Christmas is a big holiday in Germany, but it felt a lot different than the Christmas season in the U.S. I noticed Christmas decorations up in stores well before Thanksgiving which isn’t too different from home but it still felt a lot less “commercial” than it does in the States, though that might be because I was so removed from it. I had no access to TV to see commercials and there wasn’t a reason to go to a shopping center. I also didn’t hear as much Christmas music (again, maybe I just wasn’t going to the right places). I was really excited to go to Germany in the fall because of the Christmas markets during November and December. Over the last 4 weeks I’ve been to Christmas markets (called Weihnachtsmarkts in German) in Esslingen, Tübingen, and Munich. I also went to the International Chocolate Festival in Tübingen as a bonus! Every market was set up outdoors with vendors selling typical German food like bratwurst, crepes, and glühwein- Lots of glühwein. Glühwein is mulled wine which they sell everywhere during the Christmas season. When you buy it at a market it comes in a mug and you also pay for the Pfand (like a bottle deposit). It’s usually a few euros and you can decide whether to keep the mug as a souvenir or return it and get your money back. It was very strange being able to walk around with a mug of mulled wine after growing up in a state with an open container law. The markets had stands set up selling a huge variety of items like Christmas ornaments, scarves, wood carvings, and figurines. Nothing back home comes close to a German Christmas market but they did remind me me a little bit of Christmas in Edgartown because of all the Christmas themed activity and vendors selling there crafts. Esslingen has one of the most famous markets in Germany and was also my favorite! In the first section they have vendors like all the other markets but the rest is a medieval market. All the performers are dressed as though they’re in the middle ages and there have different activities such as archery and wood carving. They even sold medieval items like amor and swords. Tübingen had its International Chocolate Festival in December that covered almost the entire Altstadt. It was a little expensive but the free samples were delicious! Several vendors sold hot chocolate except it was very different from what I’m used to back home. This was thick melted chocolate served to you in a small ice cream cone. Tübingen’s Christmas market was the next weekend and was even larger than the chocolate festival. It felt a lot more personal than the markets in Esslingen and Munich because many of the vendors were locals and there were a lot of local groups selling food and drinks as fundraisers. Munich was the last market I went to. Surprisingly, it was a lot smaller than the others despite being in such a large city. It was more spread out but with fewer stands. Many of the vendors were selling the same things so it didn’t feel as unique as the others. I loved seeing the large Christmas tree in front of the Neues Rathaus (new town hall) and of course they were selling bratwurst and glühwein so I got to have one more before I head home for the holidays.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorHi, I'm Michaela! This blog will follow my adventures in Germany for the next 11 months (September-July). Archives
January 2020
Categories |