Are you one of those people who detest the fact that Christmas seems to come earlier every year? Does it make your blood boil to see festive-themed chocolates on the shelves from October?

And what about those Christmas cards, special offers, tinsel, and tenuously festive-themed wrappings on the least Christmassy things you can think of, all appearing in the shops from almost the day after Easter?

Okay, slight exaggeration there, but it does seem that every year no sooner have the barbecue briquettes disappeared, most supermarkets have replaced their empty spot on the shelf with something signalling the beginning of the Yuletide season...

If, like me, you think this is all getting a little out of hand, have I got a solution for you!

Australia. For the first time in over 10 years I’ve taken my Christmas break early, which means last Wednesday I departed a snowy Oxford for a Christmas Down Under.

Unfortunately the trip here involved having to spend twenty-two hours on a plane which was decked out in… (sigh) Christmas decorations.

Don’t get me wrong. I love the whole Christmas thing, tinsel, stars, baubles, lights, I’m suckered in by it all just like everybody else.

But as I sat there reflecting on the extortionate price I’d paid for my seat on the plane, I couldn’t help but think if the airline spent a little less on decorations, perhaps I wouldn’t have needed a loan to afford a seat home to see my family.

Anyway, back to why Australia is the perfect haven for us folk tired of the ‘month-long’ celebration the shops have turned Christmas ‘Day’ into.

Today is December 15, and, yes, the big shopping centres down here have their decorations up.

Yes, Santa’s being inappropriately overused on commercials, (the last advert I saw the fat feller on was for car tyres, because as we all know, Santa is a big user of car tyres). But the biggest difference I’ve noticed down here is how low-key Christmas appears to be.

Maybe it’s because I’m at the beach and people here are more concerned with catching a little sun or going for a swim, rather than spending time indoors panic buying.

Or maybe it’s because the Aussies are known for being incredibly laid back; whatever, the whole Christmas thing just seems to be a lot more chilled down here.

I know to some of you it may seem a little wrong, but if you are looking to jump off the ‘holidays are comin’ commercial juggernaut that Christmas has become, being Down Under at this time of year is a nice escape.

Mind you, with only a week and a bit to go, the festive feel is beginning to kick in.

Within the next few days we’ll put up the tree, and buy the all-important ‘fake snow in a can’.

Sure it’s over 30C outside, but as every Aussie knows, it wouldn’t be Christmas without using stencils and fake snow to create windows any Dickens fan would be proud of.