfort of their bed setee. 

Tahir aged, 43 says: “I hate how my wife and her cousins go into a shopping frenzy. The weekend after Christmas is the worst. They get me up early in the morning and we rush around buying clothes and then spend the next two weeks giving them back because they were the wrong size. Sorry, but women are the worst at this!”

Cook a leg of lamb
Forget the turkey – a leg of lamb is what you need and you need it fast. It will set you back around £20 (slightly more if it is a HMC one!). If you begin cooking early in the morning you should have it all ready and served in time for the Queen’s speech. 

Mum Hanifa said: “You could call it a Christmas tradition of sorts. We have a leg of lamb with all the trimmings every single Christmas. We call it ‘A Christmas dinner’ but I get some of cousins coming over who are all happy eating the food but then say..I shouldn’t celebrate Christmas. That doesn’t stop them eating the food though, does it?”

Go to the in-laws
You might find yourself being dragged over to the in-laws on Christmas Day or to a hastily arranged ‘dawat’.
Dad-of three Faisal told us: “I do try to get out of it every year but I can’t. You don’t have any excuse not to go. I hate it because my father-in-law sits there and talks about how much money everyone else is earning.”

Go to work
A large number of us will be going to work over the holidays. Without taxis and takeaways the British economy may well come to a standstill on Christmas Day. The Christmas period is the busiest time of year for takeaways now. 
One owner told us: “We are open from 7pm until midnight on Christmas Day. I would rather stay closed but our customers, the majority who are not Asian, want us to stay open. We are just providing a service really.”

Host a charity event
A good time to hold the charity dinner and raise money for a good cause. Members of the Asian community are one of the most active in organising charity dinners and events. Shafqat says he went to five events last year. 

“I have already three in my dairy for the holidays. People love to organise charity events at this time of year because everyone is off.”

De-friend people on Facebook
This should not be on this list but somehow it is. A generation addicted to social media means some folk will be spending the holidays on social media. 

Farook told us: “I know people who put ‘Facebook’ on the CV where it says ‘What hobbies do you have?’. I know it is a bit sad but it is a pastime and the holidays are perfect for de-friending people. Last year I de-friended 125 people. It is like an end of year clear-out.”

Join a gym
One of the most obvious things people do at the close of the year is join a gym or look to exercise a little more. For some people this is a yearly occurrence. 

Tahira says: “First of all I have to find a women-only gym that suits me and secondly I have to ensure none of husband’s friends are at the same gym…because he wouldn’t like that. I did join last year but only found time to go on a few occasions.”