Shopping, barbecues and security worries

In Australia, shops stayed open late to cater for crowds of present buyers, with perfumes, toys and digital cameras among the most popular items.

Unseasonal wet weather put a dampener on backpackers' plans for a Christmas party on Sydney's Bondi Beach.

The traditional event, which normally sees celebrating tourists pack the iconic beach, has been scaled back after local authorities imposed alcohol restrictions and a hefty entrance fee last year.

Instead, England's Barmy Army of cricket fans were planning a Christmas Day barbecue on the banks of Melbourne's Yarra River ahead of the Boxing Day Test, with thousands expected to turn out despite England poor on-field form.

The mild weather proved a bonus for 800 firefighters who have been battling blazes in Victoria state for the past three weeks, allowing authorities to stand them down to enjoy Christmas Eve at home.

The mood in Indonesia was darker, with anti-terrorist police sweeping through churches ahead of Christmas services, checking for explosives amid warnings from the US and Australia of possible militant attacks.

Indonesia has deployed some 18,000 police and troops to guard churches, mosques and public venues over the festive season. Police said there was no specific threat despite the warnings.

Hotels were full and shoppers jostled in the predominantly Roman Catholic Philippines, where police and security forces were also on heightened alert over possible attacks.

There was gridlock on roads leading out of the capital Manila as families returned home to provinces and towns in time for traditional Christmas Eve mass before a midnight dinner called Noche Buena.

In Tokyo, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, now under growing pressure from the media, made a Christmas truce with the press, as journalists working at the prime minister's office presented him chocolate.

"Merry Christmas!" the journalists said in chorus, handing him the surprise present after he finished explaining a budget bill for the next fiscal year.