If there’s one thing the German-speaking world does right, it’s Christmas time. Christmas markets pop up everywhere selling lots of things you don’t need. Glühwein (hot, spiced wine) becomes available on every street corner, as do roasted chestnuts, to warm you on cold days. Twinkling little lights hang above all the shopping streets (OK, the Swiss seem to have gotten this part slightly wrong – but I’ll address this in a later post). Zimtsterne, Magenbrot, and other Christmas delicacies show up at all the stores.
Another nice thing about the Christmas season in this part of the world is that there aren’t any of those annoying right-wing bible-beaters complaining about how Christmas has become too commercial, or how we’ve all forgotten its “true meaning.” In Zurich, the baby Jesus is too busy running the indoor market at the train station to care about whether you’re celebrating his birthday in the correct fashion.
Today we strolled through the newly-opened Christmas markets around town with our visiting friends from Geneva (who, amazingly, had never been to a Christmas market before). We ate Chäs-Chüechli (unpronounceable Swiss cheese pie) and drank Glühwein while browsing through the little market stalls. I think about half of the inhabitants of Zurich were doing the same thing. The only thing missing was the snow.
I’ve always wanted to go to a “real” christmas market! Great pictures:)
You wrote:
“If there’s one thing the German-speaking world does right, it’s Christmas time.”
Right on! This is our second “holiday season” (and I use the term “holiday season” quite loosly since it’s about 30 degrees C right now) in KL, Malaysia after spending 5 years in Munich, Germany and I still miss the Christmas markets.
In fact, I miss them so much that we went to the German-Austrian (I don’t know why there were no Swiss involved) Christmas bazaar in one of our local hotels. It was not the same. There were sausage, but I think they were chicken (Malaysia is a Muslim country) and there was absolutely no Gluehwein. A Christmas market is not a Christmas market without Gluehwein (and snow, and freezing cold, wet feet, and frozen fingers).
Yesterday we took our first ride on the carosel at the Weihnachtsmarkt in the neighborhood, it was too early in the morning for Gluhwein but just barely. I look forward to hearing more about your German Holidays….
Enjoy
Maybe it will snow.. soon…? I love xmas markets!!! And gluwein and those gingerbread bretzles… yum.