Here in the U.S., we have warm, fuzzy Christmas traditions including Santa Claus and Christmas trees, but other countries around the world have traditions that will make you wonder whether they may have gotten Christmas mixed up with Halloween. From children-eating cats and holiday demons, there are extra points in your stocking if your holiday traditions are as unique as these!

1. Ukraine

In Ukraine, Christmas trees are traditionally decorated with fake spiders and their webs, as they are considered to be symbols of good luck. The tradition was born from a Ukrainian legend about a widow who lived in a shack with her children. One year, the family was finally able to put up a Christmas tree, but they did not have enough money to decorate it. On Christmas morning, the children of the household awoke to find their new tree decorated with the silver and gold webs of some thoughtful spiders.

2. Sweden

Since 1966, the Swedish town of Gävle has celebrated Christmas by placing a large, straw goat with horns and red trim in the middle of the town square. That’s the official tradition, anyway. The unofficial tradition is for arsonists to light the poor yule goat on fire, as the townspeople try — and fail — to save it.

3. Czechoslovakia

For women in Czechoslovakia, Christmas determines their love prospects for the following year. On Christmas Day, each woman stands with her back to the door of her house and throws a shoe over her shoulder. If the shoe lands with the heel toward the door, it means the woman will remain single for another year.

4. Japan

Forget the ham, casseroles and gingerbread. In Japan, Christmas dinner means one simple thing: Kentucky Fried Chicken. Yes, even though few Japanese citizens actually celebrate the Christmas holiday, people all over the country flock to KFC on Christmas Day, after the company launched its hugely successful Christmas meal campaign in 1974.

5. Germany and Austria

Sometimes, knowing that jolly old Saint Nick is watching isn't enough to get children to behave. That's where Krampus, the Christmas devil, comes in. The half-goat, half-demon supposedly haunts streets around the world, looking for misbehaving children and punishing them with lashes from a bundle of birch twigs before dragging them down into the underworld. The anti-Santa bears horns, dark hair and fangs and carries a chain covered with bells. The name Krampus comes for the German word krampen, which means claw, and is said to be the son of Hel, a character in Norse mythology who rules over the underworld. Merry Christmas.

6. Italy

In Italy, children wait anxiously for an old witch to slide down their chimneys. Flying around the world on a broomstick, la Befana arrives on Epiphany Eve in January and brings candy and presents to the children who have behaved that year. For the naughty children, she leaves lumps of coal — but, being a forgiving witch, she often leaves sweet “coal” made from black sugar. La Befana comes from a Christian legend about an old lady who was asked by the Three Wise Men to lead them to the stable where baby Jesus lay in a manger. La Befana, busy cleaning her house, declined their request but soon realized she’d made a terrible mistake and set out on her own with a bag of gifts. She was unable to find the manger and is still searching the world to this day.

7. Venezuela

In the Venezuelan capital, Caracas, it is tradition for every citizen to ride to the early morning Christmas Mass on roller skates. Streets are closed off for an entire week leading up to Christmas Day until 8 a.m. so that roller skaters traveling to mass are the only commuters out on the roads. Venezuelan children often tie string to their big toes and hang the other end out the window so that passing skaters can give the strings a friendly tug.

8. Iceland

Icelandic Christmases offer a great incentive for hard work leading up to the holiday. Work hard and you won’t be eaten by the Yule Cat. The Cat must be presented with an offering of new clothing, as a way to show off the clothes and prove that you worked hard enough to ensure you could afford them. If the Cat does not receive an offering from you, it will turn into a carnivorous, demon cat and gobble you up. No word on if this has ever actually happened before.

9. Norway

Hiding all the brooms on Christmas Eve is a very old Norwegian tradition. When the custom began, people believed that evil spirits and witches came out on this night looking for brooms to ride on so, naturally, the hid them in the safest places they could find. Today, Norwegian women still hide their brooms, mops and even brushes before heading off to bed, and men sometimes step outside to fire a shotgun and scare the witches off.

10. Finland

In Finland, Christmas means remembrance of the dead. Many families set an extra place at the Christmas dinner table for each relative that they believe has come to visit. The dead are revered as the guests of honor and served the very best food and drink. When nighttime arrives, Finnish families continue to honor their guests by offering them their beds and sleeping on the floor.

Enjoy your holiday, and embrace those strange Christmas rituals of yours!